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Juicy Grenache, Citrus Vermentino, Floral Fiano, Spicy Barber and Mysterious Nebbiolo are just a few of the wines that tempt Australian palates today. There is also the thriving variety of natural and pet-born wines (short for natural sparkling or natural sparkling). But it is the pillars that elevate our largest wineries to the pinnacle of success: chardonnay, cabernet, shiraz, riesling and sweet and delicious fortified wines.
The 2021 vintage was not affected by wildfire smoke and drought like 2019 and 2020. That said, there were challenges. Some wineries, especially in the Murray and Riverina valleys, have been hit hard by prohibitive tariffs in China. Elsewhere, there has been a shortage of pandemic-related labor, and collectors have been unable to enter the country.
Coating these problems was a 2021 vintage of almost universal quality and healthy yields, which resulted in the production of many good wines, and prices mostly remain, except at the very end. below the market. (2022 will be a different issue for many East Coast vineyards, where a downpour of rain has caused overgrowth of weeds, fungal diseases and potentially dilute flavors).
This is the fifth year that The Real Review wine website has published its Top Wineries of Australia list, with 389 wineries, and the third in which it is collaborating with Good Weekend to publish the top 52 on the list. How we do it: After tasting more than 10,000 wines launched in the last year, from the 2021 vintage and earlier, me and my colleagues at The Real Review add up the scores of 100 of the best wines launched by each winery.
First on this year’s list is Geelong’s Wine by Farr, a star producer of Pinot Noir complexes and beautiful Chardonnays. Last year’s most important winery, Yarra Yering, ranks fourth, while Penfolds continues to stand out, its second consecutive year in second place. But really, all the top 52 wines are top notch; representing a maximum of 2% of the 2156 wineries in Australia, are really the crème de la crème.
Winemaker Nick Farr, far left, with family and friends in the vineyard. Credit: Kristoffer Paulsen
1. VI DE FARR
Location: Geelong region, Vic Best known for: wonderfully intense pinot noirs and ultra-complex chardonnays, as well as equally fascinating viognier and shiraz, the viognier is arguably the best in Australia. Huon says: The 2019 harvest really smiled on Farr’s vineyards, the wines among its best ever. Counter-intuitively, the shiraz was as prominent as the Tout Près Pinot Noir, while the Côte Vineyard Pinot Noir, Sangreal Pinot Noir and 2020 Viognier were close. The Côte Vineyard Chardonnay 2020 was also magnificent. Awesome training.
Without “a single trick”: Penfolds in the Barossa Valley. Credit:
2. CORPOLLS
Location: Barossa Valley, SAB, best known for: a wide variety of reds: sculptural, powerful and worthy of aging: wines that deserve their reputation as the most collectible and can be preserved in Australia. Chardonnays Yattarna and Reserve Bin A prove that he is not a one-trick red pony. Huon says: Leading the list this year was a very stylish Grange in the 2017 vintage, while the 2019 single-vineyard Magill Estate Shiraz and the 2019 single-region Barossa Shiraz RWT really shone along with Bin 169 Coonawarra Cabernet and the always reliable St Henri Shiraz, both from 2018.
Tolpuddle Vineyard CEO Martin Shaw, right, with senior winemaker Adam Wadewitz. Credit:
3. VINEYARD OF TOLPUDDLE
Location: Coal River Valley, Tas Best known for: just two wines, a chardonnay and a pinot noir from a vineyard near Hobart, owned by Adelaide Hills Shaw + Smith winemakers. Miserable condition, but these wines both scored very high. The season reduced yields, helping to increase flavor. After only nine vintages, these wines have been accumulating gravity year after year.
Last year’s best winery: Yarra Yering in the Yarra Valley of Victoria. Credit:
4. YARRA YERING
Location: Yarra Valley, Vic Best known for: Some of the finest and most preservable wines in Yarra, led by expensive but amazing Carrodus selections. Pinot noir, Chardonnay, Cabernet Sauvignon and Shiraz are produced with the same success as individual varieties and in combinations. Our most important winery last year. Huon says: The Carrodus Pinot Noir 2019 topped the list this year; then came Carrodus Cabernet Sauvignon and Carrodus Shiraz, both from 2019, also the dry red wine number 2 2019 based on shiraz and Pinot Noir 2020. The dry red wine number 1 2019 based on cabernet was one point behind . Pristine beauty.
Wendouree, in the Clare Valley of SA, has “greedily sought after reds.” Credit: Milton Wordley
05. WENDOUREE
Location: Clare Valley, SAB, known for: a suite of magnificent and coveted red wines based on shiraz, cabernet sauvignon, malbec and mataro, from the plantations of old dry vineyards. Huon says: The Shiraz, Malbec, Shiraz Malbec Blend and Cabernet Malbec Blend, followed by Shiraz Mataro, all from the 2019 vintage, were the top scorers. More polished than ever.
Seppeltsfield in the Barossa Valley offers long-standing fortified wines. Credit:
06. SEPPELTSFIELD
Location: Barossa Valley, SAB, better known for: fortified wines of great antiquity in many styles of port and sherry, topped by the annual launch of a 100-year-old Para Tawny. The fortification market is small, but fortunately table wines, especially reds made from shiraz and grenache, are also exceptional. Huon says: The best grades this year have been for the Paramount DP 273 Rich Rare Apera Collection Museum Reserve, formerly known as Smelly Sherry. Other highlights were the non-vintage Para Rare Tawny; also the DP38 Rich Rare Apera. The shirazes north, west and east of 2019, from the Barossa Grounds series, were also impressive.
Morris from Rutherglen to Victoria’s Rutherglen. Credit:
07. MORRIS DE RUTHERGLEN
Location: Rutherglen, Vic Best known for: Fortifieds, the region’s global specialty. Even the low-priced Classic range are wonderful drinks and incredibly good value. The most prominent blacks are shiraz, durif and cabernet under the CHM label. Huon says: Old Premium Rare Liqueur Muscat and Topaque were the best wines this year, but Old Premium Rare Tawny also scored high, as did Classic Liqueur Muscat, while 2018 CHM Durif was also in the race.
Wynns Coonawarra is known for its 1896 stone pediment with three pediments. Credit: John Krüger
08. FINCA WYNNS COONAWARRA
Location: Coonawarra, SAB, better known for: the 1896 three-fronted stone cellar, which has always appeared on Wynns labels, and Coonawarra’s largest and most distinguished lineage of black cabernet sauvignon and shiraz. Huon says: The 2018 limited release duo John Riddoch Cabernet Sauvignon and Michael Shiraz 2018 were great, the Riddoch a sensation, but the Michael just a point behind. The Cabernet Sauvignon Black Label 2019 and the Cabernet Sauvignon Harold 2018 also shone, as did Johnson’s Block Cabernet Sauvignon 2018 with a pure, fruity style.
Bass Phillip Vineyards in Leongatha in Victoria. Credit:
9. BASS PHILLIP
Location: Gippsland, Vic Best known for: Pinot noir par excellence, now delivered in a smaller, more focused range of labels than under founder Philip Jones, who sold the company two years ago to Jean-Marie Fourrier of Burgundy. Huon says: The 2019 Reserve Pinot Noir lived up to its reputation and price, with the impressive Chardonnay Premium 2020, and the Pinot Noir Premium 2020 just two points behind. Estate Chardonnay 2020 and Estate Gewürztraminer 2019 also impressed. The future looks secure.
Bindi Wines ’2019 vintage is“ blindly good ”. Credit: Vic Pugatschew
10. BINDI WINES
Location: Macedon Ranges, Vic Best known for: a variety of pinot noirs and beautiful chardonnays. Huon says: Bindi’s 2019 vintage is overwhelmingly good, the list topped by Block 5 Pinot Noir followed closely by the Original Vineyard Pinot Noir. Then came Quartz Chardonnay, Kostas Rind Chardonnay and Kaye Pinot Noir. All pinots are pure and precise, while Heathcote shirazes are very smart and elegant for this region.
Mount Mary Vineyard in the Yarra Valley. Credit:
11. VINYA DEL MUNT MARY
Location: Vall de Yarra, Vic Best known for: An exceptional winery with an impeccable vineyard, now in its third generation, which produces a Quintet of classic cabernet blend of the five red varieties of Bordeaux, as well as a delicious chardonnay, pinot noir and Triolet, a Bordeaux style. , dry white mixture. Huon says: The Quintet 2019 and the concentrated Pinot Noir got the same score at the top, followed by the 2019 Chardonnay and the 2019 Triolet, a beautiful, underrated white that ages magnificently for over 10 years. More consistent and polished than ever.
Torbreck in the Barossa Valley. Credit:
12. TORBRECK
Location: Vall de Barossa, SAB, better known for: black with a body with shiraz in front and in the center, but also a leader in Grenache shiraz mourvèdre blends; RunRig is a pioneering blend of shiraz viognier. Huon says: RunRig 2018 topped the list this year on shiraz The Laird 2016, shiraz The Factor 2019 and Grenache mix The Steading 2020, all with high results. More elegant and polished, yes, but they do not reduce concentration, power and body.
De Bortoli’s 40th anniversary Noble One 2019 was amazing. Credit:
13. DE BORTOLI
Location: Riverina, NSW; Yarra Valley, Vic Best known for: Refined and subtle Chardonnays and Pinot Noirs from the Yarra, and globally catchy, Noble One Botrytis Semillon, by Riverina. Huon says: The 40th anniversary 2019 Noble One was amazing, delicious and elegant and definitely not a sugar bomb, while the Lusatia Chardonnay and Pinot Noir 2017, the A8 Syrah 2018 single block and the Riorret Pinot Noir 2019, all of the Yarra, also stood out.
John Hughes at the Clare Valley Rieslingfreak. Credit:
14. RIESLINGFREAK
Location: Clare Valley, SAB, known for: Riesling, Riesling …