James Halliday's top 20 white wines over $30

Below you'll find James Halliday's top 20 white wines over $30. The 20 wines span riesling, semillon and blends, and chardonnay.

2023 Clonakilla Canberra District Riesling

Canberra had its third-coldest vintage in 50 years, with floods, hail and frost until January – when warm, dry weather took hold until the end of the late vintage, riesling excelling with incredible flavours, crisp acidity and perfect balance.
97 points | $35 | 11.5% alc. | Drink to 2043 | Halliday profile | Clonakilla

2023 Freycinet Riesling

The east coast of Tasmania provided riesling of great distinction this vintage. From Freycinet comes this wine – its power, focus and intensity all of the highest quality. The lime/lemon fruit duo stares down the glittering acidity, the lingering aftertaste bright and fresh.
97 points | $36 | 12.5% alc. | Drink to 2043 | Halliday profile | Freycinet Vineyard

2023 Meadowbank Riesling

Beautiful Meadowbank, on Tasmania’s upper Derwent River, is primarily a grape grower with 52ha of vines – enough for only 800 dozen directed to wines contract-made by Peter Dredge. It’s such a ravishing wine, as rich and deep as it is pure and fine. Redefines citrus.
98 points | $39 | 11.5% alc. | Drink to 2043 | Halliday profile | Meadowbank Wines

2023 Mount Horrocks Watervale Riesling

Owner/winemaker Stephanie Toole adopted biodynamic viticulture in 2013. The wine’s highly expressive bouquet has echoes of lavender and citrus blossom; the palate is direct and intense, with layer upon layer of lime and green apple.
96 points | $40 | 12.7% alc. | Drink to 2035 | Halliday profile | Mount Horrocks

2023 Grosset Polish Hill Clare Valley Riesling

The cool, late vintage and reduced yield come together in a glorious riesling that is so delicious now, it will be hard to give it the 10 or so years that will see it develop even more ravishing flavours and a lingering caress of silvery acidity.
98 points | $80 | 12.9% alc. | Drink to 2043 | Halliday profile | Grosset 

2023 Margan White Label Fordwich Hill Semillon

This single 1ha vineyard was planted in 1974 on deep, red volcanic soil. Hand-picked, no-frills winemaking, yet the wine has awesome flavour; it spent three months on lees in stainless steel and has exceptional depth and length.
96 points | $40 | 12.5% alc. | Drink to 2043 | Halliday profile | Margan Wines

2017 Thomas Braemore Cellar Reserve Hunter Valley Semillon

The Braemore Vineyard was planted in 1969 on sandy alluvial flats, the Cellar Reserve Semillon not released until six years old. A seriously delicious semillon, lime leaf to the fore, then polished acidity, balance, line, length and purity.
97 points | $70 | 10.9% alc. | Drink to 2027 | Halliday profile | Thomas Wines

2017 Brokenwood ILR Reserve Hunter Valley Semillon

The bouquet half suggests the use of oak – not the case – but caught the English tasters of yore who were convinced this depth of flavour had to be oak-derived. It’s a hypnotic wine, with Meyer lemon driving the citrus circus and wheels of acidity.
98 points | $100 | 11% alc. | Drink to 2042 | Halliday profile | Brokenwood

2017 Tyrrell’s Vat 1 Winemaker’s Selection Hunter Valley Semillon

2017 was a rare Hunter vintage, rain absent, and both shiraz and semillon flourished. The pale straw-green colour of this wine is startling, showing no development. The palate is superb, lime and lemon fused with mouth-watering, diamond-drill acidity.
98 points | $115 | 11.5% alc. | Drink to 2048 | Halliday profile | Tyrrell's Wines

2023 Cullen Mangan Vineyard Margaret River Sauvignon Blanc Semillon

A 58/37/5% blend of sauvignon blanc, semillon and verdelho; hand picked on biodynamic fruit and flower days; wild fermented, and no acid additions. It’s as fresh as a daisy, with bright, clear zesty citrus fruits and excellent balance.
95 points | $35 | 13% alc. | Drink to 2030 | Halliday profile | Cullen Wines

2022 Scotchmans Hill Bellarine Peninsula Chardonnay

There were crop losses during flowering before ideal vintage conditions through to harvest. Wild fermented, and matured for 12 months in French barriques. The bouquet heralds an equally complex palate charging through to the long finish, cashew and grapefruit in the vanguard.
95 points | $45 | 13% alc. | Drink to 2032 | Halliday profile | Scotchmans Hill

2022 Curly Flat Macedon Ranges Chardonnay

A great example of Macedon Ranges chardonnay, purity its watchword. Its bouquet is a distillation of very cool grown chardonnay, opening with quiet confidence, then steadily building intensity through to trumpets of grapefruits, yellow and pink, on the finish.
96 points | $50 | 12.7% alc. | Drink to 2032 | Halliday profile | Curly Flat

2022 Ministry of Clouds Adelaide Hills Chardonnay

Part came from Birdwood, but it’s the Piccadilly portion that provides the quality of this beautifully cadenced chardonnay, mlf for 30% of the wine after fermentation in new and used French oak, plus nine months' maturation. Expensive to make, quality the dividend.
96 points | $50 | 12.5% alc. | Drink to 2032 | Halliday profile | Ministry of Clouds

2022 Tapanappa Tiers Vineyard 1.5m Piccadilly Valley Chardonnay

From a small area planted in 1979, then replanted with Dijon clones on a very close 1.5m spacing, the fruiting wire only 50cm above ground level. The yellow grapefruit is almost painfully intense and mouth-watering, the finish hypnotic.
97 points | $59 | 13.5% alc. | Drink to 2042 | Halliday profile | Tapanappa

2020 Dawson James Chardonnay

The bouquet surges from the glass, pink and yellow grapefruit to the fore, plus a desirable flick of funky complexity on the way through. It’s now entering its second life, with the finale years away. The savoury acidity is its staff of life.
97 points | $68 | 12.2% alc. | Drink to 2040 | Halliday profile | Dawson James

2022 Driftwood Estate Single Site Margaret River Chardonnay

Hand picked, whole-bunch pressed, wild fermented, matured in French barriques. The 10 best barrels were selected after nine months' maturation. This is an exceptionally fine chardonnay, grapefruit and white peach the drivers of the palate.
97 points | $80 | 13% alc. | Drink to 2042 | Halliday profile | Driftwood Wines

2022 Murdoch Hill Rocket Adelaide Hills Chardonnay

The back label states: 'Made on Earth by humans'. It is a truly heavenly chardonnay, with impeccable balance and mouthfeel, attributes it will retain as it matures in bottle. The fruit has the whip hand, not the oak.
97 points | $91 | 13.5% alc. | Drink to 2032 | Halliday profile | Murdoch Hill

2021 Shaw + Smith Lenswood Vineyard Adelaide Hills Chardonnay

The two best (of four) Dijon clones (95 and 76), the glorious 2021 vintage, the experience of Martin Shaw, and the ever-cool Lenswood site have delivered a beautifully made wine of sheer beauty. It has a long life ahead at the top of the class.
97 points | $95 | 13% alc. | Drink to 2041 | Halliday profile | Shaw + Smith

2022 Tolpuddle Vineyard Chardonnay

You know the calibre of the winemaking team behind Tolpuddle, but the complexity of the wine defies dissection, all the components on a unity ticket of one of Tasmania’s greatest vineyards and the lightest of touches on the long, lingering palate.
97 points | $102 | 13.5% alc. | Drink to 2032 | Halliday profile | Tolpuddle Vineyard

2020 Leeuwin Estate Art Series Margaret River Chardonnay

The perfect balance of this wine is central to its place at the top of the Margaret River chardonnay tree. The vintage saw little disease pressure, and the purity of the wine is absolute, white peach to the fore, sustained by perfect acidity.
99 points | $152 | 13.5% alc. | Drink to 2040 | Halliday profile | Leeuwin Estate

See the complete list of Top 100 wines.

James Halliday’s Top 100 features in The Weekend Australian Magazine.

Some wines in this year's selection also feature on this site with notes by other Tasting Team members – as reviewed for Halliday Wine Companion.