Kumeu River Estate Chardonnay 2012
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Winemaker Notes
#54 Wine Spectator Top 100 of 2015
The Estate Chardonnay is ripe, rich, and beautifully concentrated. The beautiful peach and hazelnut aromas along with the rich silky texture are distinct characteristics that we expect to see from this wine.
Professional Ratings
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Wine Spectator
Sleek and generous, with peach, pear, spice and honey notes, supported by refreshing, vibrant acidity. The spice and toasted nut notes gain momentum on the long, lingering finish. Drink now through 2022.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The plump, succulent 2012 Estate Chardonnay shows plenty of ripe peach notes and perhaps a touch less oak than previous vintages. Ripe, juicy and round, it may be drunk with pleasure now and over the next 5-6 years.
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Founded in 1944 by Mick Brajkovich, wife Katé and son Maté, Kumeu River was one of the early pioneers in Auckland, New Zealand, that helped to establish its reputation as a world-class wine region. Still family owned and run, Kumeu River continues to pioneer new frontiers: winemaker Michael Brajkovich became New Zealand’s first member of the prestigious Institute of Masters of Wine, London, they have been testing and championing screw cap closures for close to 20 years and the winery has gone on to become the globally recognized benchmark for non-Burgundy produced Chardonnay. All Kumeu River wines are hand-harvested, whole bunch pressed and demonstrate exclusive use of indigenous yeast fermentation.
The Chardonnays of Kumeu River have gained a strong foothold within the international market, continuously and consistently receiving outstanding accolades. The winery is a globally recognized benchmark for age-worthy Chardonnay outside of Burgundy.
One of the most popular and versatile white wine grapes, Chardonnay offers a wide range of flavors and styles depending on where it is grown and how it is made. While it tends to flourish in most environments, Chardonnay from its Burgundian homeland produces some of the most remarkable and longest lived examples. California produces both oaky, buttery styles and leaner, European-inspired wines. Somm Secret—The Burgundian subregion of Chablis, while typically using older oak barrels, produces a bright style similar to the unoaked style. Anyone who doesn't like oaky Chardonnay would likely enjoy Chablis.
Grape-growers in the local subregions of Clevedon, Matakana and Waiheke Island, focusing on vineyard techniques to maximize quality, are producing very fine Bordeaux Blends from local grapes. Auckland is also an industrial area where winemakers can produce quality wines based on sourced grapes from neighboring regions.