2025 Wantirna Estate Isabella Chardonnay

97 pts
Textured, saline Yarra Chardonnay from 50-60-year-old vines, with just 85 dozen made.

Price:
Sale price$112.00
Stock:
In stock, ready to ship
Rendering loop-subscriptions

Description

Wantirna Estate was one of the first vineyards of the Yarra Valley's modern revival, planted by the Egan family back in the early 1960s, and it's still a tiny, family-run affair. Maryann Egan now makes the wines, and the Isabella is her Chardonnay. It's small, it's sought after, and it's one of the Yarra's best.

The vines are 50 to 60 years old and sit on a gentle east-facing slope that picks up the soft morning and late afternoon sun. 2025 was one of the estate's earliest vintages. The fruit was hand-picked in the cool of the morning, fermented in new, one and two-year-old French oak in their underground cellar, then left on lees with regular stirring for around eleven months.

Maryann calls it a classic Isabella, with yellow plum, citrus zest and a little honeycomb, with that rounded, textured middle the wine is known for and a bright, salty line of acidity keeping it fresh. A nice mix of New and Old World in style - generous, but never heavy.

It's drinking beautifully already, so open one with roast chook or pan-fried snapper. But with that acid and those old vines behind it, it'll easily go another five to seven years, picking up nutty, toasty notes as it goes.

Only 85 dozen made, and Halliday has it at 97 points. Old vines, a family who've been at it for 60 years, and a wine that's very clearly from this one slope.

97 points
"Beautifully balanced on the palate, which is vibrant and saline... A gorgeous wine that will reward cellaring for at least five to seven years."
- Philip Rich (Halliday Wine Companion)

97 points - "From 50–60-year-old vines. A complex bouquet of yellow plum, orange zest and fresh honeycomb. Beautifully balanced on the palate, which is vibrant and saline, with a fine bead of acidity that leaves you wanting another sip as soon as you've finished the first. A gorgeous wine that will reward cellaring for at least five to seven years. Only 85 dozen made." - Philip Rich (Halliday Wine Companion)

94 points - "No shortage of flavour here, quite peachy and rich, almost a mango juiciness, combining creaminess with a bright acid cut. There’s a little cedar and spiced oak tucked neatly in, some aniseed and floral perfume, an oatmeal savoury touch, a fine chalky grip to texture, with a long and finish that combines citrus with ripe stone fruits. Lovely wine here, and while it’s good now, I’d likely give it another year in bottle for best results." - Gary Walsh (The Wine Front)

Tasting Note
It is a classic Isabella with a textured roundness, lovely balancing acidity and a combination of New and Old World. Drinking beautifully already, but with plenty of ageing potential. - Maryann Egan

Vintage
2025 was of our earliest vintages. Isabella is wine of great texture, terrific balancing acidity and quite clearly a wine from this vineyard. A classic Isabella, drinking so well now but with many years ahead of it.

Vineyard
The Chardonnay vines are grown on an east-facing, gentle slope, allowing early morning and late afternoon sunshine. This aspect is perfect for growing top-quality Chardonnay grapes. Today, the average age of the vines is over 40 years, which adds to the fruit's complexity.

Winemaking
The Chardonnay grapes are hand-harvested early in the day and pressed in an airbag press. The juice is then chilled, settled and inoculated with yeast before being transferred to a cool underground cellar for fermentation in new, one and two-year-old French oak barrels. The wine is left to age on the yeast lees with regular stirring to increase texture. After around 11 months, the wine is fined and sent to bottle.

Technical Details
Oak: New, one and two-year-old French oak barrels
Time in barrel: Around 11 months

Price Bracket $101 and Above
Type White
Body Medium Bodied
Variety Chardonnay
Country Australia
Region Yarra Valley
Australian State VIC
Feature High Score
Reviewed By Halliday Wine Companion
The Wine Front
Critic Score 97
Size 750ml
Vintage 2025
Closure Screw Cap

Wantirna Estate

Wantirna Estate is a family affair, founded in 1963 by Reg and Bertina Egan.

This bucolic old-world-inspired vineyard is located not far from Melbourne town centre; now surrounded by suburbia, the proverbial rose amongst the thorns.

Now run primarily by Reg and Bertina's daughter Maryann, the estate produces a small premium range of Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and classic medium-bodied Bordeaux blends that are elegant, classic and exceptional options for the cellar.

Reg describes their vineyard as a "never-ending world of change and enchantment".

Reg & Maryann Egan Wantirna Estate

Others also liked

Recently viewed

Common Questions

Delivery is free on orders of $199 or more.

For orders under this amount, delivery is calculated at checkout based on your postcode. You can order in any quantity or combination of wines you like. Straight dozens are not required.

We will dispatch your order the same or next business day.

Estimated delivery transit time varies depending on your location. Please review this page for specific estimates.

No sorry we do not have a store front and pickup is not available.

Yes, no problem. When placing your order select ‘Store at Different Drop and Delivery Later’ as your shipping method or reply to the order confirmation email after placing your order with additional instructions.

We stock three different sized gift boxes (single, three bottle and six), all are available for purchase for a flat rate of $8. They look great and make an awesome impression.

To add a gift box to your order, simply add at checkout. The special requests box is your friend, please give us as many details of what you are looking for and we will try our best, or get in contact to discuss it with you. 

If you want to bulk order gifts or if you have any trouble please email hello@differentdrop.com or call and we can try and help.

 

Our warehouse is automated so unless you tell us otherwise, we will ship your order. If you would like us to hold your order please reply to the order confirmation email after placing your order and we are happy to store your order for up to 6 months at no charge. You can review our heat policy here.

Yes, of course. We want Different Drop customers to always be getting the best price. You can see our price match policy here.

No, feel free to mix it up! There is no minimum requirement. You can order wines in any quantity or combination, 1 or 50+ bottles.

No, all prices are set at the full discounted dozen rate already.

Most wine retailers list at a single-bottle price and then discount 10–15% when you buy six or twelve. We've taken the opposite approach. Since the overwhelming majority of our orders are already 6 bottles or more, our list price is set for the case buyer from the start. There's no inflated single-bottle price to discount down from.

What that means for you:

- One price, same for everyone — no minimum to hit to unlock the best rate
- No mixed-six gymnastics to qualify for a discount
- Our single-bottle price is typically at or below a traditional retailer's by-the-dozen rate

Put simply: the box discount is already baked into the price.

**And if you find it cheaper elsewhere?** Let us know. If the same wine is available at a lower price at another retailer (including at their mixed-six or by-the-dozen rate) we're happy to match it.

If you can't add more wine to your cart it means we are low on stock of that wine. For example, if you are only able to 3 bottles and no more that means we only have 3 bottles left of that wine. If it's a must have, please contact us and we may be able to order more in for you.

Regular Enquiries

Urgent Enquiries

02 8376 8775