[4] Te Mata Estate is especially notable because it has hand-harvested grapes from its own vineyards and produced, blended and labelled small-batch premium wines entirely on site in the original winery buildings since 1895.

With the help of the Marist brotherhood, and the Beecham family in Central Hawke's Bay, the early vineyards were recognized for their export quality by the government viticulturist Romeo Bragato in 1905.

The main cellar was built in the 1870s from local hand-fired brick with a mataī and rimu roofing, and extended to add a first-year barrel hall in the 1930s.

Under the direction of the Buck and Morris families the Te Mata Estate winery complex was modernized and extended in the 1980s by New Zealand architect Sir Ian Athfield.

An underground barrel hall, cuverie and office buildings were added in the region's prominent Art Deco and Spanish Mission architecture as deliberate influences.

The first five Poets Laureate received a tokotoko, carved from Te Mata's original wine press by Hawke's Bay artist and sculptor Jacob Scott.

The Hawke's Bay wine growing region has a wide diversity of soil types and a climate similar to Bordeaux, with dry sunny summers and long autumns.

[9] The use of multiple vineyard sites across Hawke's Bay is crucial to their winemaking style, allowing them to 'parcel-develop' small blocks that reflect differences in aspect, climate and soil type from within the region.

Described as 'a national treasure' by jancisrobinson.com in 2018, Robert Parkers' Wine Advocate listed Te Mata Estate as one of the 5 Icon wineries of New Zealand, awarding it the classification of “Outstanding Producer”.

They have been served at Noma in Copenhagen, Raffles in Singapore, and the Burj Al Arab in Dubai, and are available in London in Harrods, and in Hong Kong and Japan through Berry Bros & Rudd.