Our Top 8 Australian Chardonnay Finds by Price…
Chardonnay is one of the most diverse and celebrated wine varieties, known for its wide range of styles, from crisp and lean to rich and full-bodied. But with so many choices, it can be overwhelming for consumers to know which Chardonnay is right for them. Price points often reflect key differences and is an indicator of quality, but it certainly doesn’t tell the full story.
The challenge for newcomers & wine lovers alike is that many of the diamonds in the rough as well as the top tier wines are limited in supply, making the best Chardonnays in their price bracket hard to find. Hopefully, our list highlights the standout Chardonnays at every price point—so you can confidently choose the one that suits your taste and budget.
Price points often reflect key differences in Chardonnay, but they don’t always tell the full story. In the more affordable range, typically under $30, you’ll often find bright, fresh expressions that are perfect for everyday enjoyment. These wines tend to emphasize vibrant acidity, with notes of citrus, green apple, and stone fruits, often with minimal oak influence.
Between $30 and $80, Chardonnays begin to reveal more complexity and nuance. You’ll encounter more refined oak integration, fuller body, and layered flavours that range from tropical fruit and creamy textures to hints of spice and minerality. These wines often showcase the winemaker’s skill and the terroir’s influence.
At the higher end, above $80, you’re stepping into the realm of truly premium Chardonnays. Here, meticulous winemaking comes into play, with hand-picked grapes, small-batch production, and extended aging. These wines offer incredible depth, length, and structure, with a seamless integration of oak, luxurious textures, and complex layers of flavour that evolve in the glass. They’re often sourced from iconic vineyards with limited production, making them rare finds.
That said, price alone doesn’t dictate quality—there are exceptional finds at every price point. The key is knowing what style you prefer and how the fruit & winemaking align with your tastes.
Our Top 8!
1. 2023 Crittenden Estate 'Kangerong' Chardonnay (16 bottles available) - Special $39.00
2. 2023 Picardy Chardonnay (New Release) - Special $50.00
3. 2023 Nocturne ‘Sub Regional’ Chardonnay (Pre-Order Arriving Nov 4th) - Special $35.00
4. 2021 Lowestoft Estate Chardonnay (24 bottles available) Special - $63.00
5. 2023 Moss Wood Chardonnay – Special $89.00
6. 2017 Xanadu ‘Steven’s Road’ Chardonnay (17 bottles available) – Special $95.00
7. 2022 Cullen ‘Kevin John’ Chardonnay (12 bottles) – Special $175.00
8. 2021 Penfolds Yattarna Chardonnay Magnum – Special $399.00
92 points - Ray Jordan
I just know this will be a wine of tremendous appeal. The aromas open up immediately with creamy melon and citrus aromas touched with a little lightly roasted cashew and meal. The light bodied palate displays the bright fruit of the vintage with just a light touch of oak. Has a nice lemon zip on the finish. It’s a wine for current drinking.
Julian Langworthy, Winemaker Notes
2023, a vintage of Epicness. It was goldilocks personified and you all know what goldilocks liked, she liked things just right. It was cool yet sunny, had great spring rain but lovely long largely dry growing season. As such I it would be amiss if the wine didn’t mirror this amazing season but fortunately it does….
93 points - Ned Godwin, Halliday Wine Companion
Fermented wild before spending 11 months in oak (20% new), this sits somewhere between a flinty Chablis-inspired expression and a more relaxed wine from the Maconnais. Comparisons such as these are effete, but useful. After all, Burgundy is the benchmark when it comes to this great variety. Think white peach, oatmeal and vanilla, given fine support by a thread of juicy acidity. Delicious.
91 points - Huon Hooke, The Real Review
Medium yellow colour with obvious dissolved CO2. The aroma is youthful, fresh and reserved, with some peachy, stone fruit and fresh herb notes, the palate soft and round and a tad straightforward. Balanced, refreshing acidity. An attractive wine, with a future.
Gold - Royal Hobart Wine Show 2023
Gold - Royal Hobart Wine Show 2022
95 Points Dave Brookes, Halliday Wine Companion (August 2023)
Tamar Valley/Coal River Valley/Tasman Peninsula-sourced Chardonnay; matured in large format French oak for 10 months. An immediate wash of mealy lemon, grapefruit, white peach and nectarine fruit notes along with hints of fine spice, white flowers, flint, crushed river stone, nougat, oyster shell and sexy French oak. There is a swirl of struck-match complexity in the mix, and the wine presents an expansive palate with plenty of clarity, tension and complexity. A long, dreamy finish, too.
95 Points Erin Larkin, Robert Parker Wine Advocate (March 2023)
Tasted beside the 2020, this 2021 Estate Chardonnay is finer and tighter; the acidity has a rapier-like cut and thrust and engages in a parry with the fruit on the mid-palate. It has notes of preserved citrus, yellow peach, curry leaf and juniper—a hint of sage, even? There are elements in here that teeter on the brink of green, but it provides balance, depth and edge to what is otherwise a very concentrated (almost yellow-fruited) wine.
Celebrated by critics with outstanding scores, this wine is harvested in Kevin John’s 100th birth year. Vanya Cullen and the team at Cullen Vineyards have gone from strength to strength and each vintage leaves us looking ahead to what they will bring us next!
Made from 100% dry farmed biodynamically certified vines planted in 1976-1988.
97+ Points, Erin Larkin – Robert Parkers Wine Advocate
The Chardonnays I have tasted so far from the 2022 vintage in Margaret River remind me of the 2014s, in their soft acidity and primal, almost unbound fruit power. Here, the 2022 Kevin John Chardonnay leads with crushed nuts, salted yellow peach, red apple skins, preserved citrus rind, yuzu, green tea and saltbush, before tumbling into the flavours in the mouth. Toffee apple, nuts, curry leaf and saffron. Concentrated, piercing and intense. The acid envelops the tongue and holds it hostage, while the fruit explodes with power. The Gingin clone is on show here. The wine trails to a soft, juicy finish. It is lingering, very good, excellent, even better after a gentle decant and served in a big Burgundy glass. 13.5% alcohol, sealed under screw cap. Drink 2023 - 2037.
96 Points, Ned Godwin MW – James Suckling.com
Glorious aromas of buckwheat, like cold soba noodles, melding with quince, roasted nuts, tangerine and apricot pith. Always an incredibly intense mid-weighted expression, this iteration is gentler and more refined in a sense, due to immaculate poise and drinkability quotient. I often find this wine a bit too much. Not this vintage. Maritime freshness and a waft of unresolved CO2 carry length. Compact and filigreed. Almost breezy, intuitive of feel and effortless, in the very best sense of the word. Drink or hold. Screw cap.