As part of the 80 years Anniversary of the Brajkovich family at Kumeu River, it was a privilege to be invited to a retrospective tasting of their Chardonnays from across the Kumeu sites. They now have a vineyard in Hawke’s bay – Ray’s Road – that will be an important part of this family business going forward, but today was all about Kumeu – and Chardonnay. It is a chance to look at what will arguably be the best wines that they have made over the last eighty years.
Paul Brajkovich introduces the ‘key players in the side’ – from youngest to oldest – in terms of working at the winery… “Marijiana has been here 18 of the 80 years. She looks after finances, marketing and administration. I’m second – I’m Paul, and I’ve been here 34 years of the 90. I look after marketing, sales and exports. Then my brother Milan, who has been here 38 years. Milan looks after the vineyards. Having an engineering degree comes in handy in the winery and vineyards. I think you’ll notice today that in order to make wines like this – you’ve got to have great vineyards.
Michael – our winemaker and a Master of Wine – has been here 42 years of the 80, and has been doing a pretty decent job I’d say. Nigel Tibbets has been here 50 years of the 80 – celebrating his 50th anniversary with Kumeu River this year. People assume he started working here when he was seven! And then Melba, who has been here 66 of the 80 years. When she married Dad in 1958, she gave up a promising teaching career to become Dad’s Cellar hand. And then of course Maté who is on the wall up there. Our founder, who started in 1944 and is proudly holding a glass of ’87 Kumeu River Chardonnay, which he loved”.
Michael Brajkovich talks us through a few points. “Chardonnay is the variety, and it is a relative newcomer in the 80 year history. Dad did try it in the early 60’s but it didn’t really get to the ripeness levels that we wanted to, and it was quite heavily virused.
At the time we thought that merlot was going to be the variety for us. We had planted quite a large amount of what amounts to a viticultural experiment, with a number of different varieties but Chardonnay was the one that shone through over a long period of time. One of the key factors is that we are cool-climate viticulture. We get a lot of cloud cover and a lot of rain. You really need a variety that ripens quite early, and Chardonnay does that.
We set about in the 80’s to make a ‘white Burgundy style Chardonnay’ with barrel fermentation, malolactic fermentation and a few other bits and pieces thrown in. So, we were making what is our Estate Chardonnay now. Dad had this vision of making one really good white wine – and Chardonnay was going to be it. But as time moved on we found that certain areas and vineyards did a different job and were unique enough to separate out.
Mate’s Vineyard first appeared in 1993, the year after Dad died. It was his last project – to plant that vineyard. The Hunting Hill and Coddington appeared in 2006, but only after we had planted more Chardonnay vineyard to be able to keep up the volume and the quality of the Estate. They are essentially, stylistically very similar. There is a thread running through there, but some important differences as well.
Those two vintages are two of the best we’ve ever had. ’19 came along and it was just outstanding, and I think my notes at the time were “an exceptional vintage of unsurpassed quality”. It was just one of those years when everything went right. Very dry but not particularly warm. And then 2020 came along and said to 2019 ‘here, hold my beer, I’ll show you how it’s done’. Slightly warmer, slightly drier. Two exceptional years that weren’t affected by any extremes of climate. Just good, dry years following on from ’18 which was particularly wet.
Flight One:
2020 Estate Chardonnay
A generous perfume with lemon, orange rind, toasted cashew, grapefruit, cardamom, chamomile, and elderflower. Some oak toast is tempered by a zesty acidity and savoury notes of green olive and herbs. A plush textural quality, and a long, dry finish. 92pts
2020 Coddington
A very ripe, forward style, with pear, stonefruit, almond and lemon curd on the nose. A vibrant acidity and some fine oak spice, that balances the fruit and suits the character of this expression. Mouth-filling with exceptional length through the palate and into the finish. 95pts
2020 Hunting Hill
A bit more oak on the nose than I remember from previous tastings, but it doesn’t show in the palate. Lemon blossom, tarragon, roast chestnut, peach and crushed oyster shell. Much more minerality and structure. Crisp and linear, with pronounced acidity and bags of energy. 94pts
2020 Mate’s Vineyard
Still complex and slightly edgy – coming together though. A touch of reductive flint, juicy with nectarine, oatmeal, biscotti and freshly sliced pear. A tensely coiled acidity shows keenly in the palate. Tight and structured but shows rich oak and has amazing length. 97pts
2019 Estate
This has some development already on the nose, with more golden fruit than any of the ‘20s. A slightly reductive opening, then showing roast cashew, peach, golden apple, nutmeg and grapefruit. Rounded and unctuous, it has lost a little of that youthful tightness and edges, but still has a slight prickle and a creamy, oatmeal texture. 93pts
2019 Coddington
Very ready to drink and approachable. Nectarine, melon, baking spice and pear. Plush fruit – almost tropical but then has a jalapeno-like bite to the fine acidity that maintains an edge. Spice shows from the oak, but it is drinking very well – the finish is very long. 94pts
2019 Hunting Hill
With a distinctive lime blossom fragrance. Crisp and linear, with roast chestnut, peach and spicy crème brulee layers of flavours. Leaner and less showy, with a firmness to the palate that will take more time to develop. The acidity gives it a lift and lightness across the palate. Fine but still very youthful. 94pts
2019 Mate’s Vineyard
The scent is complex but complete – spice, oak, ripe fruit. A sense of brooding density – the nature of the Mendoza clone offering a lovely concentration but Michael always maintains a little tannin that can take a while to fully integrate, but adds a ‘European’ styling to this, with body and structure for the long term. The length is already quite impressive. 96pts
Paul Brajkovich adds “We’ve always thought that three to five years is a really good time to start drinking them because they do develop with bottle age. You’re seeing that with the ’19’s. You’ll see that again as we jump to the ‘14s. We thought about putting something in between, but then we’ve probably got enough wine to taste. It was going to be a highlight of really top-flight vintages from the last 20-30 years. Sadly, what we’re going to do now is ask you to have a quick final look through those glasses, because we’re going to tip them out! We’ll refill with new wines – the same sources but from 2014 and 2013”.
Whilst we’re emptying our glasses of these heavenly drops, Michael adds “I’d just like to talk a little bit about the ‘struck match’ character that our wines do have. That slightly reductive character. One of the important procedures in the making of these wines – they are hand-harvested and whole bunch pressed and then the juice is settled – and then it’s racked. So we don’t put all of the juice in the fermentation. So we don’t get all of the grape solids. The reductive character I find quite restrained, but it’s there.
That all comes about by how much of the solids get racked off and go into the fermentation. All of these wines have been racked by one person. Nigel’s done the whole lot. Originally did it all by eye. We now actually measure the turpidity, but it’s a question of getting some grape solids in there. Light, fluffy, golden-coloured grape solids which will have some spray residue, some sulphur in there and creates that reductive character. But not overly – so that the wines are not dominated by that character.
And by getting the grape solids at that level, it also helps build texture in the wines. We want those solids in the fermentation to give a bit more richness. Both of these vintages are what we would call ‘normal sized vintages’. Not affected by frost or a bad flowering, so quite reasonable yields”.
Paul introduces the next two flights as “What you have next are very contrasting vintages. One, the ’14, being beautifully ripe and rich and generous. The other – ’13 – being frost-affected and very small, but quite spectacular. With this sort of bottle age, I think these should be really impressive”.
Flight Two:
2014 Estate
A pale colour considering the age. Perfume has lots of spice, a bit of smoke and lush citrus. A very polished expression with real finesse. Over the course of just 10 minutes this unwinds in the glass, and finishes very long, linear and zesty. The best ‘Estate’ yet. 95pts
2014 Coddington
Rich and enticing on the nose, with very ripe fruit flavours of pear, lime and white peach. There is some density to the palate, with lower acidity and tannin than its siblings. A lovely-drinking glass right now, with a well-balanced, generous finish. 94pts
2014 Hunting Hill
Initially quite subtle aromas of lemon and lime and a flinty, ozone reductivity – this comes alive on first taste. The palate is very concentrated, with a backbone of salinity and line to the acidity. Fruit takes a deeper turn with quince, lemon curd, marmalade fruit. Quite a journey. Still has some distance to go to reach a peak? 96pts
2014 Mate’s Vineyard
Now, this one does seem to show a maturity – quite golden scents of peach, pear, lemon curd and cashew nut at first. The palate is very peppery and there is quite compelling (but delicious and spicy) oak. Texture, minerality and savoury notes also emerge as it opens up even more, finishing with great persistence. 97pts
2013 Estate
In contrast to a couple of the 2014’s, this sample seems particularly youthful. Apple, mandarin, baking spice, and some toasty oak noted on the nose. A pin-point purity of acidity strides through the palate. Grippy, with plenty of tannin and a mealy texture. 94pts
2013 Coddington
The signature richness of this expression shows, with pear, danish pastry, citrus, toasted almond and even a little passionfruit in the perfume. A lower acidity and more rounded depth, plus plenty of silky texture. A satisfying harmony at the lingering finish. 95pts
2013 Hunting Hill
It is becoming clear how this single vineyard wine hits its straps around the ten-year mark. From the beginnings of lemon and lime, and seashell/petrichor/salinity to the nose, into a much broader and well-balanced palate. Still has more to give though – time needed. 95pts
2013 Mate’s Vineyard
Perhaps more savoury on the nose than I’m used to seeing. Oak and fruit in harmony – peach, citrus, caramel, spice. The palate is dense, complex and rich with a masterful balance of acid, grip of tannin and a waxy viscosity. A bite of pithyness and pepper to the finish. 96pts
Paul asks “I hope you enjoyed those two flights of wines? I think it is perfect when you start a flight with that ’14 Estate Chardonnay! To me that was just absolutely delicious. It shows just how good the Estate can be, in very good years. Sometimes it gets left behind a little bit with the other single vineyards, because that’s special, but the Estate Chardonnay really does punch right up there. 2014 is just one of those vintages that has drunk really well right from the go. At a similar tasting in London a few months ago, the Hunting Hill 2014 was the wine of the tasting. I don’t want to pre-empt what’s coming, but…” Michael also chips in – “We’ve always thought that was one of the best ever”.
It’s Milan’s turn to talk now, as we turn to the vineyards. “You look at the Estate wines – they all come from Kumeu for a start, but they are quite widespread. From here, quite close to the winery, as far away as almost Waimauku. The vineyards in Kumeu are all U-trellis with a split canopy which we started in the ‘80s, trying to open the canopy up and get more exposure to the light. It works extremely well, and only Coddington is on that normal VSP trellis. The other similarity is that they are all dry-farmed. No irrigation anywhere – we get enough from the sky. we have to do a little bit of watering when we first plant, in a dry year”.
The 2010 and 2007 wines that come next are also from good years. 2010 was a frost-affected vintage, producing about half the normal yield. 2007 was a cooler year, producing more in the citrus-spectrum of flavours.
Flight Three
2010 Estate
A small step up again. The best ‘Estate’ I’ve tried. A powerful, brooding perfume with cashew nut, peach, honey and weetbix. Dry, quite tight and boisterous on the palate – lovely drinking. A zing of acidity is still present and gives great line. 96pts
2010 Coddington
Another compelling perfume – sweet and sour combining very well with some flinty reductivity over a spiced pear and nectarine core. The palate seems more savoury by contrast, but opens up well with a fine balance as it goes. 95pts
2010 Hunting Hill
A murmur went around the room as the group discovered this wine to taste. Wow. The scent is alluring, with citrus, baking spice, a nibble of struck-match and richer stonefruit. Whilst tight and zesty, this seems quite rich for HH. Quite spectacular on the palate, showing a lovely spice note but the tightrope balance is remarkable. Energy, power but finesse. Vibrant acidity and a rounded texture. The finish is un-ending – I can still taste it now, days later. 100pts (my first ever perfect score).
2010 Mate’s Vineyard
Another 2010 that seems quite fresh, with lime, nectarine and smoky, savoury notes in the scent. Some funk too but in a good way. Gold and green. One of those Mate’s that is big on contrast – what I often call ‘the beautiful chaos’ It expands rapidly. Quite phenolic, with a finish that has that ‘good bitter’ and peppery ending. 97pts
2007 Estate
This is fairly golden in colour, and the first to really show some developed character. Acid is still crisp, and it is by no means over the hill. The fruit is also golden, with a savoury, nutty viscosity to the palate. Dry and lightly tannic on the finish. 91pts
2007 Coddington
The Coddington also has more bottle age development, with a perfume that is rich, polished and ripe. The fruit has a touch of marmalade, quince and melon. The texture, whilst creamy, has enough of that pithy quality to add interest and complexity. 92pts
2007 Hunting Hill
By contrast, the HH is, again, much tighter. A set of interconnecting scents and flavours. Quite lean and electric acidity not only remains but gives tremendous line through the palate. Lots of energy and life. Real gravitas to the persistent finish. 97pts
2007 Mate’s Vineyard
OK – wow. A very ‘european’ style on the nose. Floral with jasmine and lemon blossom but also a little sweetcorn, unfolding spice and vanilla richness. Opulent, unctuous with satisfying weight – but still very well-balanced. Gravel where the texture and oak join up. 98pts
Paul’s comments after that flight – “We always said that the Kumeu River Chardonnay and the single vineyards at five to seven years of bottle age was optimal, but we sort of revised that a little bit… so say up to ten years. You’re looking at 14 to 17 years here but they look fresh and lively and the bottle age has done them a lot of good. When you look at the 2010 Estate, and it’s looking that good, then you’ve got seriously good vineyards and seriously good winemaking.
It is nice to see that when we went to screwcaps in 2001, and there was a thought that ‘these wines won’t age’ but you definitely see the bottle development here. The colour when you look in the glass is quite different from what you’ve seen previously. They are taking on that textural element but retaining freshness. And only two bottles of each were opened.
I did a tasting in London a few years ago where we had 48 wines. We had one bottle of each and it was ten vintages of each of these wines. We got to the end and we didn’t have one dud. Before when we were using corks, we would have had to send two or three bottles of each. And you’d always have problems. Before screwcaps, we would want to show people bottles 5-6 years old – so I’d go and pick three bottles. Then I’d open all three of them and choose the best. In a rare case you may get two or three bottles that are pristinely perfect. You’d get three or four that were good – OK – and you might get one or two corked… but the variation was huge!
The worst example we had was 1999 Mate’s Vineyard where we were get a lot of instances of cork taint. We isolated 200 cases that we thought we knew were the poor corks, and periodically we’d open every bottle and re-cork them. We’d do fifty cases at a time, in this room. Two of us would be pulling corks and we threw away 30% of the wine through TCA alone. What was just as worrying was that one in every fifteen bottles you’d go “Wow, that’s really good!” And you’d think “Well they should all taste like this”.
That 1999 Mate’s was an extreme case, but even with European wines that you buy – you’re looking at around 10%. It might not necessarily be TCA. We’ll open bottles here and go “Yeah, that’s not that flash”. The best example is of a really good case of Burgundy that we bought, after a tasting. And at around five or six years of age we thought we’d open one. And we all looked at each other and said “I thought it was better than this”. So we opened another bottle. The second bottle was really badly corked. Opened a third bottle. That was just oxidised. Opened a fourth bottle – fantastic! So four bottles before you could get something to drink.
Flight Four
2004 Estate
I’m finding these later examples of the Estate to be touch over the edge of aged quality for my preference – wishing I’d had them five years ago. The colour of straw, the nose is all gold, with a touch of mango and vanilla. The palate shows a more herbal side, so all is not lost. 89pts
2004 Mate’s Vineyard
To compare against the other 2004 – Mate’s is still bright and intense. Quite balanced – I love the oak here – a toasty seasoning, flowing from the perfume into the core of the palate. Within five minutes in the glass, it is fully open and laid out before you, this is Mate’s in full bloom. 98pts
2002 Estate
The oldest wines to taste today, and again this (for me) is past its best but only in terms of bottle-age. It is plush and rounded, but still has that clean and prickly, peppery character. This would still have it’s fans. 88pts
2002 Mate’s Vineyard
OK – so the Mate’s is ageless? An absolute classic Kumeu River chardonnay. This is what we’re here to celebrate, so to finish on this is appropriate. The room stands in applause. A hedonistic wine with vigour, solid structure and form. Bright gold fruit but also some savoury green olive and preserved lemon notes to contrast. So complex – there are pithy phenolics that add grip, next to smooth creme brulée texture. The length of finish is enveloping. 99pts
How to summarise such a session? I’ve been to bigger tastings – or ones where a single producer has multiple wine styles – reds, sparkling and so forth. But with such a focussed – one producer, one location, one varietal – afternoon… I can’t say it has been done better. To finally discover a wine that I could only describe as “perfect” is the icing on the cake. Testament to one of New Zealand’s great labels, and I certainly hope I’m around for the 100th Anniversary.
