Aotea by the Seifried family Nelson Cabernet Franc 2019

The 2019 Aotea by the Seifried Family Cabernet Franc is inky with ripe, generous tannins and a rich fruit palate. Flavours of blackberry, cacao nib and hints of freshly cracked pepper are irresistible on the palate and leave a lingering impression.

Our Brightwater vines are grown in an extremely stony area of the vineyard where water and nutrient levels are low. This helps us to restrict the plants vigour and to crop at low levels. Our Brightwater Vineyard is situated 15km 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 the farm equipment but vital for holding the warmth of Nelson’s sun and for ripening the Cabernet Franc grapes.

2019 was an outstanding vintage in Nelson with a very warm and dry growing season. This resulted in some outstanding parcels, including our Brightwater Cabernet Franc. For the first time we decided to bottle this wine as a single varietal, as the tasting team was so impressed by the quality. The grapes were picked in April at the peak of ripeness and then promptly de-stemmed and transferred to open-top fermenters. A three day cold maceration period proceeded inoculation for fermentation . Hand plunging was carried out twice a day during the ten day fermentation, followed by a five day period of post-fermentation maceration. After pressing, the young wine was drained into French barriques where it underwent malolactic fermentation and ageing. The wine was blended and bottled in June 2020.