2024 Giant Steps Bastard Hill Vineyard Chardonnay

97 POINTS

Philip Rich - Halliday Wine Companion

A 11.5ha vineyard planted in '87 in Gladysdale at 400m with roughly 60% planted to chardonnay. Precise and mineral driven, with aromas of just-ripened orchard fruits, lemon zest and a touch of struck match. A slow but steady burn on the very persistent palate, culminating in a long, structured and saline finish. This will age slowly but surely over the next decade. There's only 200 dozen made in '24, illustrating the lengths that Giant Steps are taking to protect the brand.

97 POINTS

James Suckling

This wine is all about nerve and minerality, with aromas of lemon pith, lime blossoms, honeysuckle, grapefruit, oyster shells and struck matches. The palate is powerful and tightly wound, with notes of crushed stones, gingerbread, cordial, lime curd, pastry and sherbet. Flashy and concentrated, with a fine line of acidity, this is a great example of the new wave of Australian chardonnay. Excellent.

96 POINTS

Campbell Mattinson - The Wine Front

The vineyard yielded five barrels of chardonnay this year. “It could not have been a more different vintage (to the 2023)”, according to winemaker Mel Chester. I loved the 2023 release but this 2024 version is dramatically different and, yet still, dramatically good. The 2023 release was piercing but there’s a delicacy to this wine. Bacon, wax, oyster shell, white peach and salted citrus, with almond paste as the lightest of infusions. This is such a complete wine. If you thought that Bastard Hill was exciting as a concept, this is Bastard Hill as exciting in the glass. It’s the elegance of Australian chardonnay at a high point. It has the flavour and the texture and the focus and all those things. But it’s a wine with a vibe and a lilt and a loveliness that runs the length of it.

95 POINTS

Erin Larkin - Robert Parker Wine Advocate

I believe this may be the first time I have tasted the Bastard Hill Chardonnay, despite having visited the impressively steep site in Gladysdale and having a clear picture of it in my mind. Aromatically, the 2024 Bastard Hill Chardonnay leads with white flowers and tea, white peach, green apple and layers of fresh-picked curry leaf, with caper brine to close. The wine shows austere acidity and pronounced phenolic presence, which shapes the fruit through the finish. The race-and-pace drive of the acid is something to adjust to, but frankly, given where the fruit is grown, it would be disappointing if it didn't show through in the glass. This is very impressive and exciting. 13.3% alcohol, sealed under screw cap.

92 POINTS

Angus Hughson - Vinous

The 2024 Chardonnay Bastard Hill is quite pretty from the get-go, offering citrus blossom, warm wax and lime leaf aromas over a subtle base of fresh melon. It is lightweight and angular, with a chalky texture accented by acacia, honeycomb and crushed nuts, before tightening up to an underpowered finish.