"About 70 to 80 per cent of what's on the market is made from apple juice concentrateit's all sweet apple taste and bubbles - I would call those gateway ciders," he said.
"There are few actual cider apples being grown - if people knew how hard it was they probably wouldn't go down that road.
"You can make something exceptional but I think to do so you have got to plant the right varieties and work at your craft - the market is still dominated by cheap and cheerful product."
The best can't be knocked together in six weeks - their cider products sit for six months or even longer in the bottle.
More recently craft cider has become an art form - one that's gaining plenty of attention throughout Hawke's Bay and wider New Zealand.
Local producers are now responsible for some of the country's tastiest - but the Bay is a relative newcomer, leaving Gisborne and Nelson holding the market share.
"I think as a foodie region we probably missed the boat to some extent on the craft brewing, in the past year there has been a lot more going on."
However, the concept has been in the back of Mr Paynter's mind for many years - he started planting trees for the purpose back in 2007 - and had a keen interest long before that.
"I would go to a lot of apple growing regions and to Europe and I tried cider I thought was a lot better than what you could get here.
"We have been growing apples since 1862, so we know what we are doing there."
Paynters Cider aims to be best in the business and Mr Paynter sees no reason why it can't one day be considered a top drop on the global market.
"Our wine industry has already proven that's possible".
Unlike beer cider only improves with age - a vital selling point when approaching offshore audiences.
His recipe is already getting results - last August it picked up a silver medal at the Brewers Guild of New Zealand Awards.
News only got better when the 2013 Red Label scooped a Cider Trophy at New Zealand Fruit Wine and Cider Makers Awards 2014, held in Auckland.
A big tick considering their first bottles were filled only six years ago and his winning label did not appear on the shelves until October 2014.
Mr Paynter said consumer figures told a promising story in that cider sales and consumption in New Zealand had risen by 34 per cent.
He believes Hawke's Bay has the potential to become the cider capital of New Zealand, and follow a path already carved by the wine industry.
"It should be the capitol because we grow 70 per cent of the apples, can we be the cider kings of the Southern Hemisphere, maybe even the world."
He felt there were huge possibilities in Asia, where apple exports have already opened the door.
Part of growing the industry meant working alongside other local cider producers to push for something bigger and better.
"I don't see them as my competition, I see them as my friends, if you look at the craft beer section at the supermarket it's not one or two people that made it happen - it's many."
Mr Paynter also steers the Yummy Fruit Company in Hastings.
Since 2006 he has planted four small blocks of apple specifically for cider production.
He said he looked forward to the day when restaurants would roll out a wine list, a beer list and an equally comprehensive cider list.
