2014 Kumeu River, Hunting Hill Chardonnay, Kumeu, New Zealand

Hunting Hill always has a lovely weight and structure to it and the 2014 is no exception. The orange blossom laden nose also has lovely mealy notes that remind me of top Chassagne Montrachet. The palate is beautifully textured with a steely core combining with lemon posset before savoury, mealy notes reveal themselves again. A class act with a real future ahead of it, I wouldn’t be surprised at all if this continues to develop and improve over 8 years. Drink 2016-2024
Matthew Tipping, Private Account Manager

Established in 1944, Kumeu River Wines is still owned and operated by the Brajkovich Family.  Michael Brajkovich is producing some of the best New Zealand Chardonnays currently available, wines that get their inspiration from white Burgundy and in particular the likes of Puligny Montrachet & Chassagne Montrachet, especially in terms of reserve and minerality. 

There is a rather tired tendency amongst the trade to compare New world with Old world wines but genuinely the Kumeu wines are comparable.  This comparison in no way takes away any of the new Zealand-ness of these wines, it is just meant to emphasise the extreme quality one can find here at a fraction of the price one would spend for the same quality in the Northern hemisphere.

These terroir driven wines compete with the best the New World has to offer like Giaconda, Penfold’s Yattarna but with a price attractive to many. The current vintage of 2014 is once again an exemplary vintage in a string of superb offerings from this estate.  For any white wine lover, these Chardonnays are a must have.