WINEMAKING

Esk Valley Estate sources grapes exclusively from Hawke's Bay vineyards, from both its own vineyards and from contract growers. Our wines have been at the forefront of Hawke's Bay wine since 1986 and we have led the way in creating many new Hawke's Bay winestyles, evidenced by the introduction of Malbec into our Reserve Blend in 1992, and the introduction of Verdelho to our range in 2002.

Traditional methods allied with modern technology allow us to make wines with texture and complexity. Small batch winemaking prevails, and the 70 year old open topped concrete fermenters are still used for the production of our hand-made red wines. Our Chardonnay's are barrel fermented and our red wines are barrel aged for a minimum of one year with the Reserve styles spending at least 18 months in French oak barriques.

Most of our wines are blends from selected vineyard sources but occasionally special single vineyard wines are produced which perfectly express the 'terroir' from which they came. Examples include our Central Hawke's Bay Riesling, and 'The Terraces' from our home vineyard in Bay View, consistently rated as one of New Zealand's finest red wines.

WINEMAKER

Gordon Russell has established himself as one of New Zealand's winemaking identities with his passionate approach to winemaking and enormous success achieved for his wines in tastings and competitions.

Gordon was born in New Plymouth. Following High School and University, Gordon's desire to travel took him to England and Europe for three years. A job which included operating the cellar of a traditional pub in Fleet Street, central London, sparked Gordon's interest in such work. Gordon had always been interested in different flavours and trying new foods and during his time abroad he also developed an appreciation of wine.

In 1986 Gordon returned to New Zealand, just at a time when wine styles for which New Zealand has become highly regarded were beginning to emerge. An opportunity to be involved in the wine industry arose at a small winery in West Auckland, where he learnt both cellar and lab skills. A move to the Villa Maria winery in 1988 lead to him becoming Cellar Foreman.

In 1990 Gordon moved to Hawke's Bay as Assistant Winemaker at Esk Valley Estate. In 1993 Gordon become Esk Valley Estate Winemaker.

Gordon believes that the concept of 'texture' in a wine is as important as the aromas and flavours of the wine. By 'texture' he means the balance and harmony of the wine together with the complexity and palate interest. He achieves these by keeping open as many blending options as possible, with a multitude of ferments from the various parcels of grapes and such techniques as barrel fermentation and yeast lees influence. He aims to produce premium hand-crafted wines that are both elegant and sophisticated and which truly reflect the character of the individual vineyards.