Rabbit Island Nelson Sauvignon Blanc 2024

90 Points (4.5 Stars) - Sam Kim, Wine Orbit, November 2024

Vineyard: Seifried Brightwater, Queen Victoria and Rabbit Island vineyards
Sugar at Harvest: 21.7°Brix
Date of Harvest: Late March 2024
pH of Wine: 3.16
T.A of Wine: 7.4g/L
Residual Sugar of Wine: 4 g/L
Suitable for Vegetarians and Vegans: Yes

Brightwater vines are grown in an extremely stony area of the vineyard where water and nutrient levels are low. This helps us to restrict plant vigour and to crop at low
levels. Our Brightwater vineyard is situated 15 km from the coast and is sheltered from the south by the Richmond ranges. The ‘soil’ is a combination of rocks and boulders which is very hard on farm equipment but vital for holding the warmth of Nelson’s sun and for ripening the Sauvignon Blanc grapes.

Our Queen Victoria vineyard is located in the Motueka area in the heart of a region known for its apple orchards, kiwifruit and hops. Our grapes are grown on very stony free-draining soils giving lovely fruit clarity and varietal intensity.

Our Rabbit Island vineyard is situated on a wide river flat. The soil is gravelly sandy loam, which is very free-draining. This vineyard is about 1.5 km from the sea, which helps moderate temperatures.

2024 was simply an outstanding vintage in Nelson - in fact Hermann Seifried has commented that it is perhaps the very best vintage of his 49 years in the top of the south! That from a character not known for his exaggeration or embellishments. A dry settled growing season meant fruit was harvested in squeaky clean condition, with perfect ripeness and flavours.

In the vineyards, leaves were removed around the fruiting zone to allow light penetration and air movement around the ripening bunches. This careful canopy management during the growing season meant our fruit was harvested early and in a good healthy condition.

Parcels of fruit were picked when flavours, sugars and grape acids were nicely in balance, giving fruit with intensely varietal flavours and a fresh, lasting acidity.