Kumeu River, Village Chardonnay, 2024
Kumeu River, Village Chardonnay, 2024
- 75cl
- 13%
- White Still
- Chardonnay
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Optimal drinking window: Now - 2034
"I can't think of a Chardonnay producer anywhere that could match that line-up, Burgundy included"
Tim Atkin MW
The 2024 Village Chardonnay is a brilliant introduction to the Kumeu River style. Made entirely from hand-harvested fruit and barrel-fermented (though only a small portion in new oak), it’s a polished yet unpretentious wine that punches far above its level. It's approachable now but with the DNA of the more serious single-vineyard wines.
Kumeu River has built a global reputation for producing some of the finest Chardonnays in the Southern Hemisphere, often compared to top white Burgundy. Founded in the 1940s by the Brajkovich family, the estate remains family-owned and run today, with winemaker Michael Brajkovich MW leading the charge. Their philosophy is centred on site expression and balance, crafting wines that age gracefully while remaining approachable in their youth.
What the critics say:
"The 2024 Village Chardonnay had just been freshly bottled when I tasted it at the estate in Kumeu in March 2025. The other 2024 Chardonnays were tasted as tank samples prior to filtration and bottling soon. The wine leads with yellow citrus and crushed shells. It is texturally fine, sleek and tightly coiled around a core of salty acidity. It is complex but composed and very good. "2024 was a fantastic year, just very small," says Paul Brajkovich. "Weather during flowering wasn't good in spring in 2023," says Michael Brajkovich. "Ripening in 2024 was excellent, so we have a 40% down in yield but very high quality. The Village wine is a blend of Kumeu and Hawke's Bay [and is] a mixture of barrel and tank fermentation.""
OUR GROWERS
Kumeu River
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