Giant Steps
Giant Steps is one of the Yarra Valley's benchmark chardonnay producers, working a range of single-vineyard sites across the appellation to make wines of precision and site distinction rather than a house style imposed from above.
History
Giant Steps was founded in the Yarra Valley in the mid-1990s by Phil Sexton, a figure already known in Australian hospitality and brewing circles. Sexton sold the business in the 2010s, and the winery passed through a transition that brought fresh investment and expanded the label's ambitions without fundamentally altering its direction. The estate is now independently owned and continues to operate out of Healesville, which serves as both the production facility and a restaurant destination. The name itself is borrowed from the John Coltrane album, a signal from the start that the project had cultural reference points beyond wine.
The producer built its reputation primarily on chardonnay at a time when cool-climate Australian chardonnay was still finding its footing with critics and consumers accustomed to the riper, more opulent styles from warmer regions. Giant Steps leaned early into restraint and vineyard specificity, a positioning that has only grown more relevant as the category has matured.
Vineyards
The Yarra Valley is a wide and climatically varied appellation, and Giant Steps draws fruit from multiple distinct sites that reflect this. Bastard Hill and Sexton Vineyard represent some of the steeper, cooler elevations in the upper valley, where slower ripening tends to produce tighter, more mineral-edged fruit. Applejack and Tarraford are among the named single-vineyard releases that have accumulated track records across multiple vintages. The Circle of Fifths bottling sits at the top of the hierarchy and appears to draw on select blocks rather than a single named site.
The Yarra Valley's soils vary considerably across the region, running from grey loam over clay in the lower valley to reddish volcanic soils and grey silt loam at higher elevations. Specific farming certifications for Giant Steps are not consistently documented in public sources, so no organic or biodynamic status can be confirmed here.
Winemaking
Giant Steps makes chardonnay in a style that prioritizes line and tension over richness. The wines are typically whole-bunch pressed and barrel-fermented, with oak treatment that is present but subordinate to fruit and acidity. New oak usage is restrained across the range. Native yeast fermentation has been part of the approach for the single-vineyard wines, though practices can vary by bottling and vintage.
The tiered range moves from the appellation-level Yarra Valley Chardonnay up through individual vineyard releases to the Circle of Fifths at the apex. This structure allows the winery to make a clear argument about site differentiation within a single variety, and the vintage-to-vintage consistency of sites like Applejack and Sexton gives drinkers a meaningful basis for comparison over time. Pinot noir is also produced under the Giant Steps label with similar single-vineyard ambition, though chardonnay remains the clearest expression of what the producer does best.
Wines
2024 Chardonnay Yarra Valley
2024 Chardonnay Bastard Hill
2024 Chardonnay Circle of Fifths
2024 Chardonnay Sexton Vineyard
2024 Chardonnay Tarraford Vineyard
2024 Chardonnay Applejack
2023 Chardonnay Bastard Hill
2023 Chardonnay Tarraford Vineyard
2023 Chardonnay Applejack
2023 Chardonnay Sexton Vineyard
2022 Pinot Noir Yarra Valley
2022 Chardonnay Yarra Valley
2022 Pinot Noir Sexton Vineyard
2022 Chardonnay Tarraford Vineyard
2022 Cabernet Sauvignon Sexton Vineyard
2022 Syrah Tarraford Vineyard
2022 Pinot Noir Wombat Creek Vineyard
2022 Chardonnay Wombat Creek Vineyard
2022 Chardonnay Applejack Vineyard
2022 Chardonnay Sexton Vineyard
2022 Pinot Noir Primavera Vineyard
2020 Harry's Monster
2020 Pinot Noir Applejack Vineyard
2020 Pinot Noir Primavera Vineyard
2020 Pinot Noir Sexton Vineyard
2020 Chardonnay Sexton Vineyard
2019 Pinot Noir
2019 Chardonnay
2019 Chardonnay Sexton Vineyard
2019 Pinot Noir Primavera Vineyard
2019 Pinot Noir Applejack Vineyard
2019 Pinot Noir Wombat Creek Vineyard
2019 Chardonnay Wombat Creek Vineyard
2019 Pinot Noir Sexton Vineyard
2019 Chardonnay Tarraford Vineyard
2015 Chardonnay
2015 Pinot Noir
2015 Pinot Noir Applejack Vineyard
2015 Chardonnay Sexton Vineyard
2015 Pinot Noir Sexton Vineyard
2015 Pinot Noir Primavera Vineyard
2015 Chardonnay Tarraford Vineyard
2014 Pinot Noir Applejack Vineyard
2014 Chardonnay Sexton Vineyard
2014 Chardonnay Tarraford Vineyard
2014 Pinot Noir Sexton Vineyard
2013 Chardonnay Sexton Vineyard Yarra Valley
2013 Pinot Noir Applejack Vineyard Yarra Valley
2013 Pinot Noir Sexton Vineyards Yarra Valley
2013 Chardonnay Tarraford Vineyard Yarra Valley
2012 Pinot Noir Sexton Vineyards Yarra Valley
2012 Pinot Noir Gladysdale Vineyard Yarra Valley
2012 Pinot Noir Applejack Vineyard Yarra Valley
2012 Chardonnay Tarraford Vineyard Yarra Valley
2012 Chardonnay Sexton Vineyard Yarra Valley
2011 Chardonnay Arthurs Creek Yarra Valley
2011 Chardonnay Tarraford Vineyard Yarra Valley
2011 Chardonnay Sexton Vineyard Yarra Valley
2010 Pinot Noir Applejack Vineyard Yarra Valley
2010 Chardonnay Tarraford Vineyard Yarra Valley
2010 Pinot Noir Tarraford Vineyard Yarra Valley
2010 Pinot Noir Sexton Vineyards Yarra Valley
2010 Pinot Noir Gladysdale Vineyard Yarra Valley
2010 Chardonnay Arthurs Creek Yarra Valley
2010 Chardonnay Sexton Vineyard Yarra Valley
2009 Chardonnay Tarraford Vineyard Yarra Valley
2009 Chardonnay Sexton Vineyard Yarra Valley
2008 Pinot Noir Gladysdale Vineyard Yarra Valley
2008 Harry'S Monster Yarra Valley
2008 Chardonnay Tarraford Vineyard Yarra Valley
2008 Pinot Noir Sexton Vineyards Yarra Valley
2008 Chardonnay Arthurs Creek Yarra Valley
2008 Chardonnay Sexton Vineyard Yarra Valley
2007 Chardonnay Sexton Vineyard Yarra Valley
2007 Pinot Noir Sexton Vineyards Yarra Valley
2006 Pinot Noir Sexton Vineyards Yarra Valley
2006 Chardonnay Sexton Vineyard Yarra Valley
2006 Shiraz Miller Vineyard Yarra Valley
2006 Harry'S Monster Yarra Valley
2005 Pinot Noir Sexton Vineyards Yarra Valley
2005 Chardonnay Sexton Vineyard Yarra Valley
2005 Shiraz Yarra Valley
2005 Pinot Noir Tarraford Vineyard Yarra Valley
2005 Chardonnay Tarraford Vineyard Yarra Valley
2005 Harry'S Monster Yarra Valley
2004 Pinot Noir Yarra Valley
2004 Chardonnay Yarra Valley
2003 Harry'S Monster Yarra Valley
2003 Pinot Noir Yarra Valley
2003 Chardonnay Yarra Valley
2003 Merlot Yarra Valley
2003 Pinot Noir Sexton Vineyards Yarra Valley
2003 Chardonnay Sexton Vineyard Yarra Valley
2002 Merlot Yarra Valley
2002 Chardonnay Yarra Valley