Hawkes Bay Today
  • Hawke's Bay Today home
  • Latest news
  • Sport
  • Business
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Property
  • Video
  • Death notices
  • Classifieds

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • On The Up
  • Sport
  • Business
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Property
    • All Property
    • Residential property listings
  • Rural
    • All Rural
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology

Locations

  • Napier
  • Hastings
  • Havelock North
  • Central Hawke's Bay
  • Tararua

Media

  • Video
  • Photo galleries
  • Today's Paper - E-Editions
  • Photo sales
  • Classifieds

Weather

  • Napier
  • Hastings
  • Dannevirke
  • Gisborne

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / Hawkes Bay Today

Early Bay harvest passes taste test

By Roger Moroney
Hawkes Bay Today·
26 Feb, 2015 04:20 AM2 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  Sign in here

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save

    Share this article

The Mission Estate harvester was up and running early yesterday for what was likely to be the first 2015 vintage pick in the Bay. Photo / Duncan Brown

The Mission Estate harvester was up and running early yesterday for what was likely to be the first 2015 vintage pick in the Bay. Photo / Duncan Brown

In wine vintage terms it was an earlybird pick at Mission Estate yesterday but in terms of what winemaker Paul Mooney is after the timing was spot on.

For the second year he and viticulturist Steve Wheeler have overseen the growth, and no harvest, of an early pick pinot gris - picked early to ensure it will meet the low-alcohol standards they are aiming for.

"Pick now before the sugars get up," was how Mr Mooney put it.

Last year Mission harvested about seven tonnes of the organically grown pinot gris, which Mr Mooney said was the most suitable in terms of flavour for their low-alcohol range.

This year's harvest was well up on that with about 20 tonnes being picked and sent straight to the pressing room.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

It began about 8.30am and by late morning about half the crop had been picked.

Mr Mooney said Mission had a strong belief in the potential for the low-alcohol market, and that had been backed up by the response the 2014 "trial run" of pinot gris had got through the cellar door over the summer.

"People were tasting it and then buying it and I think we've come up with a good style."

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

The wine checks in at just 9.5 per cent alcohol and was carving a place in the lifestyle market, Mr Mooney said.

"We believe there will be consumer growth for this."

Shortly before yesterday's pick he and Mr Wheeler did a final in-the-vines tasting of the grapes and declared them ready for the early harvest.

"There is good flavour in there."

Discover more

Kiwi stars unite for Winery Tour sellout at Black Barn

15 Feb 08:52 PM

Early Bay harvest passes taste test

25 Feb 04:00 PM

They were grown in a specially prepared organic block.

Mission is part of the Organic Focus Group.

The fermentation process will take place over the next couple of weeks with bottling set down for about a month away.

Yesterday's harvest appeared to be the first for the Bay in 2015.

"I haven't heard of any others starting just yet."

Save

    Share this article

Latest from Hawkes Bay Today

Hawkes Bay Today

Napier man arrested after military-style guns found in children's bedrooms

08 Jul 07:17 AM
Hawkes Bay Today

Plan to drill wastewater pipe under Clive River withdrawn amid opposition

08 Jul 02:32 AM
Hawkes Bay Today

Hawke’s Bay Magpies land another Super Rugby star for upcoming NPC campaign

07 Jul 11:17 PM

From early mornings to easy living

sponsored
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from Hawkes Bay Today

Napier man arrested after military-style guns found in children's bedrooms

Napier man arrested after military-style guns found in children's bedrooms

08 Jul 07:17 AM

The man is facing 14 charges, including unlawful possession of prohibited firearms.

Plan to drill wastewater pipe under Clive River withdrawn amid opposition

Plan to drill wastewater pipe under Clive River withdrawn amid opposition

08 Jul 02:32 AM
Hawke’s Bay Magpies land another Super Rugby star for upcoming NPC campaign

Hawke’s Bay Magpies land another Super Rugby star for upcoming NPC campaign

07 Jul 11:17 PM
Premium
'100% a crisis': More than 900 women wait for specialist gynaecology care in Hawke’s Bay

'100% a crisis': More than 900 women wait for specialist gynaecology care in Hawke’s Bay

07 Jul 06:00 PM
Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky
sponsored

Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky

NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • Hawke's Bay Today e-edition
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Subscribe to the Hawke's Bay Today
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • NZME Events
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP