Wine Region: Victoria

(2026) I see from my database that I haven't tasted this single vineyard Chardonnay from the Mornington Peninsula since 2015, so high time to catch up - and a very good wine it remains too. The balance it strikes between flinty reductive notes and ripely peachy, orangey fruit is good, with a subtle oak creaminess beneath. The palate has verve and precision, but a burgeoning sense of exotic ripeness is there, and again the light smokiness of barrel and the natural treatment of wild yeasts, lees contact and light reduction.

(2025) Apparently there's 10% Shiraz and 5% Petit Verdot joining the Cabernet in this blend, winner of a silver medal in the Decanter Awards no less. It doesn't hit those heights for me, but neverthless for an inexpensive wine it does a decent job. There's a dusty mocha and vanilla character that sits over blackcurrant fruit, then the palate shows a deal of juicy bramble and blackberry, soft tannins and a good balancing acidity. A hint of sweetness in the finish.

(2025) Ripe, subtly creamy and well balanced, this is a more than acceptable Chardonnay that majors on peach and melon fruit with a nicely crisp finish thanks to apple core and lemon acidity that tensions the wine. Really quite elegant for this price point.

(2025) This is a Shiraz brimming with cherry and ripe black fruits, certainly fruit-driven with a little floral and peppery lift to the aromas. It is light and juicy on the palate, surely a little oak influence, and while the finish is just a touch tart with noticeable acidity with a casserole or chilli con carne it will hit the spot nicely at its price.

(2025) Labelled as 'Grigio' rather than 'Gris' the signal that this is an easy-drinking style is obvious. The wine is very pale in colour and offers faint aromas of pear and a touch of citrus. Similarly, the palate is rather lightweight. It is juicy enough with a hint of tropical fruit as well as a zippy citrus finish.

(2025) A lemony and flinty rendition of Chardonnay from 20-year-old vines planted on well-drained sandy and loam soils. The wine fermented spontaneously in older French oak barriques. Aromas are zesty with that wild, herbal edge of natural yeast ferment. It's all rounded out by a subtle, buttery character. Plenty of creamy texture on the palate, that sits between nectarine and citrus, again a flinty edge honing the picture. Grapefruit and bitter orange add some real tang to an otherwise quite expensive Chardonnay.

(2025) From nine selected rows of a vineyard planted in 1985, on red volcanic soil. The fruit was whole bunch pressed and fermented in new, one and two year old French oak barriques where it matured for 11 months with monthly stirring. We're in the pungent and flinty spectrum here, Brazil nut and oatmeal smoothing the picture and juicy stone fruits in the mix. The acid punch on the palate is welcome, as it shears through quite exotic, lychee and mango fruit. A distinct kumquat, bitter orange acidity is set against a little barrel toast. Price and stockist for an older vintage at time of review.

(2025) A cracking Chardonnay here from the beautiful Mornington Peninsula. It is whole-bunch pressed, with wild yeast fermentation in French oak barriques(19% new oak), followed by 11 months on lees - but without stirring. It walks a deliciously precise line with flinty, complex sulphide aromas and a more generous, crushed almond and oatmeal richness. On the palate theres a direct, fat lemony generosity, but the flint and the nutty, cashew like warmth of the oak act as bookends, before a long, zipping finish that is saline and crisp. Terrific.

(2025) Fermented in open steel tanks and aged 11 months in French oak barrels from Burgundy coopers, 33% new. Quite a pale colour, a slightly more muted aromatic than the previous two wines, more chestnut and sweet earth, a gentle stemmy quality, red berry fruit beneath. The palate has quite a creamy texture, and quite a vivacious character, fresh acidity and spices and a brightness to the fruit. There's a stripe of something like rhubarb that adds a bittersweet freshness in an interesting style.

(2025) The only 2021 in this line-up, when higher than average rainfall during flowering resulted in lower yields. Fruit was mostly destemmed and fermented in a mix of concrete and steel with wild yeasts. The wine was fermented in a combination of barriques and larger puncheons, followed by 10 months in French oak barrels of varying sizes, 13% new oak. Another pale wine, the nose subtle, a touch toasty, a little strawberry ripeness apparent, but quite reserved. In the mouth this is very delicate (only 12.5% alcohol) with a sweet fruit and smooth integration of oak, tannin and acid. A vivid orange character adds a spark too.