Terroir 

When Pieter was on the hunt for the perfect piece of land to grow grapes and lay down some roots, he stumbled upon our picturesque little corner of the world - a stretch of rolling hills at the edge of Heretaunga plains, on the outskirts of Pakipaki.

Our hillsides are layered with loamy topsoil atop ribbons of clay, over white limestone baserock. The plains below have much richer, ashy silt-loam soils.

The north-facing slopes expose our vines to abundant sunlight, while relatively dense plantings help keep per vine yields naturally on the lower side. The surrounding hills act as a sheild, providing us some protection from the seasonal storms that can sweep through the Bay - our own 'micro-climate'.

The views stretch across the Heretaunga plains, from Napier all the way to Te Mata Peak. It's a pretty cool spot.

 

Plantings  

We planted our first vines in 2005. Our vineyard covers 3.5 hectares and is made up of 5 different blocks - Syrah, Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Viognier, and the Hillside block, which is a field blend of our white varieties. These blocks are all planted with a mix of clones and rootstocks matched to our site and soils - if you want to get really geeky about this stuff, come and see us for a tasting.