Our Vineyards
Located in the Nelson region, at the top of New Zealand’s South Island, the Seifried family estate is devoted to sustainable winegrowing, with a passion for producing pure, varietal wines which capture the unique terroir of the region. Harvesting grapes from over 330 hectares across ten vineyard locations, every bottle we craft is a celebration of our home.
The Nelson Region
Tucked beside the coast and bordered by mountains on three sides, Nelson is known as the sunshine capital of New Zealand. The region’s temperate coastal climate, marked by warm, sun-kissed days and cool, crisp nights, produces wines with intense varietal characters, bright aromas and well balanced natural acidity.
“Every bottle we craft captures the unique terroir of this sun-soaked land; gentle coastlines fed by stony rivers, and rolling hills swelling to rugged mountains.”
Our Vineyard Locations
Our vineyards are spread over three main soil types – heavy clay loam, sandy silty coastal sites, and rocky river beds – with a variety of micro-climates. Each site is strategically planted with varieties to optimise its unique conditions, resulting in distinct expressions of each variety and offering exciting opportunities for blending.
The Redwood Valley vineyard is a 30ha north-facing slope which has a solid Moutere clay soil structure and this soil has high water holding capacity. Varieties grown on this site include Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay, Pinot Gris, Riesling and Gewürztraminer. This site was first planted in 1979 and now has Seifried’s most established vines, producing fruit with fantastic depth, complex flavours and textural components. Due to the north-facing aspect of this vineyard and the very limited irrigation, ripening times are typically earlier than other Seifried vineyards and the wines show characteristic texture and palate structure.
Established in 1999, this vineyard is a total 70ha, with Sauvignon Blanc, Riesling, Chardonnay, Gewürztraminer, Pinot Gris, Grüner Veltliner, Pinot Noir, Malbec, Cabernet Franc and Zweigelt. The soil on this site ranges from large gravelly areas to light sandy loam soils, which results in a very porous soil structure with little water holding capacity. Because of this, a large earth dam was constructed nearby in 2002 to store water for summer irrigation. The Brightwater vineyard lies about 15 km from the sea (10 km from the winery) and is nestled under the Richmond Ranges on the southern end of the Waimea Plains. The temperature at this site fluctuates more than any of our other vineyards due to its distance from the coastline, with less maritime influences playing a role.
The Rabbit Island vineyard is situated 20 km west of Nelson city on the Waimea Plains near Rabbit Island beach. These first plants (in this block now totalling 60ha of vines) dates back to 1988 when Seifried initially established this vineyard. The Rabbit Island Vineyard now includes three sub-blocks: the ‘Winery Block’, ‘Challies Block’ and ‘The Cornfield’, which all produce fruit with very slight variations and nuances on a similar stylistic theme. Lying just 1.5 km from the coast, the air temperature at the Rabbit Island properties is heavily moderated by the sea. The soil here comprises a silty, sandy surface with a very gravelly sub-surface making the ground free-draining, friable and easily worked. Such soil is well suited to deep rooting crops such as grapes as there is little or no clay pan. Varieties grown here include Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay, Pinot Gris and Pinot Noir. The Waimea River runs through the Waimea Plains and ensures the water table remains relatively high and offers an abundant supply of underground water.
Established in 2006, Edens Road has boundaries with the Wairoa River and the soil consists of heavy rocks and boulders. Irrigation is key to vine survival on this site as moisture quickly moves down through the porous stone soil structure. The Edens Road vineyard is 40ha of predominately Sauvignon Blanc with just a small area of Grüner Veltliner, Riesling, Pinot Noir and Merlot. This vineyard is located 12 km from the coast and shares similar climatic characteristics to the Brightwater vineyard, although it does tend to experience light wind draughts associated with the river.
The Queen Victoria vineyard was purchased in 2013 however the vineyard area has expanded since the time of purchase. With just 4.5ha of Sauvignon Blanc and Pinot Gris planted when Seifried purchased it, Hermann went about converting the remaining land, which had been a kiwifruit and apple orchard into vines. The stony soils and sheltered site mean great fruit ripeness, with plenty of minerality to add structure to the palate.
The Clover Road vineyard was purchased in 2013. Along its boundary runs the Wairoa River where its soils are very rocky and stony alongside the river. This vineyard has been completely replanted as the original vines were on their own roots and offered no phylloxera protection. This block has been developed into a productive vineyard with varieties including Chardonnay, Pinot Gris, Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Noir and Malbec.
The Lord Rutherford vineyard is located in Brightwater behind the Lord Ernest Rutherford memorial. Ernest Rutherford who is famous for ‘splitting the atom’ in 1917, was born and raised in this area. Previously a dairy farm, the soils on this site are more fertile than other Seifried vineyard sites and its location on the banks of the Wai-iti River mean large river stones cover the property. Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay and Pinot Gris were planted here in the spring of 2015 with the same love and care that all the Seifried vineyards enjoy.
The Red Shed vineyard was purchased in early 2019, and is nine hectares of delicious Nelson Sauvignon Blanc. Located on the stony soils of the Waimea Plains, this property is just a stone's throw from both our Clover Road and Edens Road vineyards, so was a great addition. Originally planted in 2007, this vineyard is more densely planted than our other vineyards, with 2,640 vines/ha. We're looking forward to seeing how this vineyard evolves over time.
The Redwood Valley Vineyard is a 30ha north facing slope which has a solid Moutere clay soil structure and this soil has high water holding capacity. Varieties grown on this site include Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay, Pinot Gris, Riesling and Gewürztraminer. This site was first planted in 1979 and now has Seifried’s most established vines, producing fruit with fantastic depth, complex flavours and textural components. Due to the north facing aspect of this vineyard and the very limited irrigation, ripening times are typically earlier than other Seifried vineyards and the wines show characteristic texture and palate structure.
Established in 1999, this vineyard is a total 70ha, with Sauvignon Blanc, Riesling, Chardonnay, Gewürztraminer, Pinot Gris, Grüner Veltliner, Pinot Noir, Malbec and Zweigelt. The soil on this site ranges from large gravelly areas to light sandy loam soils, which results in a very porous soil structure with little water holding capacity. Because of this, a large earth dam was constructed nearby in 2002 to store water for summer irrigation. The ‘Brightwater’ Vineyard lies about 15km from the sea (10km from the winery) and is nestled under the Richmond Ranges on the southern end of the Waimea Plains. The temperature at this site fluctuates more than any of our other vineyards due to its distance from the coastline, with less maritime influences playing a role.
The Rabbit Island Vineyards are situated 20km west of Nelson city on the Waimea Plains near Rabbit Island beach. These first plants (in this block now totally 60ha of vineyards) date back to 1988 when Seifried initially established this vineyard. The Rabbit Island Vineyard now includes three sub-blocks: the ‘Winery Block’, ‘Challies Block’ and ‘The Cornfield’, which all produce fruit with very slight variations and nuances on a similar stylistic theme. Lying just 1.5km from the coast, the air temperature at the Rabbit Island properties is heavily moderated by the sea. The soil here comprises a silty, sandy surface with a very gravelly sub-surface making the ground free draining, friable and easily worked. Such soil is well suited to deep rooting crops such as grapes as there is little or no clay pan. Varieties grown here include Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay, Pinot Gris and Pinot Noir. The Waimea River runs through the Waimea Plains and ensures the water table remains relatively high and offers an abundant supply of underground water.
Established in 2006, Edens Road has boundaries with the Wairoa River and the soil consists of heavy rocks and boulders. Irrigation is key to vine survival on this site as moisture quickly moves down through the porous stone soil structure. Edens Road Vineyard is 40ha of predominately Sauvignon Blanc with just a small area of Grüner Veltliner, Riesling, Pinot Noir and Merlot. This vineyard is located 12km from the coast and shares similar climatic characteristics to the Brightwater vineyard, although it does tend to experience light wind draughts associated with the river.
The Queen Victoria Vineyard was purchased in 2013 however the vineyard area has expanded since the time of purchase. With just 4.5ha Sauvignon Blanc and Pinot Gris planted when Seifried purchased it, Hermann went about converting the remaining land, which had been a kiwifruit and apple orchard into vines. The stony soils and sheltered site mean great fruit ripeness, with plenty of minerality to add structure to the palate.
The Clover Road Vineyard was purchased in 2013. Along its boundary runs the Wairoa River where its soils are very rocky and boney alongside the river. This vineyard has been completely replanted as the original vines were on own roots and offered no phylloxera protection. Further to this, the entire block (including previously bare land) has since been planted out to be a productive vineyard. Varieties include Chardonnay, Pinot Gris, Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Noir and Malbec.
The Lord Rutherford Vineyard is located in Brightwater behind the Lord Ernest Rutherford memorial. Ernest Rutherford who is famous for ‘splitting the atom’ in 1917, was born and raised in this area. Previously a dairy farm, the soils on this site are more fertile than other Seifried vineyard sites and its location on the banks of the Wai-iti River mean large river stones cover the property. Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay and Pinot Gris were planted here in the spring of 2015 with the same love and care that all the Seifried vineyards enjoy.
The Red Shed Vineyard was purchased in early 2019, and is nine hectares of delicious Nelson Sauvignon Blanc. Located on the stony soils of the Waimea Plains, this property is just a stone's throw from both our Clover Road and Edens Road, so was a great addition. Planted in 2007, this vineyard is more densely planted than our other Estate vineyards, with 2,640 vines/ha. We're looking forward to seeing how this vineyard evolves over time.
