Nelson is one of the country's prettiest and most relaxing places to live or visit. It moves at its own pace, boasts copious sunshine hours, has stunning beaches, arts, crafts, cafes and restaurants and just feels like a pleasant place to be.
And we haven't even got to the wineries yet. While Nelson does not have the high wine profile and reputation of Marlborough, Hawkes Bay or Central Otago, it is beginning to stretch its considerable collective muscles.
In the past it's been left pretty much to Seifried Estate and Upper Moutere's much lauded Neudorf Vineyards as the regions chief flag-bearers, but there has been a flurry of new winemakers recently who are helping Nelson's image as a serious wine region.
The area does not hang its hat on one style like Marlborough does with sauvignon blanc, but has versatility and temperate climate and soil types that are conducive to a broad range of wine options. This can be a mixed blessing. On the one hand you're seen as not being especially good at anything and average at just about everything.
The truth is that Nelson producers are capable of some of New Zealand's finest wines. Neudorf's Moutere chardonnay is a case in point, as are Te Mania and Waimea Estates, with ranges of great-value wine.
