“The most ambitious Estate bottling yet. This would not look out of place at all in Puligny!” - Jancis Robinson MW, 17+ points

Unless you have been hiding in a bush since we started Vin Cognito, you will have heard us extolling the virtues of Kumeu River, their deeply contemplative winemaker, Michael Brajkovich MW, and their amazing old-world-meets-new-world Chardonnays, which are bought the world over by fans of white Burgundy, because they impersonate those wines with such aplomb that you’d think they were in the room. This Estate Chardonnay 2025 is a delicious decoy for when you want a world class Chardonnay experience, but you can’t justify the expense of a Meursault or a Chassagne-Montrachet.

It’s a blend of six different sites within the Kumeu River estate, offering mellow intensity, without any excess fat, its youthful dash and cool acidity tying it together into a neat and precise finish. It offers a classic Chardonnay fingerprint of white-fleshed orchard fruits, layered with flaky pastry, toasted oats and a mere whiff of oak-derived smokiness to give it further dimension. It’s drinking well now, but still has a long way to go. 13.5% alc. 20% new oak. Drink now-2034.

Press reviews:

The Wine Advocate: “Hailing from the exceptional 2025 growing season, the 2025 Estate Chardonnay leads initially with toasty/pencilly oak notes; however, the fruit on the palate is where the quality of the vintage is on show. Here we have yellow peach, sea salt, toasted sage leaf (even bay), quince, fig and white flowers. The acidity is prodigious, and this serves as a prop in the middle of the palate, providing real tension and fierceness to the otherwise ripe fruit. This is a very good wine, and the length through the finish is impressive. Drink now-2035.” 93 points

Jancis Robinson MW: “Looks quite substantial, even dense! Leaner on the nose than the Hawke’s Bay wines. Lots to chew on. The most ambitious Estate bottling yet. This would not look out of place at all in Puligny! Chalky texture on the finish. Drink now-2030.” 17+ points