Kumeu River Village Chardonnay

They’re one of NZ’s most iconic wine producers on the world stage. The family are pioneers in the NZ wine industry. They produce some of the very best Chardonnay you’ll find anywhere in Aotearoa. They’re the Brajkovich family and you’ll find them in the north Auckland suburb of Kumeu. Next to a river.

This is their Kumeu River Village Chardonnay from the 2025 vintage using fruit from both Kumeu (42%) and Hawke’s Bay (58%) and in their words “This is a wine where we always have a bottle in the fridge.”

Think of Kumeu River Village Chardonnay as an awesome Chablis-like Chardonnay from a top producer. There’s very little oak influence here and it’s all about the fresh citrus, like lemon and lime fruit flavours, and white peach made in a bone-dry style.

Master of Wine Bob Campbell has swirled round a few Chardonnays in his time. So it’s high praise when he says “The first vintage of Kumeu River Village Chardonnay I tasted was from the 2002 vintage and it has been my “house Chardonnay” ever since.”