It's (another) fabulous vintage for Kumeu River. This Auckland estate is comfortably New Zealand's finest Chardonnay producer, and competes with the best on the world stage. The vintage–on–vintage consistency here is remarkable. Third generation winemaker Michael Brajkovich, who was New Zealand's first master of wine, tries to be modest about it all – but he couldn't repress a smile when he visited us this morning to show us his 2024s.
The Kumeu story goes back to the 1940s, when the New Zealand wine industry was in its infancy, and the Brajkovichs were an enterprising family of Croatian immigrants. Until the 1980s, they made most of their money from fortified wine. Over the years, they experimented with a range of grape varieties, but discovered it was always Chardonnay that did best in their clay–on–sandstone soils. Their fame soared on the back of a variety of awards and some dizzy comparisons to the best of white Burgundy.
In 2024, cool weather at flowering lowered yields across the range, but also concentrated the grapes. Summer saw weather that was warm but never excessive, which led to steady ripening and a relatively easy job for the crews selecting fruit at harvest. 'Hand harvesting is a very expensive process,' says Michael, 'but well worth the cost and effort for the quality it brings.' Of the single vineyard wines, Coddington is richer, Hunting Hill is zestier, and Maté's is dense and concentrated. Ray's Road is raised only in old oak barrels in line with the Chablis producers they admire, and the fruit is beautifully expressive. And the Estate Chardonnay is a real cracker this vintage, snapping at the heels of the single vineyard wines. Michael calls it 'one of the best Estates we've ever made'. /NT
