Behind The Name "AUBURN"

The Central Otago landscape is etched in rugged beauty, sharp contours, dramatic seasonality and long shadows steeped in golden light. The core of this landscape, however, revolves around a singular colour that finds a home throughout the year. That colour is auburn.

The region also possesses a rich history, borne of a gold rush that set the foundations for its British heritage. No more evident than through the naming of the subregions or stations of Lowburn, Northburn, Parkburn, Bannockburn and so on; the “burn” suffix referring to a stream or creek in the Gaelic language. Adopting this heritage, we also chose to use the “burn” suffix and partner it with Au, the chemical symbol for gold.

Auburn. Palette of the Central Otago landscape, palate of Central Otago heritage.

The logo is open to interpretation, but its roots bore three fruitful metaphors:

• The first represents the Central Otago winegrowing region itself; Cromwell acting as the central focal point, and the surrounding subregions satellites that comprise a circular perimeter.
• The second looks at the Riesling grape as the base element, analogous to Hydrogen with a core nucleus surrounded by an electron.
• The third delves into the mystery of winemaking (part art, part science), with reference to alchemy; the target symbol a contemporary version of the symbol for gold in alchemy.

However, we seem to hear of a new meaning every time we speak with our Riesling patrons and encourage your creative juices to flow...!