Wineries
KUMEU RIVER
Established in 1944 by Mick and Katé Brajkovich and their son Maté in Kumeu, 20km northwest of Auckland city. They immigrated from Dalmatia in 1938 and worked in the far north of New Zealand digging kauri gum then moved to Henderson in the early 1940’s and worked on vineyards and orchards to save enough money to buy the property at Kumeu. In 1958 Maté married Melba Sutich, and she became Maté’s working partner. Their children Michael, Marijana, Milan and Paul were born in the 1960’s and are all involved in the family business. Maté died in 1992, but the family have carried on his vision of producing the finest quality New Zealand wines.
Our winemaking philosophy is simple: We endeavour to grow grapes of the highest standard and then treat them with respect when we turn them into wine. Their potential quality is thus optimised, and we are able to produce wines that are truly reflective of our tough clay soils and cool maritime climate. In this respect our renowned Chardonnay wines particularly shine through. The vines are trained on the “Lyre” trellis to optimise their exposure to light. Yields are kept low to concentrate aromas and flavours in the grapes, and we harvest only by hand so that the fruit may arrive at the winery in pristine condition. The Chardonnay grapes are all whole-bunch pressed, which is time-consuming but gives us the best quality results. No yeasts are added, as we rely solely on our unique indigenous yeasts to carry out the fermentation, in oak barrels with extended lees ageing.
Our People:
Melba Brajkovich - Managing Director
Michael Brajkovich - Winemaker
Milan Brajkovich - Viticulturist
Paul Brajkovich - Export Director
Marijana Brajkovich - Finance Manager
Average Production: 25,000 cases annually
550 STATE HIGHWAY 16, KUMEU , NEW ZEALAND
www.kumeuriver.co.nz
