Ata Rangi

Ata Rangi is a small, family-owned organic winery known for its Pinot Noir, located on the southern tip of New Zealand's North Island.

Ata Rangi was founded in 1980 by Clive Paton. The first vines were planted in a small rocky sheep paddock on the outskirts of Martinborough village. Clive's sister Alison soon bought the adjoining block, and in 1986 Clive's partner Phyll Patty acquired a stake in the business after moving from Marlborough, where she worked as an oenologist. 

Forty years later, they are still working tirelessly to build Ata Rangi's enviable reputation as one of the most respected Pinot Noir producers in the New World. Today Alison Paton runs the day-to-day operations, while Helen Masters makes the wines, assisted by vineyard manager Braden Crosby.

The Ata Rangi team farms around 32 hectares of land across 14 vineyards. The local Ata Rangi vineyards achieved organic status in 2014. The winemaking team does all the work in the vineyard by hand, from pruning in winter to harvesting in autumn.

Ata Rangi's winemaking philosophy is a simple, traditional approach that focuses on finding the true expression of the site. For them, Martinborough wines have a real depth of flavour, texture and length. It is these qualities that they pay particular attention to in each new vintage. 

They strive for balance in all their wines and therefore use thoughtful winemaking techniques, such as ageing in whole clusters and barrels, to ensure that the expression of the vineyard remains at the forefront.