Nelson
Cool maritime
A sunny, sheltered corner at the top of the South Island, with small family wineries making aromatic whites, Chardonnay and Pinot Noir.
Overview
About Nelson
Nelson sits at the northern tip of the South Island, on Tasman Bay, sheltered by mountain ranges that shield it from wet weather and give it some of New Zealand's highest sunshine hours. It is a small region by volume, dominated by boutique family wineries, and its reputation rests on aromatic whites such as Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Gris and Riesling, along with Chardonnay and Pinot Noir.
The vineyards are spread between the flat, stony Waimea Plains and the clay hills of the Moutere, where the older, weathered soils give richer, more textured wines. Nelson is easy to combine with a visit to Marlborough, about an hour and a half away by road, and with the coastal scenery of Abel Tasman National Park.
Nelson is marked on the map.
New Zealand
Shaded: Nelson City, Tasman District. Map units are states, provinces or départements, so a smaller place appears as the larger area that contains it.
The land
Climate & terroir
Climate
Cool maritime
Mild and sunny, with warm days and cool nights. The mountains to the west and south block rain, so the region is drier than the West Coast, but autumn rain can arrive at harvest.
Terroir & soils
What the vines grow in
Two contrasting settings: free-draining, stony alluvial soils on the Waimea Plains, and old, weathered clay gravels in the Moutere Hills, which retain water and give fuller wines.
Go deeper
Rules, years & producers
New Zealand wines are classified by registered geographical indication rather than quality tiers, and Nelson is one of them.
Nelson GI
A registered geographical indication; wines must have at least 85% of grapes from the region to name it on the label.
What's grown here
Grapes
Each grape's page links back here.