WineNZ Summer 18-19 (1)

wine people’s places | feature
On the outskirts of
Cromwell, behind an
olive grove and the
historic cottage that
is Aurum’s tasting
room, are two very
different houses: a historic villa moved
from Queenstown and a modern, ecofriendly
house.
The former belongs to Lucie and Brook
Lawrence and the latter to Joan and Tony
Lawrence, Brook’s parents. They are
idyllically situated, surrounded by gardens,
olive grove, orchard and truffiere, behind
which the terrace slopes down to Lake
Dunstan. Their vineyard is across the lane
down one side of the property.
Lucie, Aurum’s winemaker, grew up
in a winemaking family in France and
always thought she’d live in an old house as
people do there. However, when she came
to New Zealand in 2004, she accepted that
she would quite likely live in a new one
as that’s what many people do in Central
Otago, she said.
In fact more than a decade ago, she and
Brook were about to build a new house on
the site when they saw an ad for a villa in
Joan (left) and Lucie Lawrence.
Queenstown free for removal.
“It was meant to be. We were thrilled; we
loved it, and it was going to be destroyed.
It’s a lovely feeling that we’ve saved a part
of New Zealand history. It works for our
family just perfectly — it’s a perfect size,
and cosy. We just love it,” she said.
Built in 1914 on the hill above the
steamer wharf, it used to be the Grandview
boarding house run by the Misses Powell.
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