This superb, world-class Chardonnay uses grapes from four different regions across the Western Cape - Barrydale, the Overberg, Robertson and Stellenbosch - and is a seamless cuvée of the quartet. Refined, scented and deftly wooded in 50% new barrels, it’s a dry, structured, serious style with toasty top notes, plenty of extract and notes of lemongrass, aniseed and oyster shell. 2023-30

Established in 1971 by Alan Hickinbotham on the hill above Clarendon, this vineyard developed into a legend under the halo of the family name (Hickinbotham's father had established the oenology course at Rose-worthy; his brother Ian was the first winemaker at Wynn's Coonawarra). The Jackson family, already invested in Yangarra Estate, purchased the property in 2012 and put the Yangarra team in charge - - Peter Fraser and Chris Carpenter, working with Michael Lane on viticulture. Shiraz accounts for 80 acres of the site, providing this "pure and concentrated, perfumed syrah," as panelist David Hawkins described it. There's freshness to the fruit, along with a savory undertone of fruity mushrooms. The brisk tannins are elegant and delicate in the context of McLaren Vale. Oak aging adds to the wine's espresso-roast depth, its firm, gentle touch like a finger on the pulse of the fruit. -J.G.

The 2021 Chardonnay Machado is fabulous. All the brightness and energy of the year comes through in a wine that sizzles with tension. White flowers, crushed rocks, mint, white pepper and citrus lift this gorgeous, sculpted Chardonnay. Intense saline notes punctuate the finish. This is such a classy wine. The parent material here is from Sweeney Canyon, a vineyard that played an important role in the early days here but that is no longer planted.

This is a big wine, it’s deep almost purple hued tone is almost impenetrable. 60% Cab Sav 40% Shiraz, all from mature 1971 vines. Intense brambly black fruits, cassis, bay leaf, black olive, peppercorn, aniseed pastille with a slight potpourri note and a subtle campfire peatiness. Heavyweight, compact fruit is at the core of this wine, wrapped with experienced winemaking and new oak. Lifting its head through the tight weave is a nimble acid line, ducking and threading at a steady pace through the mouth. Tannins are firm and unrelenting, which will provide decades in the cellar. These muscles are so tightly knit, it will take a few deep tissue massages, a decant and time in the bottle to relax and open up. This is a power brokers wine, weighty and sure of itself, with well shined shoes. Would love to see this in ten plus years’ time.

Among the finest wines in Australia. Destemmed fruit, crushed and extracted across a whopping 133-day window in eggs. Blood plum, sappy raspberry, licorice root, bergamot and pepper grind. Clove, tamarind and mint. Gorgeous. Pinosité aplenty, yet beautifully extracted with skittish, long-limbed and gritty tannins corralling the fray. Tear-inducing stuff. Levity, transparency and intensity, all in one.

The 1998 La Joie, a blend of 70% Cabernet Sauvignon and 30% Merlot, is a pleasure to drink. Medium garnet in color, it maintains a core of dried red cherries complemented by tones of mushroom powder, wet tobacco, dust and iodine. The palate is velvety and surprisingly fresh, with high tertiary complexity and a very long finish featuring haunting touches of dried fowers and tobacco.

The 2013 La Muse is maturing gracefully and offers noticeable detail at this stage. Deep garnet in color, its dried wild black and blueberry fruit is complemented by umami-like wafts of shiitake, steak sauce and aniseed. The full-bodied palate is softening and fresh,with a generous core of juicy fruit, heightened complexity from savory notes of maturity and a singular, umami-and-berry finish. It's drinking wonderfully, although it's not quite at its peak.

The 2020 La Joie is a blend of 80% cabernet sauvignon, 10% Merlot, 7% Cabernet Franc and 3%Malbec, matured for 15 months new French oak. Its aromas of cassis, coffee and licorice are accented with alluring violet perfume, and it gains intensity as it spends time in the glass. The full-bodied palate is loaded with velvety tannins and graphite-laced fruit. It has soft undulations of acidity and a long fi nish with lingering spicy tones. 1,200 cases were made.

A new wine from a site in the Sta. Rita Hills, the 2021 Chardonnay Perilune is similarly medium gold-hued, with more bass notes of stone fruits, buttered nuts, white flowers, and crushed stone. One of the more powerful, opulent, full-bodied whites in the lineup, it brings beautiful richness and depth, a layered, mouth-filling texture, and a great finish

Ripe orchard fruits, butted lemon, crushed stone, and salty, marine-influence notes all emerge from the 2021 Chardonnay Sta. Rita Hills, a concentrated, medium to full-bodied Chardonnay with a liquid rock-like sense of minerality, beautiful mid-palate density, and a great finish. You should never underestimate these appellation
releases from Greg Brewer. This is an insane value in top Chardonnay from California.

Anakota changes its oak regimen based on what the vintage directs, and the 2019 vintage, with an above-average growing season and heat spikes in July, August, and September, commanded a higher use of new French oak. The fruit leans toward the purple end of the spectrum: think plums and blackberry jam. But fruit almost takes a backseat to the leather, bay leaf, and iron qualities of the aromas and flavours. Full-bodied and structured, this is a wine with presence but still a freshness that makes it approachable in its youth. There are layers to this wine that keep bringing me back for another taste.

Although this wine is dominated by Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon’s sultrier qualities give this wine depth. Seillan’s long history with Cabernet Franc—first at his family’s estate, then in the Loire and Bordeaux—inspired him to create a wine from Sonoma fruit to complement the other two Verité wines. There’s wild game quality to the aromas and flavours, along with red fruits and black cherry. Dried herbs, rosemary, in particular, weave themselves throughout. On the palate, it reads as very elegant with wabi-sabi tannins; very polished but not perfectly so.

This is the third vintage at Siduri for Matt Revelette, who joined as winemaker in 2019. And it is the first vintage in which Siduri’s pinots have shown at this level. From a vineyard on the Santa Rosa Plain, this wine’s scents work back from beeswax and wildflower honey to the wildflowers themselves. The flavors have a long, graceful beauty, a bee buzz and a sting of nettles resolving into fresh summer blueberries. The black tannins have youthful intensity, the wine on track to become increasingly elegant in the years ahead. —J.G. 

Lifted aromas of melon skin, grapefruit pith, wet stone, nougat, struck flint and just-ripe nectarine. Really complex. Fine and focused flavours of white stone fruit, citrus, minerals and nutty oak. Long and layered, it unfolds on the palate and acidity is pin-point. Very smart gear

Complex and lifted aromas of grapefruit pith, green melon, feijoa, white flowers and a nutty, nougat edge. Complex, mouth-filling and layered flavours of just-ripe stone fruit, citrus and mealy, nutty oak. There’s fabulous weight and texture and the acidity has lovely snap and crack. Sophisticated, compelling, world-class chardonnay

Fresh and vibrant aromas of
strawberry sorbet and raspberry granita leap from the glass on the nose of this bottling, made more interesting thanks to dark herb scents. The palate lands with a zesty energy, as refreshing, expertly captured red fruit flavors join peppery spices and underlying herbs on the never-ending palate.

The 2020 Chardonnay Upper Barn Vineyard has a lush perfume of ripe pineapple, apricot, and toasted spices. Full-bodied and well-balanced, it’s long and graceful on the palate within its large frame. Offering notes of marzipan, ripe melon, and lemon pastry, as well as a floral finish, it takes on a seamless nature in structure and balance and should have significant longevity over the next 8-10 years.

I really love the perfume of the 2021 Zinfandel Highwire Vineyard, which has the scent of walking into the forest after a fresh rainfall. Pouring a saturated ruby-purple, notes of blackberry, candied raspberry, and forest herbs are followed by a medium to full-bodied red with a bit more linear and fresh spine of acidity. It packs in compelling structure, with fine tannins and a brightness to the fruit that is long on the palate, revealing notes of fresh peach, dusty soils, and sweet herbs. This may be my favorite of these Zinfandel offerings from Hartford

Similar in appearance to the Fanucchi-Wood Road Vineyard, the 2021 Zinfandel Dina's
Vineyard boasts a woodsy tone, with aromas of wild medicinal herbs, pine sap, and black raspberry. Medium to full-bodied on the palate, this is another favorite for me in this range of Zin. Offering fresh mineral earth as well as notes of crunchy berries and ripe black cherries, it’s dry and inviting, with fresh acidity, good tannin structure, and a more vertical mouthfeel. Allow it another year and drink 2025-2037.

The 2021 Pinot Noir Arrendell Vineyard is expressive of sassafras, brambly wild berries, and toasted cedar. Full-bodied, with a lot of balance but no harsh edges, it has fresh acidity, an ultra-fine tannin structure, and a long, graceful finish, with candied roses, black raspberry liqueur, and dusty earth. A very attractive wine, it’s drinking well now and will certainly be worth enjoying over the next 15 years.

A deep but transparent red, the 2021 Pinot Noir Jennifer's is a bit more reserved initially but opens to reveal raspberry liqueur, pine sap, and a bit of classic cola spice. Full-bodied, it offers juicy fruit throughout, with fine tannins and fresh acidity that lifts it cleanly off the palate, with fresh berries as well as fresh forest herbs. It’s attractive and charming now, with a lovely floral finish. Drink 2024-2036.

Taking things to the next level, the 2018 Syrah Outer Limits is highly aromatic and expansive in its aromas of pine sap, black cherry preserve, black pepper, and wild lavender. Full-bodied, it has good lift and fresh acidity, with more energy, and notes of olive brine, and charcuterie. This red offers classic appeal, with a good balance of fruity and savory elements. Drink 2023-2040.

Deep ruby, the 2021 Pinot Noir Fog Dance Vineyard is savory and woodsy, slowly evolving in the glass as it opens to notes of pine sap, black cherry preserve, eucalyptus, and dusty earth. Full-bodied, it boasts expansive fruit that fills the palate with fine tannins, a velvety texture, and a long finish, noted with a core of concentrated raspberry, turned soil, and spices on the finish. It’s long on the palate, with a good freshness underneath to
tie this otherwise very opulent wine together. Drink 2025-2040.

Pouring a golden yellow, the 2021 Chardonnay Radian Vineyard brings forward pure, fresh aromatics of candied lime citrus, well-managed oak spice, and wet stone. Mediumbodied, with a cleansing mineral texture and fresh lift, it’s fresh with green melon, bright acidity, a light saline note, and a hint of crushed earth. It’s a very pretty style of white to hold or drink over the next 10 years.

A vibrant and pure Chardonnay with great energy, the medium gold 2021 Chardonnay Three Jacks Vineyard is lifted with flint and dusty earth, as well as lime zest, white pepper, and green apple. Medium-bodied, it has ripe, sweet fruit throughout, and a balanced, fresh feel. Offering remarkable evenness in its balance,
with floral notes of white flowers and lemon curd continuing through to its long finish, this is my favorite of the whites in the lineup. Drink 2024-2032