Among the highlights of my 2016 was an opportunity to return as a senior international judge for the Air New Zealand Wine Awards in Auckland. Judging this competition in 1999 was one of the most illuminating early 
experiences in my work in wine, one that disclosed a breadth of excellence and potential that was simply impossible to appreciate fully based on the relatively limited selection of New Zealand wines available for tasting in the USA. Equally illuminating in 1999 was the professionalism of the judges and the judging, and the caliber of the Awards in 2016 was even more impressive in 2016 under the direction of Michael Brajkovich MW, the Chair of Judges.
In 1999, I was struck by the promise shown by Pinot Gris and the sheer quality of Pinot Noir being crafted in Martinborough, Central Otago and 
Marlborough. In 2016, the big surprise was Chardonnay. The flights I tasted during the Awards demonstrated New Zealand’s producers are consistently turning out renditions that combine depth of flavor with superb acidic structure and accents from oak that are restrained in keeping with the brightness of the wines’ fruit. Naturally, I was tasting “blind” during the Awards judging, but two wines that bookended my trip–and that I purchased and flew back to the USA with me–are worthy of special note:
Kumeu River Chardonnay Hunting Hill Vineyard 2014 ($50, Imported by Wilson Daniels): Michael Brajkovich MW is the winemaker behind this wine, but his entire family is involved in the Kumeu River enterprise, which makes a range of excellent wines but specializes in Chardonnay. The “Village” and “Estate” bottlings are reasonably priced and both very good, but quality really gets striking at the single vineyard level. Coddington is quite impressive, and Mate’s remains the flagship of the line, but Hunting Hill is very close to Mate’s in quality and notably easier to find while also being a bit less expensive. This 2014 shows full 
ripeness, with engaging substance and depth, yet the acidity energizes the wine from the first impression on the palate to the very end of the extremely long, symmetrical finish. Spice and toast notes from oak are beautifully tuned to the weight and character of the fruit, and the overall impression is already one of exceptional proportionality and harmoniousness. One taste would tempt you to drink this now, but if you had an opportunity to taste the sensationally complex 2010 Hunting Hill (which I scored conservatively at 98), you’d know that patience with this will be rewarded handsomely. I was also fortunate to taste the 2015 Hunting Hill while at Kumeu River, and it is also terrific, now showing a bit less richness and a bit more acidity–but equally strong potential overall. 95
Felton Road Wines, Central Otago Chardonnay “Block 2” 2014 ($65, imported by Young’s Market): When I visited Felton Road last October, the plan was to show me the Chardonnays from 2015, and I was very lucky to taste this wine…by mistake. To be sure, the 2015s are excellent (both the Block 2 and the Block 6), but both are now notably more tense than this 2014, which has unwound enough to show wonderful flinty mineral complexities along with very subtle oak accents while still showing acidic tension that brings to mind the profile of the finest Chardonnays from Chablis or Puligny-Montrachet. Although this is really just medium-bodied, it seems very generous on account of its exceptional complexity, and there’s no doubt that it has five years of positive development ahead of it…at an absolute minimum. 95
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