Description
// 2025 Royal Queensland Wine Awards - Gold Medal Winner
"Situated in the Upper Yarra Valley in the sub-region of Gladysdale, Bastard Hill is a 31-hectare property with 13-hectares (32 acres) of vines, planted exclusively to Chardonnay and Pinot Noir. The vineyard’s expressive name is derived from its steep slope and high altitude, ranging in elevation from 300-400m. Bastard Hill is a celebrated site planted in the late 1980s by viticultural legend Ray Guerin. Dedicated initially to the production of super-premium sparkling wine, the site was quickly recognized for its potential to produce top quality still wines, releasing the Bastard Hill Chardonnay and Pinot Noir wines in the 1990s. This is an elegant and perfumed Pinot Noir with exotic red fruit and Bergamot aromas. The 2023 vintage marks our first release of this vineyard in the Giant Steps portfolio." - Winemaker Notes
"This is pretty as a picture. Blue and red berries, slips of spice, smoked cedar tucked in; it’s Pinot Noir in naked form, the bones clear but so too the flesh. This result is exquisite. It glides slowly through the start and then gradually, like a river through the rapids, increases its speed to the rush of an exaggeratedly long finish. This Pinot Noir is minerally, almost gravelly. It has flesh and perfume. It delves into secret herbs and spices territory. It’s a wine in perfect form. The tautness, the perfume, the flesh; everything is elite." - 97 Points, Campbell Mattinson, The Wine Front