Kumeu River Mate's Vineyard Chardonnay 2024

Category:
 
White Wines
Sub-Category:  
 
White Wines
Producer:
 
Kumeu River
Label Name:
 
Mate's Vineyard Chardonnay
Vintage:
 
2024
Country:
 
New Zealand
Region:
 
Kumeu, Auckland
Volume:
 
750ml
ABV:
 
12.5%
Grape(s):
 
Chardonnay
Acidity:
 
4
Sweetness:
 
1
Body:
 
5
Length:
 
5
Aroma Intensity:
 
4
Best Temperature:
 
12-14°C

Awards/Ratings
James Suckling 98; Robert Parker's Wine Advocate 97 (Erin Larkin); WineFront (Gary Walsh) 96+

Tasting Note
Mouthfilling and concentrated: lemon and yellow stone fruit, pear, honeysuckle, flint and hazelnut with subtle vanilla. Crisp lemon acidity, saline minerality and a phenolic, tightly coiled texture leading to a long, powerful finish that opens with bottle age.

Food Pairing
Western: roast chicken, buttered lobster, mushroom or truffle risotto, creamy pasta, soft-aged cheeses. Asian: miso-glazed cod, tempura prawns, chicken katsu, pork-belly bao, mild Thai coconut curry.

Production Method
Hand-harvested; whole-bunch pressed; indigenous yeast fermentation; 100% barrel fermentation in French oak (approx. 30% new); 100% malolactic conversion; ~11 months barrel maturation.

Vineyard Info
Kumeu River is a family-owned Auckland estate. Maté's Vineyard was replanted by Maté Brajkovich in 1990 on land owned by the family since 1944; first harvest 1993. It is the estate's oldest single-vineyard Chardonnay site, noted for low yields and intense fruit.