Farr Vintners Logo

Maté's Vineyard Chardonnay, Kumeu River 2018

RegionNew Zealand
Subregion New Zealand > Auckland
ColourWhite
TypeStill
Grape VarietyChardonnay

View all vintages of this wine | View all wines by Kumeu River

Label

Tasting Notes

Though raised in 100% old oak as with the other wines in this vintage, the Mate's Vineyard still has a smoky, spicy nose from the second fill barrels that adds a generosity and fleshiness to the peach and citrus fruit. The palate follows with a nice hint of smoke and cream bolstering juicy stone fruits, adding weight and richness. This is the broadest wine in the range, the body rounding out the fresh acidity in perfect harmony. There is still good tension that builds through to the long finish that is bright and harmonious. Ready to drink now, this will continue to evolve over the next 8 years.

94+
Farr Vintners, Farr Tasting, September 2019

Gentle notes of toasted grain mark the nose of the 2018 Mate's Vineyard Chardonnay, framing ripe pineapple and white peach aromas. There's a hint of bacon fat too. On the medium-bodied palate, the wine is slightly custardy and silky, while at the same time, it's crisp and focused, tightening on the finish into a coiled spring of citrus zest. Like most vintages of Mate's, this ideally needs a couple of years in the cellar to fully express itself. Drink 2021-2030.

93
Joe Czerwinski, Wine Advocate, November 2019

The top-tier chardonnay here is very much in command and has a super rich and very concentrated feel with deep, ripe-peach and mango aromas with grilled-grapefruit notes, too. The palate is very rich and ripe, offering a super fleshy feel with long, rich and layered, stone-fruit flavors. Drink or hold. Screw cap.

96
Nick Stock, JamesSuckling.com, December 2019
Please note that these tasting notes/scores are not intended to be exhaustive and in some cases they may not be the most recently published figures. However, we always do our best to add latest scores and reviews when these come to our attention. We advise customers who wish to purchase wines based simply on critical reviews to carry out further research into the latest reports.