2025 Toolangi F Block Chardonnay, Yarra Valley

Sourced entirely from the '01-planted, 0.4ha F Block. 66% mlf. A bright green gold. A complex nose, with crisp orchard fruits, orange blossom and subtle flint. The palate is elegant, persistent, chalky and very long. A beautifully poised wine that will reward at least another six to eight years in a cool place. Drink to 2033.

97 points Philip Rich for Halliday Wine Companion, August 2026

Toolangi's F Block is a sheltered 0.6-hectare parcel in the highest, easternmost corner of the vineyard on the edge of the Pauls Range Forest and shaded in the afternoon by a large hill to the south. The position helps preserve the high levels of natural acidity critical to maintaining balance from a vineyard known for its powerful flavour. The soils are shallow and rocky, with more white clay than lower down, resulting in low yields. The now 24-year-old Gingin clone vines produce thick-skinned, full-throated fruit with plenty of spicy nuance and phenolic structure.

The 2025 season opened with a warm, dry spring that ran on into summer, delivering an early, compressed vintage with fantastic phenolic ripeness and fruit that's vibrant and powerful while still holding true to the site's regional distinction.

The grapes were whole bunch pressed into French oak barriques of which 20% were new, 20% second fill and 20% third fill. The wine fermented with indigenous yeasts and was allowed full malolactic conversion before resting on lees, for a total of ten months

The result is no doubt one of Yarra Valley's finest Chardonnays. It deserves to be paired with great seafood like X.O. pipies with crispy E-Fu Noodles or steamed bugs with a garlic and shaoxing glaze. Charcoal-grilled Mulloway glazed with a light shiro miso and mirin reduction on charred samphire would also sit well here.

About this producer

Toolangi is an 11-hectare vineyard in Dixons Creek at the cooler northern end of Yarra Valley. Established in 1995 by Gary and Julie Hounsell, highly respected long term winemaker Kaspar Hermann took over this beautiful site in 2026, starting an exciting new chapter for the label that is set to be one of the brightest stars in the region.

All fruit is grown in-house, with focus on block specific wines from the sustainably managed site on fine clay loam soils and utilising organic and regenerative farming practices for the best quality outcome. The varieties planted are Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Chardonnay.