Description
- 2024 Patrick Sullivan Ada River Chardonnay
- 2024 Patrick Sullivan Bull Swamp Chardonnay
- 2024 Patrick Sullivan Woori Yallock Chardonnay
- 2024 Patrick Sullivan Black Sands Chardonnay
- 2024 Patrick Sullivan Chardonnay
2024 Patrick Sullivan Ada River Chardonnay
Pat Sullivan’s Ada River Chardonnay comes from a tiny, dry-grown vineyard in the rolling hills of Neerim South, right near Mt Baw Baw. It’s just a hectare of vines, planted into deep volcanic soils that bring a quiet energy and tension to the fruit. Pat lets that speak for itself - farming organically, fermenting wild, and keeping the winemaking simple.
This is a Chardonnay that feels both powerful and calm. There’s stone fruit and citrus up front, a flicker of spice and roasted hazelnut, and a salty, stony thing running through it that keeps everything in line. It’s got texture, it’s got crunch, and it finishes long and fine with that classic volcanic chalky feel.
It's not flashy or overworked - just a thoughtful, beautifully built wine from one of Gippsland’s most expressive sites.
98 points
"A beautiful wine, everything is in its place and the finish seems endless. Very impressive chardonnay."
- Huon Hooke (The Real Review)
96 points
"Nectarine, cumquat jelly and rosewater, ginger and cinnamon, hazelnut, chamomile and mint, and while I’ve likely written some outlandish stuff here, in essence, it pretty much just smells and tastes like a very good Chardonnay... It has a certain X factor that pushes it up to 96 points for me. Outstanding."
- Gary Walsh (The Wine Front)
2024 Patrick Sullivan Bull Swamp Chardonnay
Planted back in the early ’80s just outside Warragul, Bull Swamp is one of the oldest Chardonnay sites in Gippsland - and it’s where Pat Sullivan gets his richest, most generous fruit. The north-facing vines soak up plenty of sun, the deep volcanic soils run fat with energy, and the resulting wine walks that fine line between power and poise.
It’s plush and mouth-filling, but there’s still a zip of acidity, a lick of minerality, and that subtle chalky grip Pat’s fans have come to love. Made with the same light touch as the rest of his range - wild ferment, old oak, no fining or filtration - it’s a wine that reflects the site more than the hand.
Bull Swamp might sit lower on the slope than Ada River, but in terms of flavour and presence, it brings serious elevation.
96 points
"Medium-full yellow colour; a touch of grassiness at first sniff, then lemon, grapefruit and verbena, the palate refined and intense, seamless and energetic with a laser-beam focus, an impression of richness and a long-lasting finish. Mouth-watering aftertaste. Utterly delicious chardonnay."
- Huon Hooke (The Real Review)
94 points
"This is a flavour town style of Chardonnay. Apple, stone fruit, minted cream, ginger, green chilli and assorted spice. It’s a juicy affair, a big burst of almost tropical richness, but also has a grapefruit and fresh pineapple cut to acidity, flinty and chalky grip, with a bold, intense and fruity finish of excellent length. It’s quite a lot of wine, though it’s also very good. Needs a little more time to settle. Calm your farm Bull Swamp; you’re a bit of a crazy puppy at a now."
- Gary Walsh (The Wine Front)
2024 Patrick Sullivan Woori Yallock Chardonnay
Patrick Sullivan’s Woori Yallock Chardonnay comes from the storied Lusatia Park vineyard in the Upper Yarra - a cool, elevated site first planted in the mid-80s on that coveted red basalt soil. It’s a patch of dirt known for giving wines serious line and length, and in Pat’s hands, that precision is given room to shine.
This is a wine that leans into elegance rather than weight, carried by limey drive, fine structure, and the sort of chalky detail that quietly demands attention. It’s made with minimal intervention, fermented in neutral oak, and left alone to find its own shape.
This isn’t just another Yarra Chardonnay - it’s Pat’s tribute to one of the region’s great sites, interpreted through his Gippsland lens. Very small production - this won’t stick around.
95 points
"The acidity is in harmony. A touch of toasty/smoky barrel. The flavour diverges into a mellow richness towards the back-palate, the finish slightly blunt but harmonious. Very good."
- Huon Hooke (The Real Review)
95 points
"Stone fruit, ripe lime, lemon myrtle, ginger and cinnamon, and it strikes me as a little bit exotic in perfume. It’s medium-bodied, nutty and saline, has some richness and presence, cinnamon studded apple, green olive, lime and lime rind, a flinty and grainy grip, with a finish of excellent length. Distinctive wine and very good it is too."
- Gary Walsh (The Wine Front)
2024 Patrick Sullivan Black Sands Chardonnay
Patrick Sullivan’s Black Sands Chardonnay comes from an extraordinary patch of vineyard near Heywood in far western Victoria - planted back in 1990 by Alistair and Alice Taylor. The site is defined by its rare soil profile: black volcanic sand over pure white limestone, giving the wine a deep mineral edge and a sense of shape that’s hard to replicate.
This is the most structured and densely built Chardonnay in Pat’s line-up - powerful, layered, and distinctly savoury, but still walking that fine line of freshness and energy he’s known for. There’s nothing flashy here - just precision, detail, and a lot of patience in the winemaking. It’s fermented in neutral vessels, with no additions bar a lick of sulphur at bottling.
For fans of serious Chardonnay with a mineral heartbeat, this is the one to chase. Limited, as always.
2024 Patrick Sullivan Chardonnay
Patrick Sullivan is a name synonymous with exceptional Australian Chardonnay.
Here's a top-value way to sample his sensational stylings with this variety, with this very reasonably-priced entry-level Pat Sullivan wine!
This, only the third-ever release, continues to honour the volcanic soils of Southern Australia with a wine that strikes a lovely balance between richness, well-defined fruit, and distinctive soil-derived minerality.
The vineyards are nestled along Australia's unique limestone coast. This region is the world's third-largest volcanic plain, harbouring approximately 400 dormant volcanoes. Who knew?!
Pat's deep-rooted connection to this area, where he spent much of his childhood, fills him with tremendous enthusiasm as he offers this great modern representation of Australian Chardonnay.
94 points & Top 100 Wines of 2024
"Patrick Sullivan is one of the country’s most thoughtful winemakers; beneath his mop of unruly hair ticks a brain obsessed with how volcanic-derived soils can shape a wine. He works mostly across Gippsland, Victoria, but for this wine he heads across the South Australian border to Mt Gambier. The result is a fine, sculpted chardonnay, its gentle curves laced with a sparkling minerality."
- Nick Ryan (The Australian)
92 points
"It feels familiar, a wine from the past, the affordable cellar dweller for the flavourtown chardonnay drinkers, and it’s great for that."
- Mike Bennie (The Wine Front)
| Variety | Chardonnay |
| Country | Australia |
| Feature |
High Score |
| Size | 6 |
Patrick Sullivan
Pat Sullivan - Gippsland, VIC Patrick Sullivan
Others also liked
Recently viewed
Shipping
Delivery is free on orders of $150 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.
Sydney (Our Vans): If no one is home and there are no special delivery instructions our driver will try to call for instructions. If the driver believes there is a safe space to leave your wine they will do so if not, they will return the item to us and hold your order until further instruction from you.
Melbourne (Anonymous Wine Freight): If no one is home and there are no special delivery instructions, the courier will try to call for instructions. If the driver believes there is a safe space to leave your wine they will do so. if not, they will return the item to their dispatch centre and hold until further instruction from you.
Australia Post: Australia Post will leave the parcel if they have been given authority to leave and it is deemed safe to do so. To give your Authority to Leave, please enter this in the 'SPECIAL REQUEST' box at checkout.
Ordering
We want Different Drop customers to always be getting the best price. If you see a lower price elsewhere, just get in touch and we will sort it out for you. We handle all our price-matching on a case by case basis.
Some things to keep in mind:
- Retrospective price-matching is available for 30 days after you have purchased from us.
- The price match cannot be used in conjunction with a coupon or one-off deal we are offering. The idea is for you to get the best price in the market so if that is already achieved through a coupon then we won't price match on top of that.
- We don't price match clearance or fire sales.
- We’ll match the listed price as long as it is a legitimate offer and the competing store is actually able to fulfil the order (they have stock or more stock is en route). Essentially we won't price match cheeky vendors listing wines they have no hope of actually getting for you...
- It must be a publicly listed price. We won't match a price that has been achieved through a coupon/cash-back arrangement, or through a non-advertised offer over the phone or otherwise.
- It is limited to a reasonable retail quantity.
We'll treat each price match request on its merit and reserve the right to refuse where we deem fit. For example, particularly rare wines, from non-trust-worthy vendors, in circumstances we deem illegitimate or if we feel our policy is being unfairly taken advantage of.
At the end of the day, we'll look after you and use common sense to ensure you're getting the best price, please just don't take the p%$$!
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.
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.
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.
Just want to talk to someone?
Please don't ever hesitate - we would love to help! Whether it's a problem we can fix, a wine you're not 100% sure on or if you simply want to talk about wine, food and the meaning of life, we are here for you.