2017 Giant Steps Chardonnay Yarra Valley Australia 750 ml

A Wine & Spirits Top 100 Chardonnay for Under-$30

James Suckling took the words right out of our mouths when he wrote: “Simply put, this is one of the best value Australian chardonnays being made,” awarding 94 points. At just $27.99 for this white Burgundy look-alike that won a spot on Wine & Spirits Top 100 list for 2018, that’s no exaggeration.

We would argue it stands not just as one of the great wines of Australia, but the world: at the Wine & Spirits Top 100 tasting in San Francisco last month, this 2017 release was our favorite Chardonnay of the entire event, with a white-floral-scented nose calling to mind Meursault, delivering loads of ripe white stone fruits and a rich, creamy texture.

Although he is known for his succinctness, after tasting this bottle Suckling waxed poetic, praising the “magic marriage of well-judged complexity” as well as the “pastry-like smoothness and concentration with electrifying acid freshness.” James Halliday was similarly over the moon, writing that the release “could stand as an emblem of Yarra Valley chardonnay at its price.” On that note, $27.99 per bottle on 6 or more with shipping included on just 4.

 Critical acclaim is nothing new for Giant Steps. It’s been named one of the Top 100 Wineries in the World four times by Wine & Spirits; in 2016, winemaker Steve Flamsteed was Gourmet Traveller’s “Winemaker of the Year.”

Raised in Australia’s Margaret River region, owner Phil Sexton 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.

2017 was in Flamsteed’s own words “one of the best vintages I’ve seen.” Well-timed rain showers and even, mild temperatures made for an absolutely textbook cool-climate growing season, creating a dazzling Chardonnay expressing both structure and nuance. Without question one of the greatest Chardonnays of the year!