The Lovedale district of Hunter Valley is synonymous with world class Semillon. Resolved to make a transition from mining to wining, the De Iuliis family acquired a grazing property along Lovedale Road and established vines in the early 1990s. The remarkable quality of fruit made their harvests an essential inclusion for some of Hunter Valley's most conspicuous brands and memorable vintages. De Iuliis reserve the pick of crop for their own label, claiming dozens of trophies and a place on the Gourmet Traveller winemaker of year list.

The De Iuliis property along Broke Road at Pokolbin is a picture of pastoral idyll, spotted gums and mallee eucalypts surround the tranquil vines, breathtaking vistas of Brokenback range contribute to a mesoclime which encourages harvests of exquisite Chardonnay, defined by rich esters and refined acidity. Small yields and hand picked grapes, extravagant French oak treatments and a priority on preserving the textural integrity of a splendid wine, an astonishingly engaging experience for savvy white wine appellants and the most adroit Chardonnay enthusiasts.

One wild and windy night as a group of explorers were crossing Wollombi brook, misfortune struck Cockfighter, the lead horse. He became bogged in river quicksand and drowned despite all efforts. A fateful night that gave birth to the legend of Cockfighter's Ghost. Hunter Valley Verdelho has made a name for itself as Australia's most distinctive style of unwooded dry white. Cockfighter's Ghost source fuit from vines which thrive in the sandy loam soils of Hunter Valley, to deliver a generous Verdelho wine with vibrant aromatics and vivid fruit flavours.

It has been a remarkable journey for Clonakilla. When John Kirk first planted vines in 1971 he had no idea that his vineyard would be celebrated as one of the finest in Australia. Along the way there have been trials and tribulations as well as moments of unprecendented success. Over time it has become clear that a combination of the temperate Murrumbateman region and the sultry Viognier are one of those rare synergies which produce extraordinary wines.

Bedecked with gold medals, significant trophies and countless five star commendations. Clonakilla is a wine that's ultimately determined in the vineyard, where hard work is required to open up the vine leaf canopies, limiting yields and encouraging vines to make grapes with riper flavour profiles. The vinification process embraces old world techiques such as the inclusion of whole bunches in the ferments, macerations and extravagant French oak barrel maturation.

A well balanced Chardonnay wine with ample palate texture, crisp grapefruit acidity and soft varietal stonefruit characters by one of the most distinguished winemakers in Hunter Valley. The vines were planted to soils and aspects where the excellent growing seasons and favourable ripening conditions yield grapes exhibiting splendid concentration. Nature has played a big part in contributing to the flavour profile of this generously proportioned Chardonnay, decidedly fruit driven with richly textured palate and lovely, lingering clean finish.

Charles Sturt University Winery is an integral part of Australia's leading wine and food science syllabus, at the forefront of international best practice viticulture and vinification techniques. The winery focuses on excellence, using state of the art technology without sacrificing tradition. An immensely satisfying Chardonnay from grapes grown to the University vineyard, punching far above it's weight and representing peerless value as it's exempt from statutory wine tax.

Brokenwood have been calling on harvests from the Latara property since 1983, for the construct of a single vineyard Semillon in the tradition of Australia's most enduring white wine style. The auspicious clay loam soils at Latara yield a quality of fruit which demands early bottling, completely unwooded and unoaked, to capture the understated opulence of Hunter Valley Semillon as it evolves into a stately white wine of remarkable richness and depth. The Semillon of choice to accompany or flounder aux amandes or farced and truffled quail.

What makes a great vintage for Hunter Valley Semillon? Most would say one without flooding rain, ravaging fires or devastating drought. While this is certainly important, balance in the wine reigns supreme. Mid January always brings with it a slight nervousness, having been battered vintage after vintage with drought and pouring rain, is it any wonder that black cats are avoided and ladders given a wide berth? The magic of Hunter Semillon on display, texture and weight from a wine that sees no oak, only ever released in the finest years, ILR Reserve is a beauty.

Enter Brokenwood's response to the modern day enthusiasm for finely structured Chardonnay with more balance, lower phenolics and timely oak. Established 1988 on the of brisk altitudes of the Orange uplands, Forest Edge Vineyard gives its fruit to a regimen of whole bunches and wild ferments in a mix of new and seasoned French oak, powered by the splendid complexity achieved through indigenous yeasts and lees sediment battonage, its creamy mealyness makes Brokenwood the ideal accompaniement to west coast marron, truffled spatchcock or bugs mornay.

Brokenwood are renowned for Semillon, they retain vineyards from which to collate the finest parcels, a component is selected to be vinified alongside choice harvests of Sauvignon Blanc. Cricket pitch is a reference to the first block of vines Brokenwood ever planted, a community block which was acquired after a hotly contested auction against neighbouring Hungerford Hill. An assemblage of fruit, hand picked off sites in Cowra, Orange uplands and Hunter Valley, are fashioned into a revitalizing wine of seamless integration and engaging complexity.

The Bidgeebong Triangle encompasses three distinct districts, Tumbarumba at the foothills of the Snowy Mountains, Hilltops and the Murrumbidgee plain around Gundagai. A vibrantly fruit driven, easy drinking cool climate Chardonnay, the finish is long and lingering.

McWilliams Barwang pays tribute to the unique characteristics of cooler climate regions by delivering expressive, distinctive wines that reflect their origins. Tumbarumba produces highly flavoursome Sauvignon Blanc grapes that translate into luscious wines with good structure and finesse.

McWilliam's has long been a major player and staunch supporter of the emerging Hilltops as a premiere viticultural precinct, retaining some of the region's most salubrious vineyards. Career farmer and veteran RAAF fighter pilot Peter Robinson planted his Barwang property to cuttings procured from McWilliams in 1969. The prodigal vines returned to McWillians stewardship and today contribute the backbone of fruit for Barwang Pinot Gris.

Meaning place of water, Barwang owes the character of it's wines to the most exacting standards of viticulture. An affinity for the land and a holistic approach to sustainable vineyard management is essential to the final goal of delivering bold, flavoursome wines. Characterised by a multitude of steep slopes, rich basalt soils and high altitude, the growing conditions at Tumbarumba contribute greatly to providing a long ripening period which consistently produces Chardonnay with exceptional flavour and heightened concentration of essential varietal fruit.

Chardonnay grapes picked off vines, planted to splendid decomposed granite soils atop the soaring heights of slow ripening Tumbarumba, are minimally handled with a view to maximizing fruit character and regional expression. Under & Over is a fresh and vibrant Chardonnay wine, fashioned to be enjoyed as aperitif or alongside good food, immensely approachable in its youth.

Parcels of the finest Chardonnay, hand picked off splendid sites on the lofty terroirs of Tumbarumba, have been assigned the ultimate in extravagant Burgundian vinification techniques. Wild yeast barrel ferments in quality new oak, sedimentery lees stirring battonage and an extended term of maturation, have achieved a rich Chardonnay wine to rival her old world siblings. A captivating biscuit and savoury nose precedes a textural palate, layered with toasty oak and driven by the powerful, high country Tumbarumba Chardonnay fruit.