Old Coach Road Nelson Unoaked Chardonnay 2025

Vineyard: Seifried Rabbit Island and Redwood Valley vineyards
Date of Harvest: Late March 2025
pH of Wine: 3.60
T.A of Wine: 4.4/L
Residual Sugar of Wine: <1g/L (Dry)
Alcohol: 12.5%
Suitable for Vegetarian and Vegans: Yes

Our Rabbit Island 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 kumara (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.

Our Redwood Valley vineyard is an unirrigated, gently sloping, north-facing clay site; the vines range in age from 10 to 30 years. Vertical shoot positioning helps to expose the berries to sunlight, thus getting maximum intensity and optimal ripeness. The clay holds moisture well, supporting deep root systems and producing fruit with good texture and complex flavours. To further enhance the aromatics, leaves were removed to allow light penetration and air movement around the fruiting zone.

Traditionally Chardonnay is made in an oaked style, however we are often asked: what does Chardonnay as a grape variety with no aging taste like? This is it!

The grapes were pressed, and the juice was fermented in stainless steel tanks to capture the natural tropical fruit characters of the grape variety, without influence from oak. The wine has undergone partial malolactic fermentation to soften its natural acidity. The wine was then stablised and bottled in June 2025.