Mt Rosa Winery and Tiger Woods – the perfect score
Owners of a Central Otago vineyard are ‘charging their glasses’ with news that a bottle of their wine has received the highest price ever paid for a bottle of New Zealand wine.
A bottle of 2008 Mt Rosa Pinot Noir, signed by golf sensation Tiger Woods, sold for just over NZ$10,000 at a charity auction in China to raise money for the Christchurch earthquake reconstruction.
The jeroboam of wine – containing the equivalent of about four litres of wine - was donated by New Zealand company JD Brothers and Mt Rosa Wines Ltd. The auction resulted in a golf and wine lover parting with RMB* 50,000 or just over NZ$10,000.
David Wu and Jeff Crawley of JD Brothers, an international trading company specialising in exported and imported products between New Zealand and China, and trade representatives for Mt Rosa, approached Tiger Woods at the Chinese Golf Open in 2011.
They asked him to contribute his support by putting his signature on the premium New Zealand wine in order to aid earthquake reconstruction.
Mt Rosa co-owner Jeremy Railton said he was honoured that Tiger Woods agreed to sign their bottle, and the team at Mt Rosa was ‘thrilled’ that one of their wines had achieved the sale record.
“It’s pretty amazing that we’re able to add this accolade to our name, but even more than that we’re stoked that the money is going to such an amazing cause,” he said.
Mt Rosa Winery is a stunning boutique vineyard located in the renowned ‘sunny end’ of Gibbston Valley near Queenstown in New Zealand’s South Island.
Only 25 jeroboams of 2008 Mt Rosa Pinot Noir were ever made.
Mr Railton said as with all top pinots in the world, the Mt Rosa Pinot was aged in French oak barrels for 11 months before being bottled.
“The wine has redcurrant and wild exotic fruit aromatics, followed by a warm rich and spicy texture with lively acidity and freshness and a lasting finish,” he said.
Patrick English, New Zealand Consul General and Trade Commission of Guangzhou, said the wine was of a high standard.
“The wine is a very good wine, but the added value was the signature – a golf enthusiast bought it,” he said. “The wine auction and fundraising events gained great support from the Chinese community and enterprises and we really appreciate this.”
The sale of the wine added to the total of NZ$397,398 raised at the charity event in Guangzhou. The total funding from Guangzhou, Shanghai and Beijing fundraising events will go to earthquake relief. Chinese companies such as Huawei and China Southern Airlines respectively donated NZ$250,000 and NZ$100,000.
*RMB – Renminbi, the official currency of China.