From Dunedin to Waitaki for Food, Wine and a Vineyard Stay
A wine weekend from Dunedin can begin with the sea and end among the vines. Heading north through coastal Otago to Ōamaru, then inland towards Duntroon, brings together three pleasures that belong naturally on the same journey. There is food made in the region, a town built in pale limestone, and Pinot Noir and Chardonnay grown on the slopes of the Waitaki Valley.
Clos Ostler lies in North Otago, near Duntroon. Our published travel guide allows approximately two and a half hours by car from Dunedin, before stops. That makes the estate a destination for an overnight escape, with enough time along the way for lunch, a walk through Ōamaru and an evening above the vineyard. Travellers arriving at Dunedin Airport should allow separately for the airport leg and their chosen route.
A coastal beginning and an Ōamaru lunch
The northward journey offers a change of pace before wine enters the picture. Moeraki and Hampden provide a coastal interlude, while Ōamaru brings the region’s food producers and architectural history into the same afternoon. Dunedin Airport’s Waitaki Way itinerary follows this broad progression from the city and coast to Ōamaru, before turning inland into the valley.
Whitestone Cheese’s Diner & Deli at 469 Thames Highway is a particularly fitting stop for a food-led visit. Its menu centres on the company’s cheeses, and the deli offers hand-cut selections and accompaniments. Lunch here gives a familiar New Zealand name a local setting. The current menu and service hours are available directly from Whitestone, whose Monday offering differs from the rest of the week.
There is time afterwards for the streets of Ōamaru’s Heritage Precinct. Pale stone gives the buildings their distinctive presence, with galleries and shops bringing life to the historic streetscape. Limestone becomes something encountered at human scale, shaped into façades and doorways, before it appears again in the wider vineyard landscape.
Inland towards a different expression of Otago wine
North of Ōamaru, the route turns inland onto State Highway 83 towards Duntroon and Kurow. The sea falls behind and the Waitaki Valley opens ahead. For a visitor familiar with Central Otago Pinot Noir, this is an opportunity to discover another winegrowing landscape within the broader Otago area. Waitaki has its own regional identity, with small vineyards occupying particular slopes and terraces.
At Clos Ostler, the vineyard’s boundary is itself part of the story. Large limestone boulders were assembled into the enclosing wall when the vineyard was planted. Ancient fossils remain embedded in the stone. The clos can be understood through something as small as a shell preserved in a boulder, then through the sweep of the north-facing vineyard behind it.
This is a family-owned monopole, with the estate’s wines grown within one vineyard. Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and Pinot Gris offer different expressions of that place. Following the landscape from Ōamaru’s stone buildings to the wall around the vines makes the geological history more tangible, while leaving each location its own story.
A wine destination with substance behind the scenery
For travellers seeking some of New Zealand’s finest wines, a beautiful setting becomes more compelling when the bottles have earned attention in their own right. Clos Ostler EOS Pinot Noir 2022 received 97 points and Platinum at the Decanter World Wine Awards 2026. Decanter subsequently included it in its international selection of 15 top-scoring Pinot Noirs to discover.
That recognition offers a specific starting point for exploring the estate. Chardonnay deserves time alongside Pinot Noir, especially for visitors who enjoy discovering how different varieties respond to one vineyard. The Journal’s accounts of whole-bunch pressing and the 2025 Chardonnay follow the wine into the cellar, where pressing, fermentation and maturation become part of the wider story of the slope.
An evening above the vines
The Vineyard Suites make it possible to stay within this landscape. Each is designed for two, with a private deck, barbecue and outdoor bath. A welcome bottle of Clos Ostler wine and regional provisions are included. After the coast, lunch and the journey inland, there is pleasure in letting the evening settle around a single place.
Clos Ostler is a private working vineyard. Guests are welcomed through Vineyard Suite stays and selected hosted events, with arrangements made directly with the estate. The accommodation page brings together reservations, inclusions and travel information.
For a longer stay, the country around Duntroon opens into fossils, rock art and the valley’s wider history. For a shorter escape, the journey already has a satisfying shape. Dunedin, Ōamaru and the Waitaki bring food, architecture and fine wine into one North Otago experience, ending with the vineyard outside the window.
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