2020 Howard Park Jete Grand Vintage, Mount Barker

A fine release in the exciting reinvigoration of this sparkling wine program, balancing generosity with freshness. Grilled lemons, oyster shells, apple blossoms, toast and flint. The palate is finely detailed, with bright acidity and a long, mineral-driven finish full of complexity. A blend of 65% chardonnay and 35% pinot noir, with 50 months on tirage and 2 g/L dosage. Drink or hold.

96 points Ryan Montgomery for James Suckling, October 2026

Restrained and composed, opening with brine, sea salt, Meyer lemon, white peach and baked apple, before delicate pastry dough and subtle almond emerge. The palate is suave and flowing, underpinned by a fine bead, with baked apple, ripe lemon, oyster shell and white peach again to the fore. Clotted cream and water cracker add quiet complexity in the background. Tight, citrusy acidity coils around the richer tones, drawing the wine to good length with lemon pith and green apple prominent through the finish. Lots to like here — refined, youthful and impressively long.

94 points Tom Kline for Wine Pilot, January 2026

The wine is produced from select parcels. It is matured for 52 months on lees, sees some oak-barrel portions for complexity, and reserve material blended back in. Impeccable balance and sense of complexity yet restraint. Cool green apple characters, just-ripe pineapple, white peach, white strawberry, an undertow of nougat, ginger biscuit, with sea spray veins trailing through. A great leap into finesse with this prestige cuvée. Drink to 2029.

94 points Mike Bennie for Halliday Wine Companion, January 2026 

Light straw yellow hue. Peach and brioche aromas. Deep and full on the palate, loaded with stone fruit, hints of red berries and baking biscuit notes carried by a full bead and subtle acidity. Good length with a little sweetness lingering at the end. Drink to 2030.

91 points Stuart Knox for The Real Review, January 2026

Howard Park‘s sparkling wines are traditionally bottle fermented and named after the foundational leaping or jumping ballet movements referred to in French as jeté.

The fruit for this premium vintage sparkling wine was grown in the Mount Barrow vineyard planted from 2005 in the Mount Barker subregion of WA’s Great Southern. It is a gentle southeast facing slope of shallow, light soils rising to 380 metre elevation and planted primarily to a diverse selection of Pinot Noir and Chardonnay clones, with smaller blocks of Riesling, Gewürztraminer and Pinot Meunier.

The base wine is made by pressing whole bunches to obtain the free-run portion only. The parcels are primarily fermented in stainless steel, with a small component of barrel fermented wines included in the final blend, some of which have been allowed malolactic fermentation.

The finest parcels of each season are blended to form the Grand Jeté. The 2020 was tiraged in July that year, spent five years on lees and was finished with a low dosage of 2.6g/L. The final wine is a 64/25/11 of Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier.

About this producer

Howard Park is a family-owned winery with more than 40 years of experience in Western Australia’s Margaret River and Great Southern regions. From its 1986 origin in the latter, the estate has grown to five properties: Leston and Allingham in Margaret River, Mount Barrow and Abercrombie in the Great Southern, and Forest View in Pemberton. Each site has a different focus, but the overarching theme is control: tailoring each vine and seasonal bud and keeping the fruit and the expertise in-house.