Phoenix from the flames

Well, that title is somewhat dramatic, but you get the idea.

With the 2024 season underway, chardonnay is flowering and everything is very green right now. Our flooded blocks have burst into life and a new season almost (almost) makes us forget what the team has been through.

Flower numbers look good, vines are a weed it seems, very hard to set them back.  We have some Goblet vines this year as part of the recovery process, and they look to have good cane growth for next year, and return to full production looks promising.

There is a lot of talk about Le Nino and what that might bring us as growers, if it patterns out then a drier finish to the season should be expected.  What ever comes I know it will be different, as no two seasons are the same, ever!

These vines are growing fruit for Tony Bish Wines so we are excited to see what Tony can do with Ohiti fruit in his winery.

We have our amazing RSE team back from the Solomon Islands, it was great to see their reactions to all the hard work they did in the wake of the cyclone back in March.

Hawkes Bay hosted the Aotearoa New Zealand Chardonnay Symposium, and I was lucky to attend and do a deep dive into all things Chardonnay, nothing like feeding your passion.  Tasted some great chardonnay and looked at this diverse universe of chardonnay from an international and regional point of view. I was energised and ready for a new vintage after this great event. It also helped reaffirm in my mind what it is we are doing in Ohiti, the styles we are both making as wine and fruit we are selling to other wineries to make into their take on chardonnay. The acid protection and palate intensity I am always going on about when I discuss ‘what Ohiti offers’ winemakers.

Kokako wines are now getting ‘out there’ with On-Premise distribution with Savor Group in Auckland, both Chardonnay, and Syrah being poured at great spots like Amonao, Azabu Mission Bay & Ponsonby, Bivacco and Non-Solo Pizza!  Hoping to see our newest wine, ‘Uccello’ sparkling Arneis in the big smoke soon too.

Our website traffic continues to grow with very supportive followers snapping up the new rereleases and re-release wines we have offered.

Vintage 2024 here we come.