Kumeu River Rays Road Chardonnay 2024

After six years of ‘practice’, this wine seems to have found its feet! Limestone-driven, Chablis-esque, bright, angular and raspy, this is an enticing fellow, which needs a year to settle, and I venture this will end up being a worthwhile member of the pack, with perhaps a hint of luxuriousness to bring to the party.

• Reviewer Name: Matthew Jukes

Higher toned than Kumeu River's Auckland wines, with green apple, crisp pear and oyster shell. Barrel fermented in 2024, but only the tiniest touch of new oak and sweet biscuit on display. More open and opulent than previous vintages but still retains the hallmark chalky, biscotti characters. Drink from 2027-2033. Tasted Aug 2025.

• Reviewer Name: Jane Skilton MW

The 2024 Rays Road Chardonnay leads with a spicy, almost exotic nose, while the palate strides in smooth, sleek movements. This is creamy and a little nutty, and there are wet limestone notes in the mouth, alongside yellow citrus and layers of dried herbs, cracked fennel seeds, ginger root and fruit flavors. A lovely wine, it's weighted on the back palate and long through the finish. I tasted this as a tank sample prior to filtration and bottling. The Ray's Road vineyard is on a limestone base and has been significantly worked and replanted since the Kumeu River purchase in 2021.

• Drinking Window: 2025 - 2039
• Reviewer Name: Erin Larkin

Herbal aromas, fresh-picked green herbs, cucumber and lime, a tease of honey: a more fruit-driven bouquet, the palate tensioned and focused, with very good penetration and length, the bouquet building smoky snuffed candle and flint characters as it airs. A more pointed and tense wine than the Kumeu Estate.

• Reviewer Name: Huon Hooke