Last week on Aug 28 and 29, 622 entries from 37 Australian wine regions were judged at the ‘2024 James Halliday Australian Chardonnay and Cabernet Challenge’.
Briar Ridge Block 7 Chardonnay 2023 from the Orange Wine Region was crowned the highest-pointed Chardonnay, and the Forest Hill Vineyard Block 5 Cabernet Sauvignon 2023 from the Great Southern in Western Australia was crowned the highest-pointed Cabernet Sauvignon.
The awards celebrate Australia’s outstanding regional diversity of the world’s most famous two grape varieties, Chardonnay and Cabernet Sauvignon and is judged in alternate years between two of Australia’s most iconic wine regions, the Yarra Valley and Margaret River. This year, the judging took place at the picturesque McHenry Hohnen winery in the Margaret River Region and the 2024 Trophies were presented by RIEDEL.
The judges revered the Forest Hill Vineyard Block 5 Cabernet from the Great Southern for the second year in a row. Chair of Judges, Adam Wadewitz, said it was “a real stand out for the whole team in the final taste off” and “looked classic, and achieved a line of youthful, understated density combined with savoury structure.”
In the final Chardonnay taste off, Wadewitz shared that it “was extremely close which highlighted the strength of the last few cool vintages.” He continued to say the Briar Ridge Block 7 Chardonnay from the Orange Wine Region in New South Wales had “distinct character and managed the trifecta of flavour, acidity and complexity all packed into an energetic, charming framework.”
A ‘Best of Region’ Trophy is awarded to wines with scores of 95 points. This year, there were 20 winners.
2024 James Halliday Australian Chardonnay Challenge Regional Winners
| Adelaide Hills | Orlando Lyndale Chardonnay 2022 | 96 points |
| Beechworth | Brokenwood Wines Indigo Vineyard Chardonnay 2022 | 96 points |
| Eden Valley | St Hugo Eden Valley Chardonnay 2023 | 95 points |
| Hunter Valley | Silkman Wines Reserve Chardonnay 2023 | 96 points |
| Langhorne Creek | Saddler’s Creek Wines Winemaker’s Craft Pump Shed Chardonnay 2023 | 95 points |
| Margaret River | Stones + Thunder Calm Before The Storm Chardonnay 2023 | 96 points |
| Mornington Peninsula | Handpicked Wines Collection Mornington Peninsula Chardonnay 2022 | 95 points |
| Orange | Briar Ridge Block 7 Chardonnay 2023 | 97 points |
| Pemberton | Below&Above Chardonnay 2020 | 95 points |
| Sunbury | Marnong Estate Chardonnay 2022 | 95 points |
| Tasmania | Handpicked Wines Collection Tasmania Chardonnay 2022 | 96 points |
| Tumbarumba | Hungerford Hill Chardonnay 2023 | 95 points |
| Yarra Valley | Handpicked Wines Collection Yarra Valley Chardonnay 2022 | 96 points |
2024 James Halliday Australian Cabernet Challenge Regional Winners
| Barossa Valley | Peter Lehmann Wines The Barossan Cabernet Sauvignon 2022 | 96 points |
| Clare Valley | Knappstein Wines Cabernet Sauvignon 2022 | 96 points |
| Coonawarra | Nightfall Wines Draco Cabernet Sauvignon 2021 | 95 points |
| Great Southern | Forest Hill Vineyard Block 5 Cabernet Sauvignon 2023 | 97 points |
| Margaret River | Xanadu Cabernet Sauvignon 2022 | 96 points |
| McLaren Vale | Chapel Hill The MV McLaren Vale Cabernet Sauvignon 2022 | 95 points |
| Yarra Valley | Giant Steps Sexton Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon 2022 | 96 points |
