97 POINTS
Sam Kim - Wine Orbit
Exquisitely elegant and sophisticated, the wine shows white-fleshed stone fruit, lemon peel, wet limestone, cedar, and biscotti nuances on the nose, followed by a brilliantly focused palate exhibiting exceptional concentration and seamless flow. Offering purity and stunning complexity, this is multi-layered and superbly structured, with a great line and length.
96 POINTS
Sam Kim - Wine Orbit
Exquisitely poised and enticing, the wine shows ripe peach, fig, vanilla, roasted hazelnut, and oatmeal nuances on the nose. The concentrated palate displays excellent weight and fine flow, is wonderfully structured by refined texture and beautifully pitched acidity, and finishes with a great line and length.
This comes from the Margaret River heartland, 100% Wilyabrup. The vineyard was planted back in the '80s, so it’s been there for a while. It’s been wild fermented, whole-bunch pressed with high solids, showing that saline minerality that is so compelling. It’s immensely concentrated, but has focus and poise with real precision. All Gingin clone, so there’s power in spades, and that driving intensity with just a fine, crisp acidity marks this clonal influence. Certainly, one of the best I’ve seen under this brand.
95 POINTS
Jane Faulkner - Halliday Wine Companion
There’s tension, detail and delight in this top chardonnay brimming with good things. Pink grapefruit, pomelo, lemon and freshly cut ginger bring in the high notes, with the bass provided by cedary, spicy oak and creamy, nutty lees, which also bolster the otherwise tightly framed palate. Excellent now, and it should be even better in another year or so.
91 POINTS
Christina Pickard - Wine Enthusiast
Toasted nuts and nougat mingle with beeswax and melon on this distinctive and quite Burgundian West Aussie Chardy. There's textural weight and roundness, with a lovely line of acidity throughout. It's really all about texture, here, with subtle nutty, waxy characters to finish. The winemaking technique somewhat obscures terroirs, but it's a classy drop nonetheless. Still young, this can and should be cellared a few more years. It'll evolve for a decade at least.
91 POINTS
Angus Hughson - Vinous
The 2024 Chardonnay 1000 Crowns is well composed, offering fresh aromas of Mirabelle plum and peach with a biscuity oak backbone. Vibrant and mid-weight, it shows an attractive unforced generosity of flavor with subtle nutty tones. Fine acidity delivers a creamy finish and solid length.