Description
The Brajkovich family have been making world-class wines on their estate in Kumeu River for over seventy years. Michael Brajkovich and family are based in an area just to the west of Auckland, New Zealand as well as owning vineyards in Hawke’s Bay, all on the North Island of New Zealand. They make single vineyard wines from each of their vineyards and also an estate blend from their six different sites which is this wine, the Estate Chardonnay. They have all regularly beaten top white Burgundy wines in recent blind tastings line-ups, and in our view thoroughly deserve their title as the best white wines in New Zealand.
From the successful 2022 vintage, this Estate wine combines the different qualities of six different vineyards in the Kumeu wine region near Auckland. From the Chardonnay grape, it is medium in body, with pure citrus fruit, a hint of peach and delicious nuances of toast and oatmeal from barrel fermentation and ageing, that we often find in great Chardonnays. It’s a very classy wine on the palate too, with freshness, ripeness and finesse. It’s big on flavour with an elegant, long, citrus-scented finish. This is a stunning introduction to the wines from this legendary estate and more than holds its own when compared with its more costly French counterparts. Drink now or this will easily keep for 3-4 years in half bottle. Enjoy with seafood, pasta or poultry dishes. 13%ABV
Auckland is known for being the largest city in New Zealand, but there are longstanding vineyards on the lands close by, the most famous of which is Kumeu River. Well-known producer Villa Maria also has a winery in this area. While the climate is not always easy for grape growing, due to high humidity being surrounded by so much water; Kumeu River is widely accepted as making the finest white wines in New Zealand. The grapes for this wine were all hand-harvested and whole-bunch pressed, with wild yeasts performing the fermentation. The wine was fermented in French oak barrels and aged for a further 11 months in barrel prior to release.
See kumeuriver.co.nz for more
