Bannockburn Vineyards is a benchmark Geelong estate with a long Chardonnay pedigree, farming organically managed sites near Bannockburn in Victoria. The estate Chardonnay is anchored by the Olive Tree Hill Vineyard, planted in 1976 alongside the S.R.H. parcel, and the Winery Block planted in 1981, both on volcanic soils over limestone clays with an average vine age of around 35 years. The 2025 blend also draws on younger plantings, including Stuart Block (1997), the close-planted Grigsby (2007) and Kelly Lane (2016), across a clonal mix of P58 and Bernard 76, 95 and 96. Cool-climate Geelong conditions and low-vigour soils give tight, structured, mineral fruit.

Fruit was pressed as whole bunches and fermented naturally, with wild yeast, in a mix of French hogsheads and puncheons of which about 25% were new. The wine underwent full malolactic fermentation and spent around ten months maturing on lees without stirring, building doughy, nutty richness while preserving cutting acidity. The result is a fleshy yet vivid Chardonnay with stone fruit, citrus, chalk and flint, saturating mid-palate presence and a precise, lengthy, mineral finish. Alcohol is around 13.5%. The hands-off, natural-ferment approach and restrained new oak are consistent with Bannockburn's textural, terroir-driven house style.