“One privilege of tasting and writing about wines selected for The Wine Companion is discovering a hitherto unknown winemaker, winery and/or wine that blows your mind. Now i mean no disrespect to wineries previously selected for ‘Best New Winery’, nor do i want to paint myself into a corner in the years to come, but people such as owner-winemaker Shaun Crinion of Dappled Wines come around once in a metaphorical blue moon.” - James Halliday, Australian Wine Companion

So, there we were, cooing over Shaun Crinion's Dappled 'Appellation' Chardonnay 2022 (also available click here) with his importer, telling him how it was one of the best Australian Chardonnays we had ever tasted, when he looked left and right to make sure the coast was clear and, in a conspiratorial whisper, told us that he also had 6 bottles of the Dappled 'Les Vergers' Single Vineyard Chardonnay, which he had served blind to a group of sommeliers alongside a Meursault from Domaine Roulot and everyone mistook it for the Roulot. Knowing already how great the 'Appellation' Chardonnay was, we didn't hesitate and snapped up those 6 bottles and we suggest you do the same, although we have to restrict it to 2 bottles per customer in order to spread the love. 13% alc. Whole bunch pressed. Wild vineyard yeasts. 12 months in new and used French oak on full lees with no battonage. Unfined, unfiltered. Drink now-2030.

Press review:

The Wine Companion (previous vintage): "The fireworks come with the finish and aftertaste of this wild-yeast fermented, grapefruit-accented wine. It has exceptional texture, structure and depth, very different to the normal polished style." 96 points