2024 Flowstone Queen of the Earth Chardonnay, Margaret River

A powerful wine, with plenty of gunflint and other smart winemaking things. It’s flashy at first glance, and bound tight, but with a little oxygen, the matchsticks breeze away and, underneath, bright, sticky and pure fruit emerges. Yellow apple, lime pith and sweet cinnamon. In the mouth, it gets into all the crevices with nectarine and cashew cream. There’s good phenolic grip, too. It’s equal parts pure fruit, elbow grease and oak. Drink with an array of preserved those-and-that’s. Drink to 2034.

94 points Cyndal Petty for Wine Pilot, June 2026

Open this when you’ve got something special cooking in the kitchen. The wine would be a treat with crisp-skin Murray Cod with a silky roast fennel and cauliflower puree, served browned butter and a preserved lemon salsa.

More about this wine

The most famous cave of the Margaret River region, the Lake Cave, was named Queen of the Earth At the time of its discovery for its breathtakingly beautiful crystalline formations. This crystal wonderland is located just six kilometres from Flowstone’s home vineyard in Forest Grove.

The 2022 season got off to a wet and bumpy start, but what followed was an even warm summer with cool nights, the beautiful, prolonged autumn ripening everything perfectly.

The Queen of the Earth Chardonnay is a barrel selection representing the best of the vintage for Flowstone. Fruit was hand-picked from the home vineyard, whole bunch pressed and fermented with indigenous yeasts in French oak barriques, half of which were new. The wine underwent malolactic fermentation and rested on lees for 18 months with occasional lees stirring.

About Flowstone

Flowstone Wines is the creation of winemakers Stuart Pym and Janice McDonald, who craft small batches that reflect the spirit of Margaret River. Based in the Forest Grove area, they also lease a vineyard further down south in Karridale, and source some fruit from Wilyabrup. The names of their wines pay tribute to the stunning geological formations of the region.