Vineyards

The Spencer Hill Group owns vineyards located in the Upper Moutere Hills and along the Coastal Ridge area of Tasman Bay near Nelson.

The Upper Moutere vineyards consist of seventy-five acres located on two blocks. They are planted to Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Gris, Viognier and Pinot Noir. The clay loam composition of the Upper Moutere soils provides the grapes with depth and concentration of flavours not found on lighter soils. These soils also retain moisture and it allows us to grow the grapes without supplemental irrigation. Although the soils are deep they are not extremely fertile. The oldest grapes in the Upper Moutere vineyards were planted in 1990.

The vineyards are located behind the coastal hills about three kilometers from Tasman Bay. This unique situation of hills close to the sea provides a temperate climate with a long growing season. Winter is mild with early morning frosts but no snow.

The Coastal Ridge vineyards were established in 1994 with additional planting in 2001. They are located a few kilometers north of Nelson and consist of approximately 12 acres. These four blocks are planted in Chardonnay, Viognier, Syrah and Pinot Noir. They are also located on heavy soils but differ from the Moutere in that the subsoil consists of broken rock. These soils also provide depth and concentration but result in slightly different flavours than the Moutere grapes. This vineyard is located on the hills facing Tasman Bay and can be subject to many changes in weather associated to large bodies of water. The Coastal Ridge vineyards have a longer growing season than the Moutere with bud burst about two-three weeks earlier and leaf fall three weeks later.

Many persons are confused how grapes can be grown in the relatively cool climate of New Zealand. The secrete lies in it’s long growing season and high solar intensity. The cooler temperatures help retain the delicious fruit flavours and the long growing season and high sunlight ripen the fruit perfectly.

Spencer Hill was a founder in sustainable viticulture practices. IPM techniques are generally considered more site specific than are broad based national sustainability programs. The result is careful, precise monitoring of each vineyard block that result in minimizing the use of harmful chemicals. In addition, thousands of trees have been planted, surrounding the vineyards so that the forested area now exceeds the vineyard area. Ponds have been built for wildlife and all these areas are left untouched which has allowed an abundance of wildlife and beneficial insects to flourish. Employees are supplied with proper equipment, such as filtered tractor cabs, to protect them from any pesticides that have to be applied. These techniques go far beyond canned sustainability programs.

Philip was trained by some of the best Entomologists, Plant Pathologists and Nematologists of their time. People such as Dr. Robert VandenBosch at the Center for Bio-Control UC Berkeley, Dr Louis Falcon Department of Entomology UC Berkeley, Dr Van Gundy at the Department of Nematology UC Riverside and many others involved in the early IPM graduate program at the University of California. Philip spent 17 years designing and conducting studies on the effects of pesticides to the environment. He has spent the last 20 years teaching his employees how to take care of this planets sensitive environment. His degrees include a BS in Viticulture a MS in Integrated pest management and further graduate work in Enology.

We are branching out and have planted vineyards in the Columbia Gorge area of Washington State. The winery, Gorge Estate, is the only producer of kosher wines in Oregon and Washington. This very new viticulture area will help us learn new ideas and become familiar with potential varieties such as Alborino and Tempranillo.

We are slowly growing with our many distributors throughout the world but are determined to make sure of one thing; that our wines continue to meet the expectations of our devoted and growing customer base around the world.