The aspiration of Oakridge LVS -- or Local Vineyard Series -- wines is to be outstanding expressions of single vineyards within the Yarra Valley. Local Vineyard Series wines enable wine lovers to compare and contrast the power of terroir and geography in winemaking. In essence, different grape varieties thrive in different soils, and Yarra Valley terroirs and altitudes vary widely. Oakridges expertise and understanding of the region allows viticulturists and winemakers to match a particular variety with a particular site -- with marvellous results. Almost all LVS wines are cellarworthy. The Willowlake Vineyard is just outside Gladysdale in Victorias Upper Yarra Valley. Planted in 1979 at an elevation 300 metres, the cool-grown Chardonnay here ranks with the regions very best. Add the skills of leading Chardonnay exponent David Bicknell and these hand-picked grapes become wines that express their variety and origin with consummate precision and flair.

This white blend's aroma includes some beeswax complexity and preserved lemon peel lift. Red apple skin and creamy white peach. The palate has crunchy red apple freshness and delicious passionfruit tropical fruits. The small amount of skin contact gives a textural wine and encouraged structure through tannins. The length is dominated by the Semillon and driven by a bright acid tang that would stand up to a variety of food pairings.

Sticks Yarra Valley Chardonnay is a quality cool climate Yarra Valley white with flavours of grapefruit, white peach, citrus and oak spice. Excellent texture, definitely a wine to enjoy today.

Coldstream Hills has been consistently producing excellent Yarra Valley Chardonnay for years and if anything it keeps getting better. Stone fruit and grapefruit characters are supported by creamy nutty oak.

WinemakingAll fruit was hand-picked and whole-bunch pressed. The cuvee taille (first cut free-run juice) was settled naturally overnight prior to racking to a mix of stainless steel tank and large format old barrels for fermentation.Fermented and aged separately in small batch lots on settled lees for nine months. The blended wine then underwent secondary fermentation in the bottle. This wine has been aged for an extended period on its autolysing yeast lees for more than four years to garner richness and complexity to its innate elegance and finesse.Winemaker's notesThe protracted growing season allowed a drawn-out ripening, resulting in an uncommon richness of flavour tempered by the abundant natural acidity contributed by the season.A bouquet of nashi pear, glazed brioche, lemon cheesecake and Amaretti buscuit. Flavours of nougat, lemon rind, jasmine and chestnut underpin a palate of steely acidity with delicated bubble, fruit weight and earthy 'sur lie' characters providing textural accompaniement, richness and creaminess to the finish. An excellent match for freshly-shucked oysters or semi-hard cow's milk cheeses.

This Chardonnay has opposing elements of minerality and creaminess make this an outstanding, complex wine. The aromas and flavours of lemon pith, chamomile, just ripe nectarine and apricot are underlain by fine grained, smoky oak.The grapes were whole bunch pressed and the free run and pressings separated for fermentation. After chilling, 50% of the unsettled juice was placed in 500 litre puncheons and 228 litre barriques for fermentation. At the end of fermentation, the wine was left on yeast lees for 8 months. The lees were stirred weekly. The remaining juice was fermented in tank to retain the fresh aromas and flavours of the variety. This wine also remained on yeast lees for an extended period of time. The restraint on this wine suggests it will continue to age and improve in bottle. While waiting for the magic to happen, enjoy the wine now with a classic freshly shucked oysters with a dot of green apple granita.

Fruit for this wine was hand-selected from our single-site Yarra Valley vineyard. Notes of white peach, guava and rockmelon with the palate showing soft hints of lime and nashi pear.

This is a classic Yarra Valley Chardonnay from the Wedgetail estate, elegant, generously and voluptuous in style. It offers aromas of citrus, cashews, pear and a hit of vanilla. The mouth fill is full and satisfying with a crisp finish. Drinking beautifully now, and if well cellared will age gracefully for the next 5 to 8 years.