Rabbit Island Nelson Pinot Gris 2026

Vineyard: Seifried Brightwater and Rabbit Island vineyards
Date of Harvest: Mid - late March 2026
pH of Wine: 3.37
T.A of Wine: 5.7g/L
Residual Sugar of Wine: 7.2g/L
Alcohol: 12.5%
Suitable for Vegetarians and Vegans: Yes

Our Brightwater vineyard lies about 15km from the coast and is nestled under the Richmond Ranges on the southern end of the Waimea Plains. The soil is a combination of rocks and river boulders, which is hard on farm equipment but vital for holding the warmth of Nelson’s sun and ripening grapes. Low nutrient and water levels in the vineyard help to restrict plant vigour, producing fruit with lively, concentrated flavour. To further enhance aromatics, we remove leaves to allow light penetration and air movement around the fruiting zone.

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 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.

We used separate parcels of Pinot Gris from our stony Brightwater vineyard and our sandy Rabbit Island vineyard to blend a juicy wine. The wine pulls together
fruit from the varying estate vineyards to make a lovely easy-drinking Pinot Gris.