Short list for The Halliday Wine Companion Awards released

A South Australian who makes some of the best Victorian wine and the custodian of WA’s famed Vasse Felix are among the nominees for winemaker of the year for the prestigious James Halliday wine awards.

Halliday winemaker of the year nominee Melanie Chester walks through Giant Steps Winery in Victoria, where she is also managing director. Picture: Arsineh Houspian

Melanie Chester might just be one of the best makers of Victorian wine South Australia has ever produced.

But there’s nothing new in these kinds of state rivalries. For decades before the Australian Football League went national, Victoria was notorious for pinching South Australian footballers to claim as its own; now the southern state is doing the same with its winemakers.

Ms Chester, born and raised in the Adelaide Hills, is ensconced as winemaker for Yarra Valley’s celebrated Giant Steps winery and her work there since her first vintage in 2022 has earned a nomination for winemaker of the year in the Halliday Wine Companion Awards.

“Before Giant Steps I was at a very small family-owned vineyard in central Victoria, and even before that my first job out of university was working at Seppelt Great Western, which is probably one of the most historic wineries in the state, and that was a really lovely introduction to all the different wine regions in Victoria,” Ms Chester said.

“And I think, coming from South Australia originally, it’s where my family lives, and having that first winemaking job out of uni, having that introduction to the diversity of Victoria, it was really exciting and I just thought – ‘this is the state for me!’.

“The diversity of the state is what has anchored me here.”

That first work experience making pinot and chardonnay for Drumborg in southwestern Victoria proved the perfect pedigree for overseeing Giant Steps, which has made a name for itself among wine lovers for its superb single-vineyard pinot and chardonnay sourced across its five vineyards.

Yes, Ms Chester had the runs on the board making great Victorian wines, but that doesn’t mean she wasn’t nervous when she first took the call from Giant Steps in 2021.

“That first phone call was, ‘hey do you want to come over and talk to us about working at Giant Steps?’, and that was actually a daunting opportunity,” she said.

“I was a consumer of their wines, I was a fan of their wines, I bought their wines, and then to be making the wines, I just hope I can do the wines justice.”

She’s done more than justice, and has earned a Halliday Wine Companion Awards nomination in the short list released on Wednesday. While James Halliday helped review some of the wines as the nominee list was prepared, for the first time in the companion’s long and cherished history he will sit out the final reviews as he begins his retirement.

“This is his swan song basically, this guide will be a bit of dedication to him,” said Halliday awards judge Jane Faulkner.

“Whoever thought he would retire? I never thought I’d see the day. Every tasting … for the rest of my life I will be looking for him. We felt there was a presence missing and yet we certainly felt he was looking over us and I’ll miss those eyebrows terribly, they have a mind of their own. But he deserves to put his feet up for a while.”

James Halliday at Coldstream Hills in the Yarra Valley. Picture: Jay Town

Other nominees for winemaker of the year include Colin McBride from Adelina Wines, Clare Valley; Jacinta Jenkins at Balnaves in the Coonawarra; Liz Silkman of Silkman Wines, Hunter Valley, and; Virginia Willcock, from Vasse Felix, Margaret River.

“I think the Halliday Awards now has to be considered the highest-regarded winemaker-of-the-year award in Australia, and I actually find it really humbling,” Ms Willcock said.

“You just try to make the greatest wine you possibly can, just try to make beautiful wines that people love and enjoy, and you don’t ever really expect to be recognised as one of the best in the country.”

Virginia Willcock of Vasse Felix.

In other award categories there’s the usual tussle between South Australia, Victoria, Tasmania and NSW over which state has the best wines. Fighting it out for winery of the year are Alkina Wines, from the Barossa Valley, Giant Steps, House of Arras from Tasmania and Brokenwood from the Hunter Valley.

Nominees for best value winery include De Bortoli and Stella Bella Wines, while for best new winery the short list includes Dilworth & Allain in the Macedon Ranges, Hatch in the Barossa Valley and Utzinger from Tasmania.

The judges had the demanding – and no doubt enjoyable – task of swirling and sipping more than 7500 wines across more than 1100 wineries, and winners will be announced at a ceremony on August 7. The winners of 16 varietal categories will also be announced, including the highly coveted wine of the year, sparkling of the year, shiraz of the year, riesling of the year, and white and red wines of the year.