Brajkovich MW: Reduction is like cranking up an amp

While reductive styles of Chardonnay have become popular the world over, the practice should be approached with caution, according to Michael Brajkovich MW.

Hawke’s Bay is a hotbed for quality New Zealand Chardonnay

Speaking at the inaugural Chardonnay and Sparkling Wine Symposium in Gisborne, New Zealand, earlier this year, Kumeu River’s winemaker, Michael Brajkovich MW, told attendees:

“Some producers make the mistake of playing around with oak and reduction too much. Reduction is a bit like cranking up an amp – cranking it up a bit can improve the sound but too much and it becomes distorted.

“It all comes down to personal taste. It’s great that we have a range of Chardonnay styles in New Zealand – the trend for chasing reduction swung in an extreme direction in the past but we’re coming back to the middle ground now.

“We like consistency and regularity in the New World but ultimately quality will come with complexity and diversity from working with a mixture of different clones and aspects.

Michael Brajkovich MW believes reduction should be approached with caution

“There is a huge demand for NZ Chardonnay now and more vines are going in the ground, but I wouldn’t want us to end up growing as much as Australia as we may not be able to sell it – we also have to keep the quality high,” he warned.

Kate Radburn of Radburn Cellars welcomes the diversity of styles of New Zealand Chardonnay on the market. “We’ve seen more reductive styles come to the fore in the last decade, which is an exciting development.

“A wave of reductive Chardonnays came onto the market when the style became successful, but things have settled down a bit now.

“I expect purity of fruit and beautiful complexity from New Zealand Chardonnay, and weight of flavour in the mouth. If you’re going to make reductive styles of Chardonnay you need good fruit and oak to back it up,” she said.

“The beauty of Chardonnay lies in its diversity of styles, and the grapes thrives all over New Zealand. It’s a very exciting opportunity for us as a country to make small volume, quality focused wines,” she added.

But while reductive styles of Chardonnay are largely welcomed by winemakers, Hugh Crichton of Vidal Estate warned during the symposium that it’s easy to overdo it.

“A lot of people are chasing reduction for the wrong reasons. The key with Chardonnay is to start with great quality fruit with good concentration and to keep reduction in check.

“Heavy reduction can get a bit swampy and sit on the fruit. Chardonnay gives New Zealand winemakers the chance to build more complex wines without masking the fruit,” he said.

“Sauvignon Blanc has done amazing things for the New Zealand wine industry but I’d love to see more Chardonnay in the ground as it can command higher price points, so will become an important part of our story and the next stage of development for New Zealand,” he added.

There are currently around 3,300 hectares of Chardonnay planted in New Zealand compared to 50,000 in France and 42,000 in the US.