2024 Lowestoft Estate Chardonnay, Tasmania

A grower-driven chardonnay; Coal River Valley with East Coast and Tasmanian Peninsula fruit. Light straw with ripe white peach, nectarine and citrus fruits veiled in soft spice, nougat, clover blossom, meadow flowers, vanillin oak, grapefruit pith, crushed stone and ozone. A stunning saline, briny mineral cadence drives the wine forward. The fruit is gorgeous and the flavours draw out nicely. A great release from a very strong vintage. Drink to 2034.

96+ points (Special Value) Dave Brookes for Halliday Wine Companion, July 2026

The 2024 Estate Chardonnay leads with cashews and brine, with yellow peach and green olive tapenade to close. This is tight and textural, and despite the warmth of the season, this is very much driven by saline acidity. The phenolics are sleek and structural and course through the fruit, focusing the flow of flavor to close. It's very good. The fruit for this wine is sourced from Gillingbrook and Belbrook (East Coast), Coal Valley and Norfolk Bay. Drink to 2036.

94 points Erin Larkin for The Wine Advocate, March 2026

Delicate, tightly wound aromas of nectarines, sliced lemons, grapefruit, oyster shells and lime leaves. The palate is light- to medium-bodied with a fine line of acidity giving nice energy and tension. The 30% new oak is well integrated, with a mineral, chalky drive. Very pretty. Drink or hold. 

93 points James Suckling, August 2025

Fresh aromas of white nectarines and grapefruit are the first to emerge from the glass, complemented by notes of sweet spicy bakery treats and subtle hints of flint and brine. The harmonious palate is medium-weighted, tight and textural, with a firm line of acidity driving the fruit to a long finish.

The wine's saline drive and firm phenolic grip want food built on brine and structure rather than richness — a scallop crudo with a squeeze of yuzu lets the mineral line run straight into the dish, while a chilled clam and ginger consommé gives the acidity a job to do without drowning the citrus. If you're after something with more weight, char-grilled octopus with a white bean purée holds up to the phenolics and lets the smoke play against the wine's own flinty edge.

More about this wine

The fruit for the 2024 Estate Chardonnay is a blend of fruit from four east coast vineyards. All parcels were hand-picked and chilled overnight before being whole bunch pressed into seasoned French oak for wild fermentation. Half of the wine was sulphured post primary fermentation, with the remaining stirred without sulphur for three months. The parcels were then left for nine months in oak prior to blending and bottling.

About Lowestoft

The Lowestoft vineyard is a densely planted three-hectare vineyard with some of the oldest Pinot Noir plantings in Tasmania. Originally planted in 1986, it is located on the banks of Derwent River, just 15 minutes northwest of downtown Hobart.

Two recently planted vineyards near Richmond and Forcett in the Coal River Valley have provided additional fruit from the 2023 vintage, and fruit is also sourced from growers in Huon, Derwent, Coal River and Tamar Valleys. All wines are made at Tasmanian Vintners owned by Fogarty Hall wine group, owners of the Lowestoft vineyard since 2019. Chief winemaker Liam McElhinney is the man behind numerous trophy-winning wines and was shortlisted for Halliday Wine Companion's Winemaker of the Year in 2025.