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Description
The Giant Steps Single Vineyard wines are benchmarks for the Yarra Valley.
This is the complete set of their 2024 Chardonnays. Pristine, elegant, exquisitely well balanced, the 2024s are looking excellent.
These are right at the top of the pile for Yarra Valley Chardonnay. A true treat for any serious Chardonnay drinker and a masterclass in the expression of terroir.
- 2024 Giant Steps Sexton Vineyard Chardonnay
- 2024 Giant Steps Bastard Hill Vineyard Chardonnay
- 2024 Giant Steps Applejack Vineyard Chardonnay
- 2024 Giant Steps Tarraford Vineyard Chardonnay
2024 Giant Steps Sexton Vineyard Chardonnay
97 points
"Another salivating and seductive Sexton Chardonnay... The beautifully balanced and tightly coiled palate is underpinned by its concentration and intensity. Finishes saline and extremely long."
- Philip Rich (Halliday Wine Companion)
Planted by Phil Sexton himself in 1997, this vineyard sits on shallow clay-loam soils at the foot of the Warramate Ranges. It’s one of the lower-altitude sites in the Giant Steps portfolio, and always the first to be picked—typically delivering the boldest and most generous of their single-vineyard Chardonnays.
The 2024 vintage, a warmer, more traditional Yarra Valley season, has brought added precision and a saline, citrus-driven line to the usual Sexton generosity. Handpicked fruit was whole-bunch pressed and fermented in 500L French puncheons (20% new), with nine months on lees building quiet volume and drive.
There’s stone fruit flesh, preserved lemon, almond meal and flinty reduction in the mix, but the palate is where this wine sings - layered, textural, and cut with crystalline acidity. A flick of cashew and white spice drifts on the finish.
It’s a fuller expression than Tarraford or Applejack, but in 2024 it walks the line beautifully. Always a crowd favourite, this vintage feels just that bit more focused. Delicious straight up, but built to go the distance.
2024 Giant Steps Bastard Hill Vineyard Chardonnay
97 points
"Precise and mineral driven... This will age slowly but surely over the next decade. There's only 200 dozen made in '24..."
- Philip Rich (Halliday Wine Companion)
Bastard Hill may be the most aptly named site in the Yarra. Brutally steep and tough to farm, but it rewards the effort with Chardonnay of rare definition and drive. Originally planted for sparkling in 1986 by Ray Guerin, this is now one of the region’s great cool-climate sites - perched at 300–400m on volcanic loam, tucked deep in Gladysdale.
The 2024 release is only the second under Giant Steps’ stewardship and it’s already clear: this vineyard is a powerhouse. A compressed growing season delivered small bunches and piercing natural acidity. The fruit was whole-bunch pressed to 500L puncheons, where it fermented wild. Only a quarter of the wine went through malo, dialling up tension rather than softening the edges.
It smells like crushed seashells and citrus pith, with pink grapefruit, green apple skin, and flint in behind. The palate is linear and racy - lemon peel and pear over a mineral core, with just enough texture to flesh it out. It’s razor-sharp, pure, and built for the long haul.
Bastard by name, elite by nature. This is a new star in the Giant Steps Chardonnay lineup.
2024 Giant Steps Applejack Vineyard Chardonnay
96 points
"This is all about purity and precision... Along with the Bastard Hill, this will need some time to become more open and expressive."
- Philip Rich (Halliday Wine CCompanion)
Perched high in the cool reaches of Gladysdale, Applejack is best known for shaping some of the Yarra’s most poised Pinot. But in recent vintages, its potential for Chardonnay has become undeniable - particularly in warmer years like 2024.
This site sits at 300 metres, with east-facing slopes and basalt-rich soils that deliver fruit with piercing acidity and fine-boned structure. The 2024 growing season was warm and relatively early and the Chardonnay here benefited hugely - ripening with clarity, energy, and precision.
Whole-bunch pressed and wild fermented in 500L puncheons (only 15% new), it spent nine months on lees to build tension and shape. No stirring, no fining - just a clear expression of site.
The result is a tightly coiled, mineral Chardonnay with citrus pith, white nectarine, and a gentle thread of almond and struck flint. There’s a saline edge and mouth-watering line that makes it incredibly moreish.
Applejack Chardonnay is always limited and getting more so - this 2024 release might be the most finely detailed yet.
2024 Giant Steps Tarraford Vineyard Chardonnay
96 points
"Opulent and creamily textured, with a fine vein of acidity running through the wine that gives it both structure and length."
- Philip Rich (Halliday Wine Companion)
Tarraford has always danced to its own rhythm. Nestled in a protected valley in Tarrawarra, it’s technically a warm site but the shelter creates a unique cool pocket, extending hang time and building complexity without sacrificing freshness. This subtle edge has made Tarraford one of the most characterful Chardonnay vineyards in the Yarra Valley.
The 2024 vintage plays to its strengths. A fast and furious season led to pristine fruit with beautiful line and shape. Handpicked and whole-bunch pressed, the juice went to 500L puncheons (20% new) for wild fermentation. Nine months on lees brings polish, not weight.
This is a Chardonnay with serious power. Layers of ripe stone fruit and lemon curd ride alongside preserved lemon, flint, and salted oatmeal. The palate builds through creamy lees texture and finishes taut, with a long, pithy flick of grapefruit and crushed shell.
Vintage after vintage, Tarraford delivers one of the most distinctive Chardonnays in the Giant Steps line-up - broader than Applejack, more savoury than Sexton. A benchmark release from a vineyard that never misses.
| Price Bracket | $51 to $100 |
| Variety | Chardonnay |
| Country | Australia |
| Region | Yarra Valley |
| Australian State | VIC |
| Feature |
High Score |
| Size | 10 |
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