2020 KUMEU RIVER Chardonnay Ray's Road, Lea & Sandeman

KUMEU RIVER

2020 Chardonnay Ray's Road

Grapes Chardonnay
Colour White
Origin New Zealand, North Island
District Hawkes Bay
ABV 13.5%
Vineyard Ray's Road

This is a fuller style from Hawke’s Bay and quite different from the rest of the Kumeu range of chardonnays. Bold, ripe peaches dominate the nose and palate. The texture is impressively silky and smooth. Very fleshy and complete. Impressive. Drink or hold. Screw cap. Rating: 95 James Suckling, www.jamessuckling.com (Aug 2021)


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Oak – 100% barrel fermentation in older French Oak and 100% malolactic fermentation with 11 months maturation in barrel. While the first two wines are ready to go and eminently affordable for everyday drinking, we now take a big step up for the rest of the portfolio. A new wine in the line-up and it pleases me greatly to see that it comes from Hawke’s Bay. I adore Hawke’s Bay Chardonnay and I can certainly see why these coolish climate kings have chosen to seek more fruit and also more challenges in this part of Kiwiland. I love Rays road. Classy, layered and complete this is a very different take on this grape from the remainder of the portfolio, given that the rest come from Kumeu (north of Auckland). There is a distinct beginning, middle and end here, which is often a challenge in a new wine and particularly I love the acid line and elegance on the finish. Rating: 18/20 Matthew Jukes www.matthewjukes.com (Aug 2021)

Our own Hawkes Bay vineyards at Rays Road produced the best fruit we have seen yet from this unique site. With new clonal plantings of Chardonnay in their first year of production, we were able to blend some extra ripeness and richness with the fresh limestone vibrancy of the existing vines. The result is an exciting Rays Road Chardonnay showing white flowers and lemon on the nose, with vibrant acidity and tingly oyster-shell minerality on the palate.Winemaker's notes (Aug 2021)

From a limestone, north-facing, dry-farmed hillside at 180 m. Spontaneous fermentation. Aged in old French oak. Neat and well integrated, quite restrained. And already very accessible though with light, fine tannins and quite opulent fruit on the front palate. Sprightly. Lemon-pastille flavour. Very long. Beautifully made. Drinking range: 2021 - 2027 Rating: 16.5+ Jancis Robinson OBE MW - www.JancisRobinson.com (Jul 2021)

Kumeu River

From the pioneering days to the establishment of the New Zealand wine industry to today, the Brajkovich family have been internationally recognised as producing world class wine. The Brajkovich family continue to harvest their grapes at Kumeu and refine their wine making skills.

The Brajkovichs are nationally recognised as a founding family of the New Zealand wine industry, and the current generation are internationally recognised as producing world class Chardonnay.

Just as the Brajkovich family has grown, so too has the winery itself. Extensions and additions mark the milestones that have seen business adapt and expand over the years. Today, the winery produces around 250,000 bottles annually from 30 hectares of its own vineyards in Kumeu, and another 10 hectares from local growers.

This wine isn't currently part of a mixed case, but you can always browse our full selection of mixed cases here.
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