Our second label is Kota (meaning shell in the local Maori language) and shows an illustration or picture of one of the large oyster shells from our 3 million year old seabed. Some of the shells are as large as a bottle and also include scallop shells and barnacles. When these are crushed under the pressure of overlying layers they form a limestone called Coquina, which forms the base layer of our vineyard. This type of limestone has a soft, crumbly structure and is free draining but can also act as a valuable water storage and mineral layer for our vine roots to access.