Auntsfield continues the proud heritage of Marlborough?s first vineyard and winery established in 1873. Their Single Vineyard wines are made from grapes grown at Auntsfield Estate.
Each wine shows the distinctive characteristics of ripeness, texture and minerality - qualities unique to the ancient Greywacke rock and Loess clay soils of the vineyard. 

Hawk Hill Pinot Noir is from a 4 Hectare block is situated on Auntsfield?s steepest hillside where the Kahu, the native Harrier Hawks, fly the thermal air currents hunting for their prey. This old block of Pinot Noir is one of Marlborough?s oldest on Hill side plantings.

The fruit for this wine was hand-picked into small baskets then carefully and diligently hand sorted to ensure that no less than perfect fruit entered the winery. This fruit was then gently destemmed and moved to tank by gravity. A combination of indigenous and cultured yeasts was nurtured through fermentation in open topped tanks. Careful use of hand plunging was used to gently extract the flavours and tannins from the skins. Maturation occurred in French barriques for approximately 15 months.

Vigour and fertility in this block is very low resulting from the dense Loess Clay and the lack of top soil. Vines are exposed to the strong hillside winds reducing shoot length and reducing berry size. These vines are spur pruned, then extensively shoot thinned and leaf plucked by hand to retain 18 small bunches per vine. The main slope block contributes earthy, dense, rich, ripe and savoury characters result from the high mineral Loess Clay soils the vines grow in.

Splendidly fruited aromas, the immensely complex bouquet reveals Black Doris plum, dark cherry, floral thyme with nuances of dark mushroom and toasted spice
The palate exhibits outstanding concentration and persistency, superbly complemented by silky texture and velvety tannins. Multi-layered, elegant and sophisticated.