2015 Giant Steps Chardonnay Yarra Valley 750 ml

Cool-Climate Brilliance from Oz in 4/4 Time

We’ve got a buddy who’s nuts about jazz. Whenever the subject of John Coltrane comes up, he starts raving about the landmark 1960 album Giant Steps, telling us about pentatonic scales, third-related chord movements, and something to do with Nicolas Slonimsky’s Thesaurus of Scales and Melodic Patterns.

“Break it down for us sans jargon, professor,” we asked him one time. “Why does every jazz saxophonist cut his teeth on this album and know it by heart?”

“Because it’s all about technique,” he told us, smiling. “It's pure technique.”

That gave us some insight into why Phil Sexton decided to name his winery after Coltrane’s breakthrough release. Raised in Australia’s Margaret River region, Sexton was practically born to the wine business and met success early in his career by crafting bold, rich Chardonnays that sold like hotcakes.

But soon he became captivated by the exquisite purity and high-tension acidity of classical cool-climate Chardonnays. He set up shop in the Yarra Valley, where temperatures range on average from low 50s in winter to high 70s in summer — cooler than Bordeaux, warmer than Burgundy, and pitch-perfect for cool-climate growing. He brought on star winemaker and Leeuwin Estate alum Steve Flamsteed and together they vowed, under the banner of Giant Steps, to practice the strictest grape cultivation and vinification regimens.

They would graft vines to rootstocks known for controlling vigor, densely planted on the high, windy, north-facing slopes of the range. They vertically positioned shoots to aid natural upward growth and practiced minimal intervention, focusing on increasing vine maturity and creating stable leaf canopies. The results of this fastidious technique were soon pulling down a raft of high scores from the critics.

In Victoria’s 2015 vintage, which James Halliday described as “close to ideal,” a long, cool growing season and moderate rainfall allowed grapes to retain mouthwatering natural acidity — and led Giant Steps to release possibly its most elegant and complex Chardonnay to date. Halliday didn’t hold back, lobbing on a scintillating 95 points.

Brilliant green-gold in color. Finely delineated aromas of green apple and fresh pear, piercing and bright. Rich and vibrant on the attack, tightening in the mid-palate, the core offers a high-tension mix of stone fruit, lemon peel, white flowers, and pear, finishing with chiseled purity.

If you’re a fan of Chablis and Sonoma County, and you missed out the first time, today is redemption day. Another 300 bottles arriving stateside are up for grabs. If you’re a Chardonnay bargain-hunter, this is a MUST-buy. $40 elsewhere. Only $25 from WineAccess, a vision of purity inspired by Coltrane himself. Shipping included on 6.