Aotea Nelson Sauvignon Blanc 2025

95 Points (5 Stars) – Sam Kim, Wine Orbit, January 2026
90 Points (4 Stars) – Jane Skilton MW, © The Real Review, therealreview.com, January 2026

Vineyard: Seifried Appleby vineyard
Date of Harvest: Mid-late March 2025
pH of Wine: 3.15
T.A of Wine: 7.2g/L
Residual Sugar of Wine: 1.1g/L
Alcohol: 12.5%
Suitable for Vegetarian and Vegans: Yes

Our Appleby vineyard is situated on a wide river flat, about 1.5km from the sea, which helps moderate temperatures. The soil is gravelly sandy loam, which marks the sites of Māori kūmara (sweet potato) beds prior to European settlement in the early 1800s. The Māori transferred and spread fine gravel and sand over the land to provide suitable soils for their kūmara plantings. Scrub was burned to give ash and charcoal, which increased soil fertility and characteristic topsoil. This fertility is now considerably reduced due to modern farming. The soils are, however, very sandy and free-draining. The water table is relatively high, ensuring adequate underground water.

2025 was our 50th vintage and produced beautiful fruit thanks to outstanding flowering weather and settled sunshine during the crucial late summerautumn period. Grapes were harvested in great condition - beautifully ripe and packed with flavour.

Fresh, aromatic Sauvignon Blanc flavours were encouraged prior to vintage through careful canopy management. The fruit was de-stemmed and pressed immediately after harvest, and a cool fermentation was initiated in stainless
steel tanks to retain the clean aromatic fruit characters.