The Hawkes Bay is New Zealand's leading food and wine region. Driving around the Hawkes Bay you will pass stalls selling fresh produce, vineyards, orchards, fishing ports, and breweries. Hawkes Bay has a sunny, Mediterranean-style climate, and is one of New Zealand’s warmest and driest regions.
The Hawkes Bay is New Zealand’s leading producer of red wines, and is the second largest wine region. The Hawke's Bay wine region is not focused in one specific area of Hawke’s Bay. Rather there are a number of sub region, with each region offering different flavours. Some of the best know sub regions are Gimblett Road, the Triangle, Te Mata, Ngatarawa, Esk River and Maraekakaho.
There are three major wine events in the Hawke's Bay each year – Harvest Hawke’s Bay, in February, the Hawke’s Bay Wine Auction in June and the Hawke’s Bay A&P Mercedes-Benz Wine Awards in October.