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One of the great Chardonnay makers worldwide, Tapanappa manages to craft something delicious from the greatest sites in Adelaide Hills year after year. Toasty aromatics entice, while the palate indulges with initial notes of caramel and pencil shaving, then comes …

A very refined nose, with crisp lemon and bright grapefruit zest, overlaid with oak spice. The palate has a bracing tension and textural interest, with freshness and balance, plus focused fruit with elegance and length. Well-integrated, beautifully balanced and deliciously …

Campfire, rosemary and black cherry aromas lead into a fine and flavoursome core that glides nicely across the palate. The tannins are fine and slinky, though by no means a pushover. Its flavours are more on the savoury side, offering …

With its pristine aromatics and dry, lightly textured, savoury finish, the Tapanappa Eden Valley Riesling makes for great drinking now or over the medium term. Pale in the glass with a flash of green and aromas of fresh lime juice, …

A riot of rosemary, tomato leaf, freshly turned earth, black and red cherry compote on the nose leads into an intense and suave core. A scaffolding of fine tannins provides structure for the pitch perfect black and red berries and …

The 2021 Tapanappa Cabernet Merlot Franc blend is an unusual expression from the vineyard, due to the low-yielding vintage. There is a seamless display of opulent Cabernet Sauvignon aromas with layers of black olive, graphite and spice from the other …

I feel like I should curtsey before drinking this wine. What a treat. Such elegance. Such restraint. Green papaya, yellow grapefruit and Geraldton wax. It’s timeless – the only thing unsophisticated about this wine is me drinking it. The palate …

A wine that might make you impulsively hug your sommelier – this Chardonnay has no worries in the world. It breezes through life with pomelo, spiced key lime pie and candle wax. It carries an arsenal of concentration and power …

Yum. It makes me sit back and smile. Sticky oranges, beeswax and lime sherbet. It’s elegant and playful; detailed and effortless. The fruit is pure and concentrated, never overpowered by winery antics. Clever. The acid is fresh and framing, bringing …

Classic Pinot colour – mid-crimson to ruby scarlet, with touchstone varietal aromas, poached cherry with woody spices, a quintessential Pinot sensory attraction. That bushy spice feel finds an extra cedar-like gear in the palate, urged on by deftly weighted cherry …

An elite Pinot release from Brian Croser’s Foggy Hill Vineyard, here from a cooler year which defines the structure and flavour within. Its colour is all about cherry skin, aroma exuding the same fruit notes with an enticing floral note, …

After twenty-two years, Tapanappa’s Foggy Hill Vineyard might be in peak form.

This is a site that Brian Croser has passionately believed in for crafting great South Australian Pinot Noir, even if it’s a part of the world (the Fleurieu …

The Foggy Hill vineyard was planted in 2003 to a pair of Dijon clones, 115 and 777. The centre slope here is known as the Definitus Block and is harvested separately as experience has shown that these grapes have greater …

2024 was a difficult vintage for Brian Croser and his team at the Foggy Hill vineyard. The conditions meant it would be one of the very smallest crops he has encountered in his long and illustrious career. Limited might be …

The 2024 Pinot Noir Foggy Hill Vineyard leads with a dusty nose of dried flowers, pan-roasted spices, mahogany cupboard and aged leather. Cherry seeds also abound. In the mouth, the wine is lean and spicy, with a waxy splay of …

The Foggy Hill vineyard is located at 350 metres above sea level at Parawa on the Fleurieu Peninsula dead south of Adelaide. A tough vintage (2.5 tonnes per hectare), with only the 777 clone providing fruit for the release from …

The Foggy Hill vineyard is located at 350 metres above sea level at Parawa on the Fleurieu Peninsula dead south of Adelaide. French oak barriques (1/3rd new). From a central block in the Foggy Hill north-western slope, planted over 20 …

If Foggy Hill Vineyard is the essence of what Brian Croser calls a “Distinguished Site,” then Definitus drills down further to a “Distinguished Block.” Definitus – Latin for defined or precise – captures Adelaide Hills Pinot in lovely clarity. A …

Perfumed and savoury, with aromas of plums, blackberries, bitter chocolate, mahogany, liquorice, violets and potpourri. The palate is mid-weighted with fine-grained tannins, a textural mouthfeel and complex dark fruit, spices, earth and dried herbs. A blend of 54% Cabernet Sauvignon, …

Refined and pure, with floral and minerally aromas of wild raspberries, dried strawberries, hibiscus, rose petals and crushed river stones. The palate is delicate and refined, with fine tannins, bright acidity and a crunchy, saline finish. Elegant and perfumed. Drink …

Refined and delicate, with aromas of sliced lemons, flint, grapefruit and yeast. The palate is mid-weighted with a rounded mouthfeel and bright acidity. A well-balanced yet restrained release from a low-yielding vintage. Drink or hold. Screw cap. Reviewed August 2025.…

There’s so much tension and purity, with restrained aromas of grilled lemons, gunpowder, flint and white orchard fruit. The palate is mid-weighted with a great core of fruit, lovely underlying freshness and bright acidity, with a minerally and fruit-driven finish. …

This is excellent, with so much clarity and precision. Aromas of minerals, struck match, grapefruit, flint, crushed stones, white orchard fruit and talc. The palate is tightly wound, with vivid acidity, generous underlying power and saline and yeasty notes. Delicious …

2018 Foggy Hill Pinot Nor is a “robust but refined expression of the unique Foggy Hill vineyard site”.
The wine is barely translucent with a mulberry hue.
The aroma is of ripe dark berry fruits and the faint spice of …

A beautiful release here; 15% whole bunch, nine months in French oak, 30% of which was new. Elements of struggle, the cooler-than-usual vintage and minute yields have contributed to a concise and certain wine. Prismatic red fruits cast light over …

Class, elegance and dangerously silky, what a superb and precise Pinot Noir from Tapanappa.

A wine that is measured with a terrific line of detail from a cool and low-yielding vintage, the longer it sits in the glass, the more …

Aromas of rose petal, forest floor, and dark cherry combine on a seductive bouquet. Length of palate is a strong point, as are the fine tannins and almost subliminal oak. Reviewed September 2025.

 5 Stars…

This is quite a structured and intense pinot noir from this cool vintage. The colour is quite pale but that can be deceptive as the aroma explodes with a mix of florals and strawberry before you delve into a palate …

Planted in 2003 to clones 115 and 777. The block is called Definitus, which is certainly a more lively name than, say, Block 28. It’s screwcap sealed.

Strawberry, dried herb and flowers, mint, cedar and spice. It’s medium-bodied, lightly poached …

⚖️ – Fairly priced for such a unique and well made Aussie Pinot

🕰️ – Drinks beautifully now, but its complexities emerged with 12hrs of airtime. No issues holding this for 5yrs +

Clear ruby with a gentle orange hue …

Wonderfully autumnal, this is a Tapanappa Foggy Hill Pinot Noir with soul, depth and a comforting embrace. It’s an excellent wine, hands down. From a vineyard planted 350 metres above sea level to the 777 clone, it saw eight months …

Made in a year so cold that only the clone 777 fruit ripened sufficiently, this wine is a marvel of delicacy as opposed to lightness. The nose shows delightfully perfumed cherry with a positive herbal edge. The finely structured palate …

This was a very cool growing season that produced very low crops, and yet the wine has triumphed. It’s a subtle medium-bodied pinot with bright, vibrant colours of red and purple. On the nose is a mix of strawberry conserve …

I have a weather station in my back yard. Last August there was 33.55 mm of rain for the whole month with an average temperature of 16.4c. In 2025, less than halfway through we are sitting at 294.38 mm of …

The Tapanappa ‘DEFINITUS’ 2022 Pinot Noir is an intense expression of the unique Definitus Foggy Hill vineyard site in a cool year. The wine is translucent with a carmine hue.

The aroma is of ripe strawberries and delicate jasmine. There …

Citrus tang, quince, touch of leesy curds in the background. Palate is chock full of stonefruit, grapefruit acidity, quince. 

There’s a lovely unison between integrated oak – giving some foundation for the wine – and acid tension, giving flow and …

Vintage Notes

2023 vintage was the fourth consecutive cool vintage and the coolest of the four after a sequence dominated by above average temperature vintages from 2006 to 2019.

At Foggy Hill, 2023 was very cool with a growing season …

There’s a slot in the Australian Wine and Drinks Review fridge where I always like to keep a classic white wine. Something for drinking, not tasting, that I’m going to enjoy drinking at any moment if I feel like it. …

London is to see a selection of Australia’s top Chardonnays go on pour next week, as the country continues its State by State series, showcasing its finest wines according to source.
Hoping to show the UK trade “how far Australian …

Australian Riesling might make up just 0.5% of the nation’s wine exports, but it’s managing to carve out its own distinctive niche due to its freshness, moderate alcohol content and fruit purity, writes Kathleen Willcox.

Aussie Shiraz will likely never …

Surrounded by unparalleled views of the London skyline, the great and the good of the wine world joined to toast Decanter’s 50th anniversary at a spectacular evening full of history, highlights and, naturally, a host of iconic bottles. Content Director …

As I enter the third decade of the 100 Best Australian Wines, and as every year passes, top-class Australian fine wines continue to improve and impress with their staggering diversity and deliciousness.

As always, this is a body of work …

Vintage Notes

2019 was a very warm and dry vintage at Tapanappa’s Whalebone Vineyard in Wrattonbully.

The Merlot and Cabernet Franc crop yield from the 45-year-old Whalebone Vineyard was a meagre 3.0 tonnes per hectare because of poor fruit set …

Vintage Notes

2019 was a very warm and dry vintage at Tapanappa’s Whalebone Vineyard in Wrattonbully. The Cabernet Sauvignon crop yield, from the 45-year-old Whalebone Vineyard, was a meagre 2.5 tonnes per hectare because of poor fruit set in late …

Foggy Hill Vineyard 2024 Pinot Noir is a very low crop, very cool vintage expression of the Foggy Hill terroir.

The wine colour is medium intensity and has a delicate red to purple hue.

The aroma is fresh and intense …

Exquisite close-planted Chardonnay. Chardonnay that melts your mouth – along with any resistance you might have to its charms – and provides sublime carriage of flavour. Stonefruit, frangipane, grapefruit acidity. Subtle hints of ginger spice – particularly in that long …

Medium deep garnet to ruby rim still there. Still fresh with a core of berry fruit: black, boysen and blue. White pepper, powdered cocoa, cedar and vanilla still offering some winemaking influence. There’s a hint of development with nori sheet/beef …

Deep garnet with a soft velvet rim. Aromas complex and calm: rose petals, drinking cocoa and cassis with blueberries and raspberries, blood plum, new leather, cedar, a small amount of rosemary (leaf and flower), a touch of vanilla, graphite and …

Full and bright ruby colours in the glass. Blueberry, crushed sage and violets on the nose. Medium to full bodied, dark fruits sit in the core with Chinese five spice adding lift and detail to the flow. Fine-grained tannins carry …

Tapanappa Wrattonbully Whalebone Vineyard Cabernets Merlot Franc, 2021, $90. A more affordable variation to the wine above, if $90 can be considered affordable. It is still a delight, but $25 less so and which, at the risk of being labelled …

Tapanappa Wrattonbully Whalebone Vineyard Merlot Cabernet Franc 2015, $115. Didn’t women once wear whalebone in their corsets? Seems totally inappropriate for such a grand creature, which increases no end the credibility of this wine grown on the soil of long …

This wine has been held back for a prestigious re-release. It of course was reviewed some time ago on WineFront, with applause and praise given.

It’s in a beautiful spot. Almost a ‘pinosity’ to the wine, suppleness, medium weight, satiny …

It’s a heady mix of Merlot and Cabernet Franc (69/31%) from the cool 2015 vintage. Remnants of oak, cedar, redcurrant – all the more impressive for a wine at ten years to maintain a level of primary expression.

It was …

Bright red and youthful in the glass. Lifted and complex aromas of blackberry, Asian spice, nutmeggy oak, bramble, mulberry, dark cherry and pipe tobacco. Firm, structured, mouth-filling and generously flavoured. The tannins are firm and bring plenty of grip and …

What a stunning wine this is. It is made from fruit grown on the now 51-year-old Whalebone Vineyard on the Limestone Coast that was identified decades ago by wine industry veteran Brian Croser as “a distinguished site” capable of producing …

Although the nose shows a hint of maturity, the plum/blackberry fruit is impressively fresh. This exceptional wine is certainly an Australian Pomerol, and the powdery tannins interact seamlessly with the intense flavour.

5 stars

…

The ripe blackcurrant and mulberry aromatics carry a hint of leaf and subtle oak. An impressively long palate carries the fine, savoury tannins with ease. Cellar ten years at least.…

Pale and crystal bright lemon hue. Dried papaya, grapefruit pith and yellow floral aromatics. Good intensity of lime fruit, hints of tropical lift and a seaspray minerality. There’s a textural element that suggests sweetness but the ample acidity and astutely …

The punchy, youthful single-vineyard 2024 Chardonnay 1.5M is sure to impress with its combination of raw power and subtlety. Waves of peach skin and nectarine aromas are complemented by white flowers and a creamy cashew nut complexity. Compact and surprisingly …

The more sophisticated and reserved 2024 Chardonnay Tiers is a little shy and tightly coiled right now, offering up pristine aromas of melon and pear topped by fine oatmeal tones and spicy oak, with just a touch of smoky reduction. …

What a sheer privilege it was to taste this Tapanappa Whalebone Vineyard blend 2015 alongside the new 2021 release. Brian Croser is releasing a small quantity of the 2015s and its pure class is obvious. Better still, what a thrilling …

This Tapanappa Whalebone Vineyard Cabernets Merlot Franc 2021 is a slightly different blend to the 2015 that it was tasted alongside. What a treat it was to capture the past alongside the current release. This is an excellent wine – …

A blend of 53/16/16/15% Cabernet Sauvignon/Merlot/Cabernet Franc/Shiraz. Matured in 50% new French barriques for 18 months. A wine that is as vivid as the imagery of the whale skeleton found buried beneath the vineyard. Fresh figs, boysenberry and Chinese bayberry. …

Brian Croser has made the decision to re-release this wine from what was a coolish vintage, not dissimilar to the 2021. It’s a blend of Merlot and Cabernet Franc. And even after 10 years, it’s bright with energy and life …

As always, the opportunity to source a wine already matured by the producers is an opportunity which should not be ignored. This is a blend of 69% Merlot and 31% Cabernet Franc, each variety made separately before the final step …

2021 was a cracking vintage in the Wrattonbully region – the home of this famous vineyard. The blend is 53.5% Cabernet Sauvignon, 16% Merlot, 16% Cabernet Franc and 14.5% Shiraz. Each variety was treated discreetly, seeing eighteen months maturation in …

This wine is a product of a very cool vintage in Wrattonbully, which in many ways suits the style of wines that Brian Croser is making. It’s a combination of Cabernet Sauvignon, which makes up more than half the blend, …

Dark ruby with a purple hue and a seductive nose of violets, potpourri, black plum, roasted fig, cherry, mixed red and black berries, tobacco, tapenade, roasted peppers, eucalyptus and sweet garrigue.

In the mouth it’s effortless, finely structured, impeccably balanced …

For those with long memories, the rise of the Wrattonbully wine region will come as a sweet postscript to one of the biggest legal battles over regional boundaries ever fought in this country concentrating on Coonawarra. At the centre of …

The decision to re-release the 2015 red blend is deliberate. The year, a cool vintage, is intended as a comparison with the new release 2021 Whalebone Vineyard red blend, also from a cool year. The comparisons are there (minus, of …

2015 Tapanappa Whalebone Vineyard Merlot-Cabernet Franc is one of the ripest flavoured vintages from this unique, distinguished site. The aroma is of ripe Merlot blackberry and fruit cake with no leafiness, decorated by the floral and spice of Cabernet Franc. …

Tapanappa 2021 Whalebone Vineyard Blend is faintly translucent with a bright purple-red hue. The aroma is immediately of mulberry juice, cassis and macerated cherries with the faintly herbal characteristic of the Cabernets from a cool vintage. The wine’s flavour is …

The word exceptionalism was invented to describe the USA as an economic entity, or at least to describe the way it used to be. 

Now the word has morphed to apply to the whim of the weather gods for the …

Whalebone Vineyard was first planted in 1974 as the Koppamurra Vineyard.

1974 was the peak of the real-estate frenzy in Coonawarra as the large wine companies of the era (Mildara, Penfolds, Wynns, Lindemans) outbid one another for the scarce resource …

2017 Tiers Chardonnay is a pristine and exquisite expression of the Tiers unique terroir from a great vintage. 

Pale green gold in colour, 2017 Tiers Chardonnay has refined and fresh fruit aromas and flavours of freshly cut nectarines and pear. …

Here we have the pinnacle Chardonnay release from the first vineyard planted in the Piccadilly Valley since the 19th century. Restrained power is the term that comes to mind here. It’s tight and focussed, yielding enough aromatic presence to get …

Named on account of the 1.5 metre spacing between vine rows. Fresh, tightly wound and elegant aromas of white peach and cedar kick things off, followed by green apple, Meyer lemon, peach blossom, nectarine pulp and cinnamon. There’s a taut …

High quality cedar oak sits confidently here, melding with fresh cut nectarine, quince, peach skin, kumquat and red apple with some savoury cashew cream beneath. There’s a lot of impact aromatically thanks to good concentration and balance. The palate is …

The original Tiers Vineyard Chardonnay planted in 1979 in the Piccadilly Valley was the first Adelaide Hills vineyard to unknown clones. 2024, though slightly warmer, was yet another cooler vintage in the run since 2020. Modest cropping of 4 tonnes …

2024, though slightly warmer continued a run of cool vintages. French oak barriques (1/3 new) for fermentation (2 months through Autumn). Barrel aged on full lees until October 2024, before racking off and then a November bottling.

Pale lemon colour …