Region: Yarra Valley
Sub Region: Gladysdale – Upper Yarra Valley
Variety: Chardonnay
Country: Australia
Vintage: 2025
The Wine
Bastard Hill is rapidly establishing itself as one of Australia’s great Chardonnay sites. Planted by Ray Guerin in the late 1980s on the steep slopes of Gladysdale, the vineyard rises towards 400 metres, making it one of the highest and coolest vineyards in the Giant Steps portfolio. Its deep red, ferrous volcanic soils and significant elevation give the wines an intensity that is matched by naturally high acidity.
The Chardonnay is drawn predominantly from the south-facing Block 7, which ripens dramatically later than the lower Yarra sites. In 2025 it was picked on 7 March—around a month after Tarraford and Sexton. This extended hang time without excessive sugar accumulation is fundamental to Bastard Hill’s character: flavour builds slowly while acidity and mineral tension remain intact.
The fruit was entirely hand-picked and whole-bunch pressed, then transferred by gravity to 500-litre French oak puncheons without settling. There was no malolactic fermentation, and the wine spent nine months in oak, only around 17% of it new. The winemaking is deliberately restrained given the natural power of the vineyard.
Bastard Hill has a character all its own: crushed rock, nashi pear, grapefruit and orange blossom alongside wild honey, chamomile and a long saline line. The concentration is significant, but everything feels tightly packed rather than heavy.
Cellared Says
This is my must-have Chardonnay from the 2025 release. Bastard Hill has been getting better with every vintage and this feels like the point where the site has moved into genuinely elite territory. There’s more intensity than Applejack, but also extraordinary freshness and length. If allocation allows, this is the one I’d put away in quantity.
Reviews
“This is the third and best wine Giant Steps has made from this cool site.”
98 Points – Philip Rich, Halliday Wine Companion
“The most complete wine yet released under the Giant Steps Bastard Hill name; which is saying something.”
97 Points – Campbell Mattinson, The Wine Front
Region: Yarra Valley
Sub Region: Gladysdale – Upper Yarra Valley
Variety: Chardonnay
Country: Australia
Vintage: 2025
The Wine
Bastard Hill is rapidly establishing itself as one of Australia’s great Chardonnay sites. Planted by Ray Guerin in the late 1980s on the steep slopes of Gladysdale, the vineyard rises towards 400 metres, making it one of the highest and coolest vineyards in the Giant Steps portfolio. Its deep red, ferrous volcanic soils and significant elevation give the wines an intensity that is matched by naturally high acidity.
The Chardonnay is drawn predominantly from the south-facing Block 7, which ripens dramatically later than the lower Yarra sites. In 2025 it was picked on 7 March—around a month after Tarraford and Sexton. This extended hang time without excessive sugar accumulation is fundamental to Bastard Hill’s character: flavour builds slowly while acidity and mineral tension remain intact.
The fruit was entirely hand-picked and whole-bunch pressed, then transferred by gravity to 500-litre French oak puncheons without settling. There was no malolactic fermentation, and the wine spent nine months in oak, only around 17% of it new. The winemaking is deliberately restrained given the natural power of the vineyard.
Bastard Hill has a character all its own: crushed rock, nashi pear, grapefruit and orange blossom alongside wild honey, chamomile and a long saline line. The concentration is significant, but everything feels tightly packed rather than heavy.
Cellared Says
This is my must-have Chardonnay from the 2025 release. Bastard Hill has been getting better with every vintage and this feels like the point where the site has moved into genuinely elite territory. There’s more intensity than Applejack, but also extraordinary freshness and length. If allocation allows, this is the one I’d put away in quantity.
Reviews
“This is the third and best wine Giant Steps has made from this cool site.”
98 Points – Philip Rich, Halliday Wine Companion
“The most complete wine yet released under the Giant Steps Bastard Hill name; which is saying something.”
97 Points – Campbell Mattinson, The Wine Front
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