Greatest Chardonnay Showdown crowns Tasmanian wine the world’s best at London Wine Fair

The world’s finest Chardonnay has been named, and this year the title has travelled a long way from Burgundy. At the recent London Wine Fair, one of the UK wine trade’s most closely watched tastings brought together some of the globe’s leading examples of the grape for a rigorous blind assessment. 

The result was a strong endorsement of modern Australian winemaking, with Tasmania taking the top prize.

Held annually, the London Wine Fair has become one of the most important trade events on the UK drinks calendar. The three-day exhibition attracts producers, importers, buyers, sommeliers and hospitality professionals from around the world.

This year’s show featured wines and spirits from every major producing region, alongside sake, Asian spirits and, for the first time, a dedicated craft beer and cider zone created in partnership with BREW//LDN.

The Luxe Review attended the event and enjoyed the opportunity to explore an extraordinary range of wines, spirits and emerging drinks trends…

This year’s show featured wines and spirits from every major producing region, alongside sake, Asian spirits and, for the first time, a dedicated craft beer and cider zone…

Australia, England and France lead world-class Chardonnay tasting

This year’s headline attraction at The London Wine Fair was the latest Icon Tasting, dubbed The Greatest Chardonnay Showdown, designed as a benchmark assessment of Chardonnay across classic and emerging regions, encompassing still and sparkling expressions and a wide range of winemaking styles. 

Following previous Icon Tastings themed around the Judgement of London and Battle of the Bubbles, Chardonnay took centre stage for 2026.

The overall winner was Tolpuddle Vineyard Chardonnay 2023 from Tasmania’s Coal River Valley. The wine emerged as the highest-scoring Chardonnay in the competition and headed a strong Australian performance that also saw Vasse Felix Heytesbury Chardonnay 2020 from Margaret River take second place overall.

The judging panel comprised 18 of the UK wine trade’s most respected palates. More than two-thirds were either Masters of Wine or Master Sommeliers. Among them were Jancis Robinson, Dawn Davies, Tony Lécuroux and Pierpaolo Petrassi.

Thirty wines were selected by Sarah Abbott and Ronan Sayburn. Each was tasted double-blind over three hours under examination conditions in a private tasting room at the fair. The wines were grouped according to style, terroir, oak influence and heritage. Every bottle was decanted and served in Jancis Robinson x Richard Brendon glassware, with condition checks carried out before judging commenced.

The results reflected Chardonnay’s increasingly global reach. While Australia claimed the top two positions, England delivered a remarkable third-place finish through Danbury Ridge Octagon Block Chardonnay 2023 from Essex. The final Top 10 was evenly split between European and non-European producers.

Best Chardonnays for summer

The full Top 10 Greatest Chardonnays of the World comprised Tolpuddle Vineyard 2023 Chardonnay from Tasmania; Vasse Felix Heytesbury Chardonnay 2020 from Margaret River; Danbury Ridge Octagon Block Chardonnay 2023 from Essex; Dom Ruinart Blanc de Blancs 2013 from Champagne; Bâtard-Montrachet 2022 from Domaine Henri Boillot in Burgundy; Bell Hill Limeworks Chardonnay 2020 from North Canterbury in New Zealand; Shaw + Smith M3 Chardonnay 2021 from Adelaide Hills; Felton Road Chardonnay Bannockburn 2021 from Central Otago; Cervaro della Sala 2023 from Castello della Sala in Umbria; and Domaine Donatsch Unique Chardonnay Malans 2024 from Switzerland’s Graubünden region.

Beyond the overall rankings, judges also recognised standout wines by category. The award for Best Classic Region Chardonnay went to Dom Ruinart Blanc de Blancs 2013 from Champagne, France.

The title of Best Emerging Region Chardonnay was awarded to Danbury Ridge Octagon Block Chardonnay 2023, further highlighting England’s growing reputation for premium still wine production.

Value was also rewarded. The Best Value Chardonnay awards, calculated on the basis of points achieved relative to recommended retail price, went to Familia Deicas Juanico Preludio Barrel Select Lote No 29 2020 from Uruguay, Ataraxia Chardonnay 2024 from South Africa, Shaw + Smith M3 Chardonnay 2021 from Australia, Storm Ridge Chardonnay 2024 from South Africa and Sol de Sol Chardonnay 2024 from Chile.

Commenting on the results, Sarah Abbott MW said the tasting demonstrated Chardonnay’s unique ability to express quality across vastly different regions and styles. She noted that the leading wines from Australia, England and France highlighted the grape’s remarkable adaptability.

Ronan Sayburn MS observed that the results reflected current preferences rather than a definitive hierarchy of the world’s greatest wines. He highlighted the impressive freshness, consistency and precision shown by many of the Australian entries, particularly those bottled under screw cap.

London Wine Fair head Hannah Tovey said the annual Icon Tasting had become one of the event’s highlights and praised both the judging panel and the organisers behind the tasting. She also noted that Tolpuddle Vineyard’s success shines a welcome spotlight on Tasmanian Chardonnay.

For wine lovers and collectors, the results offer a useful guide to some of the most highly regarded Chardonnays currently available, whether seeking established classics from Champagne and Burgundy or newer expressions from Australia, England, New Zealand and beyond. 

If there was one clear message from this year’s showdown, it was that great Chardonnay is no longer defined by geography alone.