Our Story
Toku toa, he toa rangatira
My bravery is inherited fromthe chiefs who were my forebears
Our story begins at our home, Te Tauihu, at the top of the South Island in New Zealand.
We belong to Māori-owned, family-owned business, Wakatū Incorporation. A business comprising approximately 250 families who descend from the customary Māori land owners of the Nelson, Motueka and Golden Bay regions. A business established to protect, preserve and enhance the land of the original owners.
Inspired by our ancestors, the original providores, trading the fruits of their labour from the gardens and forests of Te Tau Ihu, and with the growing popularity of Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc, we planted vines on the lands, and the rest is history.
Our first bottle of Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc was produced in 2006. Today, we produce over 1.5million bottles of award-winning Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc. Rated a Best Value Wine in Wine Spectator eight times, our Kono Sauvignon Blanc is a true expression of the stunning Marlborough region.
Our wine is produced at our home, the Tohu Winery, located in Marlborough, New Zealand.
Everything we do today, we do with a better future in mind.
Kaitiakitanga, guardianship, stems from the responsibility people feel for the places, objects and legacies of utmost importance to them. At the heart of this is a holistic understanding of our place in the world - how we shape the landscapes around us and how those landscapes shape us. This informs how we interact with the natural environment, including all the other species we share the Earth with.
Kaitiakitanga is also about the social or human legacy and our obligations to the collectives of which we are members. This is our family, community, town, city, region, nationality and culture. It is our duty to uphold the values, traditions, customs and heritage of the people we belong to. This could be maintaining intergenerational knowledge, practising family recipes, caring for heirlooms or protecting important records and knowledge.
Practising kaitiakitanga is about awareness. Considering the consequences of our behaviour and the impact that this will have on people, place and the planet. It is an individual and ethical way of thinking about our actions and duties.
It is cyclical - reciprocity that blends with all aspects of the human experience.
Being mindful of balance and accepting that it is not someone else's problem but ours - that's kaitiakitanga.
When the domain of the natural world is sustained, so too is the future of humanity.
This is our mantra for life. We are custodians of our place in the world. All dedicated to our lands, vineyards, nature, people and culture..
Everything we do today we do with a better future in mind
We are lovers of life, our culture and each other.
We are each others’ strength and reason for being.
We dream each others dreams and help make them happen.
Wherever we are in the world we cherishour Taonga - our gift of belonging.