Sub-regionality in Hawke’s Bay
There’s a lot more to Hawke’s Bay than Gimblett Gravels – but is further sub-regionality justified? Oliver Styles looks at the cases for and against
With Gimblett Gravels leading the pack, Oliver Styles finds out what defines other areas of New Zealand’s Hawke’s Bay
TAlk To AlmosT any winemaker in New Zealand’s Hawke’s Bay and they are convinced that sub-regionality exists. As mike Henley, chairman of Hawke’s Bay Winegrowers, points out, the Gimblett Gravels – the established sub-region par excellence – is better known than its parent area in some parts of the Us. But the Gravels has several things going for it: the soil type is reasonably unique; it is easily delineated (more or less within two roads and a riverbank); and it has several heavyweight companies behind it, including Craggy Range and Villa maria.
Yet the sub-regional story seems to have stopped there. since the success of the Gimblett Gravels Association, only two other regions have been officially drawn up: the Bridge Pa Triangle and the Te mata special Character Zone. But is there a case to be made for examining sub-regionality across the whole region?
Church Road winemaker Chris scott certainly thinks so. ‘Put south Australia over a map of Hawke’s Bay,’ he says, ‘and Adelaide Hills, Eden Valley and Barossa Valley would fit into it. You can be in Gimblett Gravels or
Bridge Pa and the temperature on a summer’s day is 30°-32°C, then drive out to Tukituki and it’s 26°C or 27°C. Added to which there’s the differences in soil type…’
Down to earth
What of those soils? Keith Vincent, an expert in soil science, is reluctant to generalise, but broadly speaking there are three soil types in the region: young alluvial (recently repurposed riverbed, such as the Gimblett Gravels); old alluvial (terraced riverbed with ‘ancient, well-developed sandy-silt’ build-up, such as Bridge Pa, Mangatahi and Crownthorpe); and hillside soils (sites are dotted around the Bay, but generally loess over limestone).
There are, of course, variations both between the different river systems and within zones. Alluvial soils around the Tukituki River, Vincent posits, would likely be heavier given a higher incidence of clay and silt in the watershed. This would potentially extend out to coastal vineyard sites at Te Awanga, although the winemakers I talked to there agree that soils vary quite significantly, from Gimblett-like gravel-shingle in sections of Clearview to heavier soils such as the clayloam in Craggy Range’s Kidnappers Vineyard. Vincent would also expect more limestone content in sites around the Tutaekuri River (Dartmoor, Woodthorpe) due to the nature of the river.
But while soils play a role in sub-regionality, other factors are also involved. ‘Climate, elevation and distance from the ocean are determinate,’ explains Steve Smith MW. ‘Look at Bridge Pa and Mangatahi,’ he suggests, pointing out the proximity of these two areas and similarity in soil type. ‘Mangatahi is three weeks later [in the growing season] because it’s a much cooler site.’
Distilling all this leaves us with about eight sub-regions in Hawke’s Bay (see p36). From north to south these are: Esk Valley; Tutaekuri (Dartmoor, Woodthorpe and other sites on young and old alluvial soils); Gimblett
‘Put Australia South over Hawke’s a map Bay, of and Adelaide Hills, Eden Valley and Barossa Valley would fit into it’ Chris Scott
Gravels (young alluvial Ngaruroro soils); Bridge Pa (old alluvial Ngaruroro soils); Upper Ngaruroro (old alluvial soils with greater elevation and cooler climates, encompassing Mangatahi, Crownthorpe and Matapiro); Tukituki Valley (heavier old and young alluvial soils); Te Awanga (coastal sites of varying aspect and soil type); plus hillside sites dotted throughout the region.
Help or hinder?
But how useful are these sub-regions in the broader context of taking the Hawke’s Bay story to the wider world? Indeed, is this a story the wineries even want to tell? Henley worries that the sub-regional story may ‘muddy the waters’ and most winemakers I spoke to – including Scott at Church Road and Damian Fischer at Trinity Hill – understand this.
What’s more, many Hawke’s Bay wines are blends across sub-regions. Vidal’s Legacy Chardonnay – a Decanter World Wine Awards International Trophy winner – is often a blend of three sites: Keltern, Ohiti (over the river from Bridge Pa Triangle) and Lyons (Gimblett Gravels). Furthermore, as Vidal winemaker Hugh Crichton points out: ‘It’s one thing having sub-regionality and another thing having the consumer – and even some trade – understand it.’
Minimal attention is given to subregionality in the main wine competition of Hawke’s Bay, the Agricultural & Pastoral
Awards, which judges the best Chardonnay, Syrah and Pinot Noir of the region. ‘There was not one mention of sub-regionality,’ notes visiting judge and Marlborough winemaker Nat Christensen.
Story telling
To add further complexity, winemaker Rod McDonald points out that a significant proportion of plant material is currently planted in the wrong place. Futhermore, it’s clear that viticultural practices (sprays, yield, picking date and so on) as well as winemaking can often outweigh characteristics of terroir. Chardonnay is the prime example. Even single-vineyard wines such as Villa Maria’s Reserve Keltern Chardonnay can go from the sublime (2014) to the reductive (2016).
Such variations, and the range of wines made in the region, put Hawke’s Bay in a bit of a bind, foiling attempts to simplify the message. But for many, sub-regionality is still an issue worth talking about. Grant Edmonds at Redmetal Vineyards says: ‘Marlborough and Central Otago are a one-horse race… Hawke’s Bay has never made it to that. [Sub-regionality] is the only way we can tell our story.’
‘It’s one thing having sub-regionality and another thing having the consumer – and even some trade – understand it’ Hugh Crichton, Vidal (left)
And how might it do that? Smith points to Oregon as a possible model for Hawke’s Bay. ‘When a lot of smaller AVAs split off from their parent body they found that for smaller, unknown AVAs it was always better to have both regions on the label. It won’t create confusion if the two names are together.’ Henley agrees: ‘It will assist the story.’