Over the past year, our Tasting Team has worked tirelessly, assessing and reviewing a slew of wines from across the country – 8000 wines from 945 Australian wineries.
Aside from sipping and spitting hundreds of wines each, with a looming wall of wine as their backdrop, the Tasting Team is frequently on the road, discovering the latest notable producers from our expansive and evolving wine regions.
Connecting both the site and the wine is key to understanding the impact of provenance, viticultural investment, climatic influence and sacrifices (or improvements) made in the vineyard and winery. And only after all these variables are understood can we then separate the cream from the crop. Below are seven wineries that have consistently produced outstanding wines of quality. They are producers who elevate and exemplify the reputation of Australian wine.
Only one winery can be awarded the prestigious Halliday Winery of the Year for the 2026 Companion. Celebrate the finalists below with us and learn more about what makes them strong contenders for the award.
Brokenwood
Where: Hunter Valley, New South Wales
