Hawke’s Bay

Hawke’s Bay is located on the eastern coast of the North Island around the town of Napier, famous for its art deco architecture as the town was completely rebuilt in 1931 after a devasting earthquake. The region is one of the most historic and has many varying terroirs. It is known as the fruit bowl, with its fertile soils suited to the production of stone fruits, though the original grapevine plantings in these fertile areas have led to excessive vigour resulting in poor ripeness. However, from the mid 1980’s, planting has focused on very poor gravelly soils of an old riverbed and most famously the Gimblet Gravels, an 800-hectare area of deep gravel soil ideally suited to the production of fine Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Syrah. Hawke’s bay is the main source of Bordeaux varietals and Syrah, with 88% of the country’s production coming from here. Chardonnay grown here tends to be quite opulent, whilst Sauvignon Blanc is very ripe, with flavours of nectarine and quite often a touch of oak. There is also a small amount of rich and spicy Pinot Gris and full, supple Pinot Noir.