VISIT OUR NEW LUNA WEBSITE - www.lunaestate.co.nz

In 2014 the new owners of Murdoch James purchased a second vineyard in Martinborough, Luna Estate, and in 2016 the Luna Estate cellar door opened and the first wines under the new Luna Estate label were launched.   The new Luna Estate site is on the famed Martinborough terraces, and the silty clay/loam top soil sits above deep gravels of ancient, alluvial river terraces.   This site provides a complete contrast to the ancient marine seabed base of the Murdoch James site, with layers of clay loam, limestone and greywacke.    

The successful establishment of the Luna brand led us to consider the future direction of the Murdoch James brand.   After much deliberation, we decided to focus on the new Luna Estate brand and gradually phase out the Murdoch James brand.  

The original Murdoch James site in Dry River Road is now known as “Luna Blue Rock” and the new vineyard site in Puruatanga Road is known as “Luna Eclipse”.   Wines are produced from both blocks, offering a range of Estate and Single Vineyard wines which are available for purchase through our Luna cellar door and website.   www.lunaestate.co.nz  

This was an exciting development, and allowed us to bring together two of Martinborough’s most unique growing sites under the one label.  

What does this mean for you?

Firstly we would like to thank you for supporting Murdoch James and hope that you will continue to enjoy the wines we produce under the Luna label.   

The Murdoch James cellar door closed on 31 January 2018, and no new wines will be produced under this label.    

The cellardoor and restaurant has moved to the new Luna Estate site in Puruatanga Road.  The original Murdoch James venue and gardens are now known as the Blue Rock Venue and are available to hire for weddings and private functions only.   

We welcome you to visit us and try our new wines at Luna Eclipse, 133 Puruatanga Road, Martinborough.    

Thanks for your past support and we look forward to an exciting future. 

Situated on the Dry River terraces, the Blue Rock Vineyard enjoys premium grape growing soil conditions with a mixture of calciferous lime, clay and river silts with a high mineral content. The action of the Australian tectonic plate, scraping the bed of the Pacific plate millions of years ago, gave rise to the limestone rich hills of Blue Rock.

This unique site combined with Martinborough’s warm days and cool nights, forms the character or ‘place’ that is reflected in all of our wines.

In 1986 the first Pinot Noir and Syrah vines on the historic Saleyard’s Block located on the Martinborough Terraces. Early competition success established the winery’s reputation.

In 1998, the area of vines under cultivation was expanded with the purchase of the old Blue Rock Vineyard, located 8 kilometer’s south of Martinborough Village on the Dry River terraces, a vineyard also first planted in the mid-1980’s, with mainly Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Cabernet Sauvignon and Riesling vines. More recent plantings of Syrah, Pinot Gris and new Pinot clones have increased the area under vines to 25 hectares.

The vineyard operates on a bio-sustainable basis with the objective of capturing the true ‘terroir’.