Bilancia, maker of New Zealand's best red wine, celebrates 30 vintages

It was unusual in 1997 for Bilancia’s Lorraine Leheny and Warren Gibson to buy land for a prospective vineyard on Roy’s Hill. Back then, in contrast to the rest of the wine world, even New Zealand’s most prized sites were largely found on flat valley floors and plains. But “we always felt the steep, north-facing slope would produce great fruit,” says Lorraine. 

They were right. Three decades on, and their la collina (Italian for “the hill”) vineyard is one of the finest in the country; the syrah made off this site, overlooking the famed Gimblett Gravels ("we're in 'Gimblett Heights'," Lorraine quips), considered to be one of, if not the, best red wines in New Zealand – just as Bilancia is regarded as one of its greatest producers. 

It wasn’t the site that drew them to Hawke’s Bay, though. They moved, seven years after meeting at Roseworthy and with a wealth of experience accrued here and abroad, so Warren could take up the chief winemaker position at Trinity Hill. Still, "we started our own business, started our family and bought land for our vineyard, all in that same year,” Lorraine says. 

The slope that is now the la collina vineyard on Roy's Hill in 1997.

They named their label Bilancia (pronounced be-larn-cha) after the Italian word for balance, harmony and equilibrium. “Bilancia is also the Italian word for the star sign Libra. We are both Librans. Neither of us is Italian or has any Italian heritage, but Warren worked for three harvests in Puglia, Southern Italy, and was reading his horoscope in the newspaper one day… we thought it had a good affiliation with wine.”

The 2026 vintage marked the 30th for Bilancia, and “as the vineyard has matured, so have we!” Lorraine says. While early releases included merlot, pinot gris, viognier and “a few other random wines”, time has brought focus and refinement to the range, which, as well as the la collina Syrah, includes the Tiratore Chardonnay and a white Rhône blend called Uvaggio off their estate vineyard. They also make a handful of single-site chardonnays and a syrah from the Trelinnoe (the only other vineyard on Roy’s Hill), Kaikora and Two Terraces vineyards.

Over the years, “we’ve also adapted the way we make wine to show more about the vineyard rather than the winemaking,” she adds, such as employing whole-bunch ferments in the la collina Syrah when possible, utilising open-top fermenters, and maturing in specially made Berger barrels (around 20 per cent new). 

These are special wines from a special place, and deserving of the hype. See how Dave Brookes scored the 2025 vintage release below.

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