Four top wines from Australia’s hottest cool-climate region

Proving beyond doubt that last year’s trophy for their 2020 Pinot Noir was no flash in the pan, Ossa have followed up with a range of altogether excellent wines.

The 2021 Pinot ($120) is another stunningly intense and impressive expression of the variety; the 2017 Methode Traditionelle ($90) is a deliciously fine and delicate fizz (in fact it could benefit from a few years’ bottle age to flesh out); the 2021 Chardonnay ($90) is super-complex, layered and satisfying; and the 2021 Syrah ($120) is a fabulously nervy, spicy dark-fruited and svelte testament to how surprisingly good this grape can be in such a cool place.

But the wine I was most intrigued by was the 2022 Gruner Veltliner, from a small block of vines in Ossa’s own vineyard on the east coast. With really characterful, green-grape-pulpy fruit flavours and textural weight, this is fresh and focused and scintillating. ($60)