Recently whilst in London, Paul had the opportunity to share our 2023 single vineyard Chardonnays with Jancis Robinson, MW. 2023 marks Kumeu Rivers 80th Anniversary and to mark the occasions, Paul hosted a rare tasting event at Farr Vintners in London, with an opportunity to experience some of our finest vintages of Chardonnay back as far as 2002.
"This retrospective tasting of a further 30 wines demonstrated the extraordinary consistency and ageability of Kumeu River Chardonnays. What was also clear was that, a bit like that other famed Chardonnay exponent Domaine Jean-François Coche-Dury, the quality gap between their most basic wine (Kumeu River Village Chardonnay and Bourgogne Aligoté respectively) is much narrower than the difference in price suggests." Jancis notes.
Maté's Vineyard Chardonnay 2023 - 17.5/20
A 2.49-ha vineyard planted in 1990 with Mendoza clone. There is some leafroll which delays ripening a little. Hand-picked. Whole-bunch pressed. Spontaneous fermentation. 100% barrel-fermented in used French oak. 100% malo and 11 months’ maturation in barrel. Bigger in dimension than the others. Sweeter on the initial impression and then it tightens up. Less obviously rich than some previous vintages, presumably because of the wetter vintage. Still quite closed but with great density and a savoury finish. You can almost taste little particles in it! Should last extremely well. JR
Hunting Hill Chardonnay 2023 - 17.5/20
The Brajkoviches’ 3.37-ha vineyard was replanted in 2001 with clone 15. Made in the same way as Coddington and hand-picked over the Feb/Mar bridge. Whole-bunch pressed. Spontaneous fermentation. 100% barrel-fermented in used French oak. 100% malo and 11 months’ maturation in barrel. Very ‘settled’, complex nose. Savoury finish and probably the most burgundian of these Chardonnays. Lemon syrup (not sweet) impression with a light blossomy top note. Real substance and build. It certainly doesn’t seem skinny, despite the lower-than-usual alcohol and has a mineral chewiness on the finish. More elegant, and more citrus, than the Maté’s. JR
Coddington Chardonnay 2023 - 17+/20
This leased 1.8-ha vineyard, all clone 15, was planted 1994. There are another two years to run on the current lease but the Brajkoviches are hoping to renew it and are heartened by the fact that, although Kumeu is prime redevelopment area, there has been no change in planning permissions for the moment. Malan Brajkovich has been completely in charge of viticulture there since 2017 and reckons the vineyard has improved as a result. Paul B: ‘the fruit looked the best ever before the deluge of 27 January. We were able to go in and hand-pick the clean stuff by hand.’ Whole-bunch pressed. Spontaneous fermentation. 100% barrel-fermented in used French oak. 100% malo and 11 months’ maturation in barrel. According to Paul B, the 2008, opened fairly recently in a search for a wine to add to their Crémant at disgorgement stage, was looking surprisingly good.
Sturdy, dry, burgundian nose. Very textural start with very slight oiliness towards the end. Already very broachable with a tiny hint of lemon cough sweets on the finish. Will surely develop more creaminess and less of a grainy texture. Still some tannins evident. JR
Rays Road Chardonnay 2023 - 17/20
Hand-harvested in this Raukawa vineyard acquired in late 2017 from Trinity Hill as a joint project with Pascal Jolivet of the Loire. Whole-bunch pressed Spontaneous fermentation and 100% barrel-fermentation in used French oak. 100% malo and 11 months’ maturation in barrel. The first Kumeu River vintage was 2018 but they reckon this is the best so far. Since acquiring the vineyard in 2018 they have been systematically replacing the Sauvignon Blanc vines, whose fruit is sold off, with Chardonnay. (Trinity Hill’s clone 95 Chardonnay planted in early 2005 is reckoned a bit too austere for the Rays Road bottling so goes into the Village bottling.) They may eventually release single-block Chardonnays. Quite intense, bright fruit. Excellently aromatic. Almost pungent with a hint of putty. Lots of punchy fruit. Very complete with an appetising dry finish. JR
Estate Chardonnay 2023 – 16.5+/20
A blend of six different sites in Kumeu on clay with 60% owned by the Brajkoviches but all farmed by Milan B. All dry-farmed. Lots of different clones: 15, 6, 95, 548 and 1066. Hand-harvested. Whole-bunch pressed. Spontaneous fermentation in used French oak barrels (usually 20% new but not for this lighter vintage). 100% malo. 11 months’ maturation in barrel. Distinctly lemon nose and mouth-filling. Good substance on the palate and definition. Great drink for the near term! Quite a step up from the Village. Athletic. I asked about ageability and was assured by Paul Brajkovich that the 2019 is looking very good now. Neat finish. JR
Kumeu River Village Chardonnay 2023 - 16/20
A little less than 20% Kumeu fruit and just over 80% from Hawke’s Bay, the vineyard area covering a total of 14 hectares planted between 1989 and 2016. Hand-picked. Spontaneous fermentation. 100% malo. 84% fermented in French oak barriques at least five years old and 16% in tank. Fresh, citrus nose. Delicate and lively but slightly thin. Not long but fine for a refreshing, early-drinking Chardonnay. Drying finish. JR