Chardonnay has been a significant grape in the Esk Valley portfolio since 1989. Peachy in flavour with nuances of yeast, nuts and toast the Esk Valley style is one of elegance and complexity. The fruit for this wine is sourced from vineyard sites around Hawkes Bay. Vineyards in the north at Bay View provide the finished wine with ripe tropical fruit flavours while sites on the terraces above the Tutaekuri River at Puketapu add a flintier, grapefruit note. These sites also provide a natural acidity to the blended wine. Shoot thinning, leaf plucking, and bunch thinning are all practiced in these vineyards in the pursuit of quality.