Inside Alexia: Greytown’s Quiet Achiever Making Remarkable Wines

Lesley Reidy and Jane Cooper

What struck me most, though, was the people behind it all. Jane Cooper is one of New Zealand’s most respected winemakers, with nearly three decades of experience across Chile, Italy, Australia and New Zealand. She is also the Chair of Judges for the National Wine Awards of Aotearoa New Zealand, a role that demands precision, discipline and stylistic clarity—qualities that are unmistakably present in her wines. But Alexia is very much a two‑person endeavour. Jane’s wife and business partner, Lesley, brings her own depth of expertise: hospitality, communications, strategy, and the warm, intuitive front‑of‑house presence that shapes the entire visitor experience.

Their Greytown winery is a space that transforms with the seasons. From March to October it becomes a fully immersive working winery, every inch filled with tanks, fermenters, pumps, hoses and fruit as the year’s wines take shape. Then, as spring arrives, the tanks move out, the tables and chairs come in, and the building shifts into its other life: a seasonal wine bar and cellar door that feels welcoming, relaxed and unmistakably theirs. It’s a rhythm that reflects both practicality and personality — a winery first, a place of hospitality second, and a seamless blend of the two.

Where the Wines Begin: Manuka Flats Vineyard

Alexia’s wines come not from an estate vineyard but from a long‑term partnership with Julie Collins and Simon Dawson of Manuka Flats Vineyard in West Taratahi. When Jane and Lesley began the urban winery project, they had the resources to build either a vineyard or a winery — not both. They chose the winery and instead committed to a grower relationship built on trust, shared values and a mutual pursuit of quality. Manuka Flats is a low‑wire, densely planted site with naturally low yields and intensely flavoured fruit, including a small experimental block of less common varieties. The vineyard sits on old riverbed soils strewn with massive boulders, giving the wines a distinctive mineral thread that runs through every variety.

Craft, Restraint and Thirty Years of Learning

Walking through the compact Greytown winery with Jane, you sense immediately how deeply this partnership shapes her work. She talks about the vineyard with the same respect she brings to the wines: keep it simple, let the site speak, take great care. “Great wine starts in the soil,” she says. “Once you have fantastic grapes, the job of the winemaker is simple—try not to trip up on the way into the winery.” It’s a philosophy honed over 30 years, yet still evolving; Jane is constantly pushing herself to make better wines each year, thinking about how to refine, adjust and respond to what the vineyard gives her.

An egg fermenter and Cadus barrels right where visitors taste in this Urban Winery

A Conversation with Jane Cooper

Jane’s answers in the conversation that follows are characteristically succinct—she is a winemaker who prefers to let the wines speak first—but behind each response sits a depth of thought shaped by years of judging, mentoring, and hands‑on work. With that in mind, here is our conversation.

What was your first introduction to wine and how did it impact you?

My Dad won a bottle of vintage Charles Heidsieck in a Rotary raffle when I was 17 or 18 and we drank it as a family - I remember the intensity of flavour, the gravity of drinking champagne and the way we all enjoyed it.

What made you decide to become a winemaker?

I had studied law and political science at university but really wanted something that had a connection with the land/growing. I visited a winery and as soon as I walked in, I knew it was for me, the smell, the activity, the curiosity.

Give us a short summary of your career from study to today.

After 5 years of tertiary study, my first start was at Seifried Estate before working in Chile, Australia and Italy as a consultant, starting Alexia in 2000, back to the Wairarapa and 16 years as GM and Chief Winemaker at Matahiwi Estate. In 2016, my wife and I decided it was time to give Alexia a home, so we planned for a winery in Greytown and in 2020, that became a reality with the Alexia Urban Winery being built.  All of the wine is made there, from start to finish, right in the heart of Greytown.

Who/what were critical influences on your approach to winemaking?

Firstly, my parents, who taught me to work hard and strive for good things and attention to detail. Then Andres Illabaca who I worked with in Chile, precision was everything. Most of the others are people I have judged with - the love of wine and the discipline of picking good wines and how to make them.

What is the worst mistake you have made as a winemaker and what did it teach you?

Not so much mistakes, but more learnings. The small things can teach you so much to avert the big mistakes. I like taking risks with winemaking to see where it can take you - sometimes, not where you expect. We have had many happy accidents!

You are also an experienced wine judge. Tell us a bit about that and how it has influenced your approach to winemaking.

I love the discipline of judging, it takes a long time to become a good judge I think.  You have to be consistent, analytical, and also have the right temperament - you absolutely have to be able to collaborate  with the rest of the judging team.  I think it has influenced my winemaking by making me quite precise but also, I see a wide range of wine styles when I judge, so am always looking at style.

What are you ultimately seeking to achieve with the Urban Winery venture?

I'd like to make some lovely wines that we are proud of and reflect us as a family - that includes welcoming people to the winery to enjoy themselves.  And to have fun doing it! 

Tell us about the role your partner Lesley plays both in the urban winery customer experience and behind the scenes...

Lesley has experience in hospitality so wants to make sure people enjoy coming to the winery and tasting/drinking our wines.  She also has a comms and strategy business so those skills have been crucial for us in conveying ourselves to our community and wine lovers.  She also helps in the winery over vintage and whenever it's needed so is an incredible all-rounder.

What else would you like to tell me about?

 We are lucky to have a very special relationship with our growers, Julie Collins and Simon Dawson.  They are good friends and we have made a commitment to each other - all of Alexia's wines are from this vineyard, which we help manage and the fruit we don't take, we sell to another winery.  Simon and Julie are amazing growers so we are lucky to be able to work in partnership with them without having to own our own vineyard.  The vineyard site itself is great too - old riverbed with massive boulders, all the wines irrespective of variety, have a striking mineral character to them which we love.

In the Glass: Wines That Speak Clearly

Over the course of the visit, I tasted widely across the Alexia range, and what impressed me most was the consistency: every wine showed clarity, balance and a quiet confidence that mirrors Jane’s own approach. Rather than catalogue everything, I’ve chosen a handful of personal highlights—wines that not only stood out in the moment but also revealed something essential about her style and the vineyard she works with.

Alexia 2021 Blanc de Blancs Methode Traditionelle

100% Chardonnay, zero dosage, four years on lees.
A fine, persistent mousse leads into aromas of yellow apple, citrus blossom and sweet brioche. The palate is crisp and dry yet carries astonishing richness, with ripe apple and lemon curd layered over subtle toasty notes. The mousse is deliciously creamy, and the long, moreish finish is clean and dry with an oyster‑shell lift. Wow. Easily the best Wairarapa bubbles I’ve tasted so far — a wine that invites genuine contemplation.