Recognition

“In 2003 the Croser family removed 1.3 hectares of the original Tiers Vineyard Chardonnay (planted in 1979 in the Piccadilly Valley as the first Adelaide Hills vineyard). The area was replanted with the French Bernard clones 76 and 95 on rootstocks on very close 1.5 metre row spacing with the fruiting wire at only 0.5 metres above the ground.

 » Read more about: “Showing exquisite class” 95 points | Regan Drew | Vino Notebook  »

The original Tiers Vineyard Chardonnay planted in 1979 in the Piccadilly Valley as one of the first in the region. French oak barrique (1/3 new) fermentation before barrel ageing until November.

Pale lemon hue. Sharp and insistent. Cashew cream, nougat, nectarine, sage, lemon verbena, macadamia, gunflint, brioche and tea bun. Depth, tenacity, power and presence.

 » Read more about: “Length and balance signatures. Classy.” 94 points | Regan Drew | Vino Notebook  »

“Warm and very late” seems a contradictory description of a grape harvest, but that indeed describes the 2026 vintage from Tapanappa’s three distinguished site vineyards, a harvest that finished on the 30th of April. After the hottest, driest and earliest vintage in 2025, the 2026 harvest stands in stark contrast.

 » Read more about: Vintage 2026 – A Vintage of Contradictions.  »

This was a product of a very hot, dry vintage, which tested all of Brian Croser’s immense experience. Yet the wine captures very much about what this particular vineyard in the Piccadilly Valley is all about. On the nose, there are notes of very subtle lemon curd and brioche with a spicy complexity. On the palate,

 » Read more about: “Subtle lemon curd and brioche with a spicy complexity” 96 points | Ray Jordan | Wine Pilot  »

I have been an unabashed fan of this wine for many years, and even in what was a very hot, dry vintage, yet again, it’s come up trumps. As you can imagine, the warmer year has certainly produced slightly richer characters, immediately evident in the slightly darker colours and then manifested on the nose where richer stone fruit characters emerge.

 » Read more about: “A wine of impeccable poise and precision” 97 points | Ray Jordan | Wine Pilot  »

Brian Croser has noted the 2025 vintage as the warmest, driest and earliest in his career, a career which stretches back for more than fifty years. However, any concerns that his iconic Chardonnays from the Tiers Vineyard would not reflect the typicity that they have come to enjoy over many years has been put to rest.

 » Read more about: “Superb balance and real intensity with great persistence” 96 points | Ken Gargett | Wine Pilot  »

One Australia’s more famous Chardonnays and certainly one which influenced many wines which followed it. The vineyard was originally planted in 1979. Despite the unique conditions for this vintage, the yield was around average, at seven tonnes per hectare. Fermentation was in French oak barriques, with 1/3rd of them new, before spending time on lees until it was bottled.

 » Read more about: “A wine of such length and balance” 98 points | Ken Gargett | Wine Pilot  »

Close planted Chardonnay – 1.5 metre row spacing – came in pretty handy during the 2025 vintage which was South Australia’s warmest, driest and earliest vintage on record. The winemaker believes close spacing provides “earlier-ripening, fuller flavoured Chardonnay,” something that translated into a firm, tight, tense package of wine in ’25 delivering a sunny, bright intensity of flavour.

 » Read more about: “Quince, citrus scents and flavours abound” 95 points | Jeni Port | Wine Pilot  »

Increasingly, I am allowing Aussie Chardonnays a little more time on opening, time to loosen up, to release some inbuilt tension and open to a full reveal. Top Aussie Chardonnays like Tiers call for it. Try and make it a rule and see if it works for you. With time opened, there is a growing warmth to the ’25 Tiers,

 » Read more about: “Leaves a concentrated, well composed impression” 95 points | Jeni Port | Wine Pilot  »

Grown on one of the best chardonnay vineyards in the Adelaide Hills and, by extension, therefore in Australia. This is a terrific Chardonnay. There’s plenty of razzle dazzle but then there’s also substance, texture and length. Flint, pear, tonic water, lemonade and pure, ripe peach characters come infused with cedar, woodsmoke and mineral. It’s a wine of power,

 » Read more about: “It’s a wine of power, drive and insistence” 95 points | Campbell Mattison | CampbellMattison.com  »

Great vineyards show their mettle in the most difficult of years. The Tiers Vineyard – one of the first planted in the Adelaide Hills – is in the coolest, wettest location in South Australia and is perfectly suited to chardonnay; with a micro-climate similar to that of Burgundy. It generally produces elegant, subtley shaded wines.

 » Read more about: “The vineyard conquered the season” Winsor Dobbin | Wine of the Week  »

A lovely sense of smokiness precedes the hazelnut notions on the nose. A touch of ripe yellow plum adds an irresistible sense of juiciness. The palate then unites exquisite, soaring freshness with absolute linearity and concentration. A toasty sense of oak harmonises with yellow plum and lemon to give aromatic colour to this sleek, thoroughbred beauty.

 » Read more about: “Absolute linearity and concentration” 94 points | Anne Krebiehl MW | Falstaff  »

No grape variety has played a more significant role in the development of modern Australian wine than Chardonnay. Ken Gargett traces the variety’s history in Australia, explores the region-by-region differences, and picks out some of the country’s finest Chardonnay producers and their wines. Read the full article here.

 » Read more about: AUSTRALIAN CHARDONNAY: THE QUINTESSENTIAL GRAPE – Fine Wine Magazine  »

I love the notes Brian Croser shares about each vintage. He introduces 2025, “as a weak, wobbly Antarctic vortex allowed a pressure system to escape near the Australian continent. The result was the warmest, driest and earliest vintage of my 56-year winemaking career.”

These 44-year-old vines were hand-picked, whole bunch pressed and sent to French oak (one third new).

 » Read more about: “Fine ginger spices frame the edges, underpinning the moreishness on offer” 95 Points | Steve Leszczynski | Q Wine Reviews  »

I do have a soft spot for this Chardonnay. It’s not in the same league as the Tiers 1.5m 2024, but it’s a very good one, no less.

I love the notes Brian Croser shares about each vintage. He introduces 2025, “as a weak, wobbly Antarctic vortex allowed a pressure system to escape near the Australian continent.

 » Read more about: “A delightful melange of barbecued peaches and white-fleshed nectarines” 94 Points | Steve Leszczynski | Q Wine Reviews  »

Scarcebrook included this wine in his top six wines from the tasting, describing “great concentration on the aromatics – vibrant quince, slightly underripe nectarine, elderflower cordial, and lime-scented lollies. There’s depth, concentration, and texture in spades here – it’s rich and round but still quite fresh and juicy, showing ripe nectarine and some crystallised ginger.

 » Read more about: “Great concentration on the aromatics” Eden Valley Riesling Deep Dive | Young Gun of Wine  »

Some fantastic words by Andrew Caillard MW in The Vintage Journal covering the new Chardonnays from our Tiers Vineyard and Tiers 1.5M Vineyard. “The results highlight the quality of the vineyard, the epigenetic evolution of the vines, and winemaking methods,” he writes, placing the 2025 vintage of these fantastic wines into the greater canon of the Tiers Vineyard.

 » Read more about: 2025 Tapanappa Tiers Vineyard Chardonnays  »

Pale colour. Intense grapefruit, bitter lemon, flinty aromas with hints of marzipan. Tightly structured but refreshing with ample grapefruit, lemon, hint apricot fruits, supple/ looseknit chalky textures, very good mid-palate volume and fresh resonating/ indelible acidity. Pure, linear and minerally. Heritage clones. Drink now – 2035 95 points

 » Read more about: “Very good mid-palate volume and fresh resonating/ indelible acidity” 95 Points | Andrew Caillard MW | Vintage Journal  »

Pale colour. Lovely pure grapefruit, lemon curd, hint tonic water aromas. Fresh and lithe with grapefruit, nectarine, lemon curd flavours, fine lacy textures, some savoury complexity and long minerally/ crunchy acidity. Beautiful flow, purity and length. Ready to drink, but worth keeping for a while. Based on Bernard Clones 76 & 95. 95 points

 » Read more about: “Beautiful flow, purity and length” 95 Points | Andrew Caillard MW | Vintage Journal  »

More white peach and less grapefruit than the 1.5m. The nutty lees and a caress of oak provide harmonious complexity. A lingering, fine grip and perfectly balanced acidity complete the picture. ($110.00)

 » Read more about: “A lingering, fine grip and perfectly balanced acidity” 5 Stars | Lester Jesberg | Wine Wise  »

Even though this wine is from a warm vintage, it’s restrained, with a pronounced line of acidity. The aromas and flavours suggest white peach, grapefruit and warm croissant. The components of this creamy chardonnay need time to knit together, but it’s a class act! ($90.00)

 » Read more about: “It’s a class act” 5 Stars | Lester Jesberg | Wine Wise  »

I’m reviewing this a little later in the day, so there will be Tiers before bedtime. I’ll fetch my coat. Nectarine, grapefruit, nougat, a little spice and cedar. It’s lively, a grapefruit tang to acidity and flavour, there’s something of an umami character here too – like wakame – a grainy grip to texture with nutty finish of fine length.

 » Read more about: “A bright and zippy expression of this wine” 94 Points | Gary Walsh | Wine Front  »

The earliest vintage ever, harvested on the 6th of March, three to four weeks ahead of the average. White peach, pear, grapefruit, cedar and spice, aniseed, a little salted pastry dough too. It’s bright and juicy, a grapefruit and lime zest affair with some white fruit in the mix, a little nougat richness, firm acidity and chalky grip sures it up,

 » Read more about: “Will resolve nicely with a few years in bottle. Very good” 94 Points | Gary Walsh | Wine Front  »

Light-mid yellow; oatmeal and smoky oak aromas, the wine is tensioned and focused with precise lemon and chalky mineral flavours that extend tight, lean and long on the palate. Lipsmacking dry, crisp, refreshing finish. 91 Points

 » Read more about: “Lipsmacking dry, crisp, refreshing finish” 91 Points | Huon Hooke | The Real Review  »