All the medallists from The Global Chardonnay Masters 2025

The Southern Hemisphere was on song in our Chardonnay taste-off, with South Africa, Australia and Chile hitting the high notes. Patrick Schmitt MW reports.

THERE ARE always conclusions to be drawn from a large blind tasting of a particular wine category. And our annual Global Chardonnay Masters is no different in this regard, offering a health check on the diverse world of still and sparkling wines made from this noble grape variety.

But if one were to name one major find from this year’s tasting, it would be the quality of Chardonnay from the Western Cape. Such a high proportion of our top-scoring wines were from South Africa, and at a range of price points, from the pleasingly affordable to the expensive, even if those at the high end still showed relative value to the top wines from Australia or the US – and certainly Burgundy too, although grand cru expressions from the Côte d’Or didn’t feature.

Why did Cape Chardonnays do well? Probably because they have nailed an appealing middle ground stylistically when it comes to the grape – somewhere between generous and refreshing, with ripe fruit, but appealingly soft citric acidity and, with regard to oak and lees, an influence that brings toastiness, without being too creamy or excessively sulphidic – evident in an overpowering note of freshly-struck matchstick.

In fact, what’s good about Chardonnay from South Africa is generally what’s good about well-made Chardonnay, wherever it comes from. The wines have some richness, but remain cleansing, and have barrel-derived flavours that add complexity, rather than overwhelming the fruit-sourced characters.

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And on the subject of fruit, it’s important to note that the Chardonnays without any oak influence this year were rather fine, with appealing characters, from white-fleshed peach to pink grapefruit. Indeed, they delivered enough intensity and interest that one didn’t find oneself thinking the lack of vanillin was a problem.

ZESTY AND CLEANSING

Another country making increasingly good Chardonnay is Chile, while Argentina is a nation to watch for the grape, and cool-climate Australia delivers so much appeal, zesty and cleansing in character, and thankfully no longer too skinny.

Meanwhile, Sonoma is still a benchmark for Chardonnay from beyond Burgundy. And, within this county, there is a new source of greatness: the wines from Platt Vineyard, bottled under the name of this great place.

Just when I thought Californian Chardonnays could not get any better, this newcomer emerged. As a result, it was Platt’s Reserve expression that went home with the title of our best wine of the competition, the Grand Master.

Sparkling Chardonnay

Unoaked Still Chardonnay

Oaked Still Chardonnay

Oaked Still Chardonnay (continued)

About the competition

With high-quality judges and a unique sampling process, The Global Chardonnay Masters provides a chance for your wines to shine. The 2025 competition was judged on 15 October at COMO The Halkin London, employing experienced judges. The top wines were awarded Gold, Silver or Bronze medals according to their result, and those expressions that stood out as being outstanding received the ultimate accolades – the titles of Chardonnay Master or Grand Master. This report features medal winners only. Please visit the Global Masters website for more information or, to enter future competitions, with a chance to appear in print and online, call: +44 (0) 20 7803 2420 or email Sophie Aston at: sophie@thedrinksbusiness.com