Winemaker Notes
The 2022 vintage continues the run of excellent vintages. Harvested in perfect conditions the 2022 Coddington shows a step up from what the winery has seen in the past from this vineyard. The wine is beautifully ripe in the yellow peach and apricot spectrum, with a background of toasted oak and caramelized hazelnut. It is the biggest style in the range, and satisfyingly rich as such, but also nicely balanced with its acidity.
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
Sliced apple, apple, sea shell and crushed stone aromas follow through to a full body yet it’s tight and structured with an impressive fruit, acidic and phenolic balance giving it focus and intensity.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2022 Coddington Chardonnay leads with lemon balm/oil, green-olive brine, crème brûlée top (a.k.a. scorched brown sugar), peach fuzz, and an abundance of orchard fruit. In the mouth, kiwi fruit acidity (a.k.a. juicy, sweet, tart) defines the perimeters of the flavors and beckons you in for another, closer look. It's very, very good, a distinct wine, pure, all aspects delineated and deliberate. I like this. It feels orderly and mathematical. If the wine had a sound, it would be a straight-pace bowl at the wickets, one flying out of stumps (name a better sound, I'll wait). It's not that immediately obvious, though; it builds and takes a while to assert itself, and I like that too. Very good. 13.5% alcohol, sealed under screw cap.
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Wine Enthusiast
This is a quiet Coddington compared with past vintages, but its delicacy brings a certain charm. Toast, cream, rocks and seashells all weave between peach pit, melon, pineapple rind and ginger. The palate is wonderfully structured, tight and focused but with concentration, freshness and balance. Still young, it could age for many years but has an approachability now, too.
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Wine Spectator
A stunning expression of intense fruit flavors, with notes of lemon sherbet, lemon curd and peach flavors at the core, with fresh, vibrant acidity and details of toasted, salted hazelnut, orange blossoms and lemon verbena that linger on the long finish.
Founded in 1944 by Mick Brajkovich, wife Katé and son Maté, Kumeu River was one of the early pioneers in Auckland, New Zealand, that helped to establish its reputation as a world-class wine region. Still family owned and run, Kumeu River continues to pioneer new frontiers: winemaker Michael Brajkovich became New Zealand’s first member of the prestigious Institute of Masters of Wine, London, they have been testing and championing screw cap closures for close to 20 years and the winery has gone on to become the globally recognized benchmark for non-Burgundy produced Chardonnay. All Kumeu River wines are hand-harvested, whole bunch pressed and demonstrate exclusive use of indigenous yeast fermentation.
The Chardonnays of Kumeu River have gained a strong foothold within the international market, continuously and consistently receiving outstanding accolades. The winery is a globally recognized benchmark for age-worthy Chardonnay outside of Burgundy.
One of the most popular and versatile white wine grapes, Chardonnay offers a wide range of flavors and styles depending on where it is grown and how it is made. While it tends to flourish in most environments, Chardonnay from its Burgundian homeland produces some of the most remarkable and longest lived examples. California produces both oaky, buttery styles and leaner, European-inspired wines. Somm Secret—The Burgundian subregion of Chablis, while typically using older oak barrels, produces a bright style similar to the unoaked style. Anyone who doesn't like oaky Chardonnay would likely enjoy Chablis.
Grape-growers in the local subregions of Clevedon, Matakana and Waiheke Island, focusing on vineyard techniques to maximize quality, are producing very fine Bordeaux Blends from local grapes. Auckland is also an industrial area where winemakers can produce quality wines based on sourced grapes from neighboring regions.