Kumeu River Coddington 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.

The Coddington vineyard was previously owned by Tim and Angela Coddington and their grapes have greatly contributed to the success of the world famous Kumeu River Estate Chardonnay. In 2006 winemaker and Master of Wine Michael Brajkovich made the call to slip the Coddington vineyard into his single vineyard series of wines.

Scoring 95/100 with international critic James Suckling who said “The complexity and flintiness are so enticing…Full-bodied, dense and intense, with subtle brioche, cooked lemon and apple notes. Racy and steely but with richness underneath.” 

This is what winemaker and Master of Wine Michael Brajkovich had to say about this release – “Even though 2023 was a lighter vintage the Coddington still shows the distinctive peach & nectarine richness we expect from this site. The use of oak was very careful with no new barrels but a higher proportion of 1 & 2 year old barrels that give a lovely balance with the more moderate alcohol this year of 12.6%. The easiest of the single vineyard to taste when young but will definitely benefit from bottle age of 4-6 years.”