A fire at a South Canterbury winery that destroyed millions of dollars worth of wine was started by an electrical fault.
About 150 barrels of top pinot noir -- the equivalent of 41,000 bottles -- plus thousands of litres of white wine were lost in blaze at the Crater Rim Winery in the Waipara Valley last Thursday.
Winery managing director Graeme Coles told The Press that the cause of the fire was a fault in the wiring near a switch used for winery equipment.
He said insurance would cover the loss of the winery, equipment and the wine, which was more than $100,000 but less than $1 million.
But it would not cover the loss of profit on selling the wine.
The destroyed pinot noir would have fetched more than $100 a bottle.