Whilst they are best known for their entry level supermarket wines, in the very best 5-star vintages, Villa Maria produce what is arguably New Zealand’s finest Cabernet. Tasted blind, one might easily assume one was drinking Smith Haut Lafitte, yet this wine is from the other side of the globe and significantly lower in price. Made from a tiny 3.5 hectare plot in Gimblett Gravels, its production is more akin to a Pomerol, having made just 230 cases in 2018. However, unlike any wine in Bordeaux, this is not produced every year – far from it - 2018 sees only the third vintage ever produced, following the 2013 and 2014.
 
‘Ngakirikiri’ in Māori, refers to the unique gravel soils that define the Hawkes Bay. Villa Maria bought the Ngakirikiri vineyard in 1988, and used the first vintage of fruit from the vineyard in 1992. Villa Maria released the 2013 vintage of Ngakirikiri to celebrate 25 years of their presence in the Gimblett Gravels with the estate’s new flagship wine.
 
The Gimblett Gravels appellation is often touted as being one of the finest regions in the world for top quality Cabernet Sauvignon outside of Bordeaux, with a reputation for beautiful and thought-provoking wines. The Gimblett Gravels growing appellation was formed by a change in direction of the Ngaruroro River in 1867, which left behind very well drained, poor, gravelly soil, that proved to be too harsh an environment for farming or even as land for sheep grazing, but superb terroir for Bordeaux varietals.
 
The Ngakirikiri vineyard is actually 27ha of predominantly Cabernet Sauvignon, however, only 3.5ha was used to produce the 2018 vintage. This site was identified as the best of the Villa Maria plantings to produce what would become their Icon wine, low cropping at 4.5T per hectare and bunch thinning of 1 bunch per shoot, is carefully managed to ensure only the best quality from the vineyard to the glass.  In commercial terms this vineyard would be considered unprofitable but for Villa it is about allowing only the best wine to be produced as their Icon, giving the consumers the ultimate Gimblett Gravels Cabernet dominant expression, and showing that they are more than capable of producing wines that challange the best of Bordeaux. 

Ollie Powrie – Chief Viticulturist at Villa Maria – speaks of the site and wine; "What an exceptional wine it is, harnessing the unique Gimblett Gravels meso-climate and soil type, these vines produce grapes that are naturally intense and full of flavour, with a very fine structure."
 
Rebecca Gibb MW of Vinous.com praises the 2020 Ngakirikiri, writing: "While it is rich in tannins, it remains approachable for those who can't wait and want to enjoy their wines in their fruity, purple-filled youth. I beg you to be patient, though. There's a promising future ahead for this red. It is fresh and sappy, precise and yet somehow tender.” - 94 points.