KUMEU RIVER RAYS ROAD CHARDONNAY 2020
| Grape: | Chardonnay |
| Vineyard: | Kumeu River Rays Road |
| Origin: | Hawkes Bay, NZ |
| Vintage: | 2020 |
| ABV%: | 13% |
| Colour: | Pale golden yellow |
| Aromas: | White flowers and lemon |
| Flavours: | Vibrant acidity and tingly oyster-shell minerality |
Winemakers Highlights
Hand harvested
Whole-bunch pressed
Indigenous yeast fermentation
100% barrel fermentation
French Oak
100% malo-lactic fermentation
11 months maturation in barrel
Rays Road is Kumeu River’s vineyard site in Hawkes Bay that was purchased in 2017. This limestone hillside is at 180 m altitude, with a northerly aspect. It is dry-farmed to yield high quality grapes for wine under the Rays Road name for our Kumeu River label. This Chardonnay was hand-harvested, whole bunch pressed and fermented with wild yeast in older French Oak barrels to give a wine that is zesty and fragrant, with mineral complexity that is very true to its site.
With the 2020 vintage Rays Road produced the best fruit we have seen yet from this unique site. With new clonal plantings of Chardonnay in their first year of production, we were able to blend some extra ripeness and richness with the fresh limestone vibrancy of the existing vines.
This wine is a terrific addition to the Kumeu River range and we are expecting the quality from this site to get even better.