We drove around, checking some of them out. For example, with Chardonnay they get very good acidity even when the grapes are pretty ripe: a typical analysis would be 10 g/litre TA at 23.5 Brix, so there’s no need ever to acidify.Īltogether, Clearview have 50 hectares of vines owned and contracted. Here it’s 5 C cooler than the Gimblett Gravels, the warmest sub-region in Hawke’s Bay, and this climatic freshness shows up in the wines. Matt KirbyĬlearview was established by Tim Turvey and is based in the Te Awanga sub region on the coast. I visited with him on a beautiful spring Hawke’s Bay day. But he migrated to New Zealand is now the winemaker at Clearview Estate in Hawke’s Bay. Sauvignon blanc comes in close behind, notable for its tropical, fruit forward qualities.Matt Kirby is an Aussie winemaker who previously worked in the Clare Valley. Expressive of intense stewed red and black berry with gentle herbaceous characters, Gimblett Gravels wines are suggestive of their cool climate origin, and on par with other top-notch Bordeaux blends around the globe.Ĭhardonnay is the top white grape in Hawkes Bay, making elegant wines, strong in stone fruit character. Today the area takes well-earned recognition for its Bordeaux blends and other reds. The zone has proven to be ideal for the production of excellent red wines, particularly Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Syrah. In the 1980s growers identified this stretch, which continues for approximately 800 ha, and named it the Gimblett Gravels. Over the passing of time, the old Ngaruroro River laid down deep, gravelly beds, which were subsequently exposed after a huge flood in the 1860’s. In the late 20th century, the drive for quality led growers to the hills where soils are free-draining, limestone-rich and more suited to producing high quality wines.
While the flatter areas were historically more popular because they are easier to cultivate, their alluvial soils can be too fertile for vines. Today the business proudly remains owner-operated. Tim oversees the vineyards and works with chief winemaker Matt Kirby and assistant winemaker Rob Bregmen to create legendary much-awarded wines. Helma manages the finance, restaurant, gardens and her extraordinary team. Steeped in history, Clearview Estate Winery Cellar Door and Clearview Estate Red Shed Restaurant have become an iconic and awarded destination for both locals and visitors from afar.Īn eclectic region on the east coast of the North Island, Hawkes Bay extends from wide, fertile, coastal plains, inland, to the coast range, whose peaks reach as high as 5,300 feet. Over the next several years, Tim and Helma went on to plant thousands of trees including avocado, olive, bay, citrus, gums, and melia. And they didn't stop there. Together they expanded the vineyard by three acres each year, grafting and planting vines, ramming posts, running wires, training young vines, and for many years completing all of the pruning themselves. Purchased in 1986, the neglected but historic Vidal's No.2 Vineyard at Te Awanga, Hawke’s Bay was set to become Clearview Estate. Tim Turvey with business partner Helma van den Berg took on the challenge of bringing it back to life. Together they hand grafted and planted the first vines in the winter of 1988. Clearview Estate Winery Ltd was established for the first red wine vintage in 1989, following some experimentation in prior years. Chardonnay began in 1991 with the release of the first Reserve Chardonnay.
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