Kumeu River Chardonnay Ray's Road - 2022 (750ml)

Winemaker's Notes:

Rays Road is Kumeu River’s new vineyard site in Hawkes Bay. 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.

93 points Robert Parker

The 2022 Rays Road Chardonnay is fine and spicy, with a tense line of acidity and phenolics—they feel linear and interwoven—that stream through the fruit. This is a very pretty, pithy Chardonnay with ground white pepper, white flesh peach, crushed shells, layers of juniper berry and star anise/cut fennel inflections. I like the staying power of the fruit in the mouth. It is persistent and long. This is really nicely done, and I'm looking forward to seeing this wine (and this vineyard) more over its journey. 12.5% alcohol, sealed under screw cap. Erin Larkin

91 points Vinous

The 2022 Chardonnay Rays Road is restrained and reticent. It's certainly not a fruit bomb of a Hawke's Bay Chardonnay with its pithy precisiou, slightly salty, flinty character and buzz of nervous acid tension. Rays Road is generally less opulent than most, and the austerity seems to be a character of the site, particularly from the first few vintages. Nevertheless, full malo and 11 months on lees adds texture and padding to the mid-palate. Pear honeysuckle, and melon fruit ally with subtle spiced cedar, which nods to the older French barrels used for fermentation on the medium-long finish. Rebecca Gibb MW