The Vintage of 2018 was reminiscent of the 2011 and 2012 vintages where hand harvesting and severe selection were crucial in maintaining the quality of the wines. As such, the quantity of wine produced in 2018 was severely depleted as we strived to produce wines of the quality that our reputation demands. The single vineyards of Coddington, Hunting Hill and Mate's Vineyard shone through again and showed that these superior vineyard sites perform well even in non-perfect conditions. With the light nature of the vintage the decision was made not to use any new oak on the Chardonnay as we had plenty of seasoned barrels that were suitable for these wines. The Chardonnays were bottled in June 2019 and have come up beautifully with supple texture and approachability, but also with the concentration that we need for bottle age. There are also a couple of additions to our range with this release. As we mentioned in last year’s news, we have bought a vineyard in Raukawa, Hawkes Bay called Rays Road. We are delighted to release the first Chardonnay and Pinot Noir wines under the Kumeu River label with the Rays Road designation.