One of the Wairarapa’s iconic vineyards has been sold  for $11 million.

Te Kairanga Wines of Martinborough has been bought by a consortium headed by US billionaire William P Foley ll, after permission was granted by the Overseas Investment Office.

Bill Foley is the founder of two Fortune 500 companies including US insurance giant Fidelity National. Foley Family Wines NZ already owns top vineyards in Marlborough, and plans to set up its operating base in Martinborough to boost its exports to the US, where it owns a further dozen wineries.

The company plans to compliment its Vavasour and Goldwater brands with Te Kairanga’s top pinot noir.

An estate agent in Marlborough says vineyard sales are beginning to pick up.

Bayley’s Marlborough says it has sold five vineyards so far this year, compared with only one last year.

The company says the market was beginning to accept prices that were, in some cases, less than half the value of three years ago.