Australian Wine

Chardonnay is 25% lower in alcohol compared to [yellow tail] Chardonnay, with 85 calories per 5oz serve. It's full of flavor and silky smooth with a creamy finish. Refreshing and vibrant, with fresh peach and melon flavours and a hint of vanilla. Enjoy with roast chicken or a picnic in the park.

Expert Reviews - Vintage 2023

James Suckling - 94 Points: "Abundant black-fruit aromas supported by spices, cedar, crushed stones and violets. The medium-bodied palate has a creamy texture and finely tuned, generous tannins with so much purity of fruit. Grown further away from the ocean with a more continental feel. Delicious and early-drinking yet serious. Drink or hold. Screw cap."

Wine Enthusiast - 92 Points: "An excellent intro to this famed Western Australian Cab style, this vintage is, compared to the previous two, on the richer, denser side. Supple dark berry fruit with salt-flecked herbs, seaweed savoriness and a dark chocolate underbelly are woven with powdery, chiseled tannins and tangy blackcurrant acidity. Drink now with plenty of protein or age for several more years."

Wine Spectator - 91 Points: "A generous mix of kirsch, cassis and blackberry flavors is dense and dark, accented by notes of palo santo, tobacco and cardamom. The tannins are dense, and a grace note of malty Assam black tea lingers on the finish, with plenty of harmony and firming tannins. Drink now through 2032."  - MaryAnn Worobiec,

Winemaker Notes

'Son of' the Vasse Felix Cabernet Sauvignon. It carries the structure, power and tannins of classic Cabernet in an earlier drinking, more forward style from fruit sourced from each of the Vasse Felix vineyards.

A remarkably ripe and soft wine. A deep perfume with blackcurrant, blueberry and coffee mocha complexities. Notes of dusty earth and woody perennial herbs mingle with hints of nori, dried forest leaves and wild mushrooms to create an inviting aroma. A light fragrant entrance with blackcurrant, raspberry and potpourri builds to earthy complexities and fine dry dusty tannins which serve to frame the fruit. A comfortable, soft, juicy body and tannin profile finishes the wine fresh and long.

Expert Reviews - Vintage 2024

    •    Halliday Wine Companion (Philip Rich): 96 Points – "An absolute cracker... aromas of gently grilled nuts, confit lemon, and a touch of struck match."

    •    The Wine Advocate 94 Points - "The 2024 Circle of Fifths Chardonnay comprises a blend of all five single vineyards. The wine shows a little of all, and in so doing, some of none. There is the austerity of acidity and cavalcade of crushed, salted and pasted nuts, lemon zest, citrus oil and green leaves, coupled finally with the floral and tea-like notes evident in all five cuvées. It's an interesting composition, perhaps a little frenetic, like some of John Coltrane's work (Circle of Fifths is named after the jazz arrangement toward the circle of fifths root movement, whereas Coltrane's proclivity is in thirds, which is unusual. Giant Steps was named after Coltrane's studio album), but pleasurable in just the same way. In its way, this wine endorses and emphasizes the singularity of the single-vineyard wines, but it offers immense satisfaction of its own accord as well. 13% alcohol, sealed under screw cap."

    •    James Suckling: 95 Points – "Mid-weighted and textural with a strong mineral drive... mouthwatering finish."

    •     
The Wine Front: 95 Points – "Direct, powerful, and potent... it feels like a producer at the top of their game."


 
Winemaker Description  | Blended exclusively from our single vineyard sites, Circle of Fifths captures the strengths of these vineyards in one wine – carefully crafted and fine-tuned over myriad blending sessions. These wines were getting lost in the regional expression, and with the Fifths, these sites come together to tell a new story. 

The 2024 vintage was a more classic Yarra season. A cool start to Spring and ideal flowering conditions led to good fruit set and moderate yields. December was cool and mild, with significant rainfall at New Years and during the first week of January, giving the vines a good drink leading into the heat of February. Mid to late February was drier and warmer than is common in the Yarra, leading to great ripening conditions with no disease pressure and quite a fast vintage. In 2024, all of our Pinot and Chardonnay was ready in quick succession, leading to a compressed harvest - with the whole valley picked in the space of 3 weeks (where it normally spreads across 6 weeks). An exciting ride for our team, but ultimately giving us wines with great flavour, bright acidity and balance.

Memo Summary Notes

The Giant Steps "Circle of Fifths" Chardonnay 2024 is an inaugural, high-profile release from one of Australia's most acclaimed cool-climate producers. Recently named the 2025 Halliday Winery of the Year, Giant Steps created this "Circle of Fifths" series as a premium bridge between their regional blends and their specific single-vineyard bottlings.

The name is a musical reference to John Coltrane’s jazz theories, symbolizing the "harmony" created by blending fruit from all five of their estate single vineyards: Sexton, Tarraford, Applejack, Primavera, and Bastard Hill.

The Lindeman’s Bin 45 Cabernet Sauvignon in the 1.5L Magnum format is the ultimate "crowd-pleaser" bottle. Part of Lindeman’s iconic Bin series, this wine is designed to be approachable, consistent, and easy to share at large gatherings.

Medium-to-full bodied combining dark berry fruit and cassis flavors with hints of chocolate and mint.

Winemaker Description 

Yalumba GEN is a commitment for betterment and a fierce determination for the future. It’s a responsibility not taken lightly and it’s our family’s promise to you. It’s more than 172 years of sustainable practices and it’s our commitment to organic certification, allowing nature to work its magic with minimal intervention. It’s the assurance that when you choose Yalumba GEN, you choose a better future for future generations.
Organic Winemaking: This wine is certified by the Australian Certified Organic standards and is 100% vegan. It's made without the use of chemical fertilizers and pesticides in the vineyard. With very few additions, the wine goes through wild fermentation, using only the natural yeasts present in the vineyard and on grape skins.

Tasting Notes: Crimson in color with violet hues. Spiced plums and peppercorns with fruit cake and forest floor aromas. The palate is a mix of violets and spice with hints of Dutch licorice, lingering plum and cherry flavors. This is a fruit driven, medium-bodied wine with soft, silky tannins and a persistent savory finish. 

Enjoy With: Mexican lasagna, bruschetta pasta or a Swiss brown mushroom burger with caramelized onions and crispy potato chips. 

Winemaker Description

The Wine Advocate | The 2011 Hickinbotham Grenache is medium garnet-purple in color with an intensely scented nose of black raspberries, black cherries and violets as well as touches of cinnamon stick and rose hips.

Winemaker Description 

Ripe and appealing with red berry and cherry fruit flavors along with a hint of mint. Picks up a touch of vanilla on the soft, velvety finish. Perfect for any meal, or to serve at your next party.

Expert Reviews - Vintage 2023

The Wine Advocate 93+ Points | The 2023 Bin 51 Riesling leads with an austere, searing nose of grilled lime, bath salts, lemon zest, crushed quartz, preserved citrus and pear skin. In the mouth, the wine is fleshy in its way and light on its feet. It's a beautiful wine, poised without being heavy or concentrated, and there's a cleansing finish that has a rounded feel to it.

The Wine Spectator 91 Points | Offers tangy and bright lemon-lime flavors on a sleek frame, with notes of green apple, white pepper and sea salt minerality, plus lingering notes of grapefruit zest. Drink now. 660 cases imported.

Winemaker Description 

Bin 51 captures many of the attributes of the Eden Valley locale. The region’s high altitude and cool climate induces riesling with great finesse and elegance with a capacity for long-term cellaring. South Australia has gained worldwide recognition for producing world-class Riesling and Eden Valley always features. In their youth, the wines possess scented floral and citrus aromas, with a mineral edge and marked natural acidity, contributing significantly to the palate texture and flavor.

Winemaker Description

Opaque, a dark core with a lighter deep red concession on rim. An eruption of fruits. At once lively and expressive, conceding Grange personality yet still not revealing all .... Dark coffee grind, malt and tapenade merge with black earths, almost verging on peat. Mandated V.A and formic notes propel a slurry of dark-skinned berried fruits, flirting with dark liquorice and soy. Oak completely hidden, long since absorbed. Now, back to the glass for a second sniff! Initially the ‘enlivened’ dark fruits of a Christmas pudding or boiled fruitcake mix demand attention. But there’s much more to complement these fruits – impressions of ironstone, graphite, iodine, black ink, and a black pudding viscosity. Formidable, meshed tannins – texturally honeycombed, without the honey! Oak has entwined itself invisible. Yes, every barrel still new, and completion of fermentation off skins in barrel still Grange modus operandi. Integrated, measured ... and clearly more than one sip required to gain an authentic ‘first-impression’. Certainly a wine of its vintage. A Grange of 2015. 

Expert Reviews

100 Point James Suckling | Much anticipated vintage for Grange and it is a powerhouse of concentration and complexity. Aromas of orange and lemon peel to start, then graphite, blackberries, plum paste, black cherries, boundless sweet oak spice, fresh cedar, tar, mahogany, roasted coffee and chocolate - the list goes on. Such complexity. Classic Grange, offering such deep, dark intensity. The palate has immense richness and depth with a super succulent and very long, fleshy, deeply weighted array of dense, velvet-wrapped tannins that run so long. The fruit flavors sit in the blackberry, blood-plum and blueberry zone with succulent, long and assertive structure, carrying through in an utterly seamless mode. The finish is tightly wrenched, in spectacularly powerful style, locking this wine in for a very long haul. Best from 2030.

98 Points Jeb Dunnuck | The flagship 2015 Grange is a monster of wine and one of those rare wines that blends power and elegance perfectly. Revealing a saturated purple color, it’s seemingly more forward and seductive than past great vintages, which I suspect is due to the incredible purity of fruit as well as the wine’s flawless balance than any change in winemaking or stylistic shifts. I also think the acidity is healthy, and the 2015 tips the scales at 14.5% alcohol, which is certainly in the sweet spot, if not tame, for beautifully ripe Syrah these days. A blend of 98% Shiraz and 2% Cabernet Sauvignon that spent 20 months in new American oak hogsheads, it offers an extraordinary perfume of sweet crème de cassis, lead pencil shavings, camphor, Asian spices, licorice, and wildflowers. This is followed by a full-bodied, powerful yet incredibly seamless and elegant Shiraz that has no hard edges, a big, dense mid-palate, ripe tannins, and a great finish. Coming close to rivaling the 1986, which has always been a benchmark vintage of Grange for me, the 2015 offers a more polished, elegant, approachable style. Vintage comparisons aside, this is a legendary example of Grange in the making. The savvy wine lovers out there will give this 7-8 years of bottle age (I’ll probably be out of bottles by then) and enjoy over the following 2-3 decades.

98+ Points Robert Parker | The nose of the 2015 Grange features the wine's characteristic lifted aromas, joined by pronounced American oak influence and bold blackberry fruit, plus hints of red meat, raspberries, asphalt and vanilla. It's dense and concentrated on the palate, full-bodied yet balanced and firm, with a rich, velvety texture and long, plush finish. Don't expect great complexity at this stage—it's much too young to show much more than the primary fruit and oak elements—but this is a Grange that should easily go three or four decades.

97 Points Wine Spectator | Distinctive and powerful, yet still elegant, showing restraint despite the dense and generous flavors. Precise notes of dark chocolate, maraschino cherry, mahogany and toasted coconut complement the core of wild blackberry and blueberry fruit. The tannins are smooth and polished, delivering some tug on the finish, which persists as subtle hints of dried lavender and white pepper linger. Drink now through 2040.

97 Points Wine Enthusiast | This vintage of the famed wine is perhaps its most approachable to date. The nose is open and expressive, with waves of aromas ranging from licorice, currant and plum to baking spice, furniture polish, freshly picked olive, mushroom and vanilla. The mouthfeel is satiny in texture, awash with fruit and spices of all shapes and sizes, all wound by fine tannins. Drink through 2040.

This Shiraz is everything a great wine should be – vibrant, smooth, rich and easy to drink. Flavour Rich and smooth, with juicy red berries and hints of vanilla and spice. Winemaker Description. 

Silky smooth and easy on the palate. This wine is a great slurper with juicy, ripe fruit flavors, complemented by aromas of dark plums and a touch of mint and soft vanillia oak. Winemaker Description.