2025 Holm Oak The Wizard Chardonnay, Tamar Valley

Over half went through malolactic fermentation and new French oak. The season has ripened this Chardonnay fruit to its full expression with peaches and mango skin, guava and Meyer lemon. Plumes of nutmeg and cinnamon powder and some Jonquil like intensity of white flowers. A sherbert-like succulence, acidity maintains a good pace throughout and overall this is generous, lip smacking and everything you want in creamy, buttery orchard fruit centred Chardonnay. A plump lobster roll will do very nicely. Drink now or cellar for another 3-5 years. Drink to 2031.

95 points Shanteh Wale for Wine Pilot, September 2026

Bright, light yellow/straw colour with a discreet but smoky toasty bouquet, the palate rich and full, rounded and smooth textured, with terrific depth and fleshiness. Concentrated flavour with elegance and effortless balance. Excellent now but cellar it to watch it build more complexity. Superb chardonnay. Drink to 2040.

95 points Huon Hooke for The Real Review, August 2026

This is from a warmer vintage than we often see from Tasmania and the wine is perhaps a little fuller in flavour than usual because of it. Fermentation was with native yeasts in barrel. 65% of the wine then underwent malolactic fermentation. Maturation was in French oak, 65% of which was new. The team use a range of coopers to enhance complexity. Shimmering lemon/gold, there is good intensity and focus here. On the nose, we have notes of citrus, florals, cashews, ginger, nectarines, a touch of oatmeal and orange rinds. A lovely, creamy texture is evident, and the wine has both balance and focus. Great length here. This is a really classy Chardonnay and has room to improve even further. Good intensity of flavour is evident throughout. Enjoy this over the next six to ten years. Drink to 2036.

95 points Ken Gargett for Wine Pilot, July 2026

Composed and classy, I love this Chardonnay's swagger as it confidently strides out. The Wizard is Holm Oak's flagship white and it nails the brief. White-fleshed stonefruit leads supported by cashew and nougat notes that immediately add complexity. Lemon juice, canned pineapple and brioche weave effortlessly through the palate, while vanilla cream and caramel drops contribute a creamy richness without tipping the balance. The influence of malolactic fermentation (65%) and French oak (65% new) is thoughtfully handled, adding texture and depth rather than dominating the fruit.  Rather than chasing the chiselled, high-acid style of many modern Chardonnays, this builds a beautifully rounded palate shape that feels complete and oozes satisfaction. A grapefruit tang on the finish elevates the finish, keeping everything fresh and focused.

95 points Steve Leszcynski for Q Wine Reviews, July 2026

The warmer 2025 vintage in Tassie has resulted in a more generous, richer, and full-bodied Chardonnay with loads of complex nuances evident on both the nose and the palate. It was all wild fermented and then more than half went through malolactic fermentation to soften the acidity, with maturation in about 65% new French oak. The generosity of the fruit has easily managed the oak. The nose shows lovely peachy, toasty characters with subtle lightly roasted cashew. The palate has a nutty, creamy richness, but with a finishing savoury acidity that completes and defines the wine.

94 points Ray Jordan for Wine Pilot, July 2026

Holm Oak is a family winery in Tamar Valley in northern Tasmania, run by winemaker Bec Duffy and her viticulturist husband Tim. Vines were first planted on the Holm Oak property in 1983, and the Duffys have been making wine here since 2006, building a strong reputation for elegant and well-priced cool-climate wines.

The Wizard wines are named after a revolutionary flat-top tennis racquet used by Australian Jack Crawford to win Wimbledon in 1933. The previous owner of what is now Holm Oak was involved in the growth of trees for the manufacture of tennis racquets at the Alexander Patent Racquet Company in Launceston in the 1930s, and while his efforts weren't particularly successful, Bec and Tim decided to name these premium wines in honour of his entrepreneurial spirit.

The fruit for this wine was gently pressed and transferred to barrel for fermentation with indigenous yeasts, with half of the wine allowed to go through malolactic conversion. The wine was matured for ten months in French oak barrels of various coopers of which 50% were new and the balance of second use.