1Sacred Hill Wines Sacred Hill Wines is the product of a dual love of land and drinking fine wine. The winery's original vineyards are planted in the Dartmoor Valley west of Napier, on country that was once the Mason family farm. The first planting, in the early 1980s, was a diversification away from sheep and cattle. "It took a lot of tenacity to continue," says Sacred Hill managing director David Mason. "The original vineyard was repeatedly wiped out by drought, flood and then Cyclone Bola." At the same time as their parents were trialling grape growing, David Mason and his brother Mark were discovering how much they loved wine. Together with winemaker Tony Bish they decided to establish their own label. "We really did think that if we could make more wine than we were drinking, we could sell the balance to fund our ongoing exploration of fine wine," says Tony Bish. Twenty years on they have more than achieved that goal, as Country Calendar learned when we filmed the 2010 grape harvest. The founders did a lot of experimenting with vineyard plantings and wine styles as they pursued their goal of making distinctive wines that go well with food. The original winery was housed in a machinery shed on the Mason farm but today Sacred Hill has a state-of-the-art winemaking facility on the outskirts of Hastings. That's a bonus for Tracy Haslam, David Mason's wife, who is a winemaker in her own right and has developed the Ti Point brand. Her vineyards are in Northland but she makes her wine at Sacred Hill where she can draw on the expertise of staff. That support also frees Tracy up to focus on her other two passions - her four young children and horses. Tracy learned to ride when she was young and is giving her two sons and two daughters the same experience. She and David see advantages in raising children in the country. "They have the opportunity to take risks and learn independence a little earlier than in town," says David. Over the years, Sacred Hill has planted vines on top grape growing soil in other parts of Hawke's Bay, but its original Dartmoor Valley vineyards continue to produce some of their best known wines. That includes regular award winner Rifleman's Chardonnay, which is grown in a spectacular vineyard overlooking the white cliffs of the Tutaekuri River.