16 Sep Halliday Wine Companion Results 2026
We’re excited to share that Printhie Wines has once again been recognised among Australia’s best in the 2026 Halliday Wine Companion. The Halliday Wine Companion is considered the national benchmark for wine reviews and ratings.
For the 17th year, Printhie has maintained its Five Star Winery rating and for 7 of those years the winery has been rated Five Red Stars ‘which means outstanding winery regularly producing wines of exemplary quality’, a mark of consistent excellence that we’re incredibly proud of.
This year, eight of our wines were awarded 95 points or higher, accounting for 25% of the top-scoring wines from the Orange region.
Our flagship Swift Sparkling range was a solid standout. With six sparkling wines rated 95 points or above, Swift received more top scores than any other sparkling producer in the entire country. This recognition reinforces that Swift Sparkling sits at the top tier of Australian sparkling and is also the most awarded NSW Sparkling.
We were also excited to have two wines shortlisted for ‘Best in Category’:
- Printhie 2024 Topography Pinot Gris – for the second year running
- Swift 2017 Vintage Rosé – following last year’s success with the 2015 Vintage
A big thank you to our winemaking team, Drew Tuckwell and Viv Wheaton, on these results. Drew has been with Printhie Wines since 2007 and his skill and knowledge is demonstrated in the consistency and quality of the wines he creates.
Below are the full tasting notes by Halliday Wine Companion reviewer Shanteh Wale.
| Swift Limited Edition Rosé 2017 | Chardonnay Pinot Noir Pinot Meunier | 96 | Disgorged in October ’23 and on its lees for 72 months. A low dosage of 3.5g/L. The palest rose gold hue in the glass. Mirabelle plums, Rainier cherries and lilly pilly fruit. There are frangipani and freesia blossoms. A hint of orange blossom honey and some beeswax. Acidity sweeps through and the palate is left quite dry and sparklingly clean. Some almond and cranberry nougat and a smattering of candlenut creaminess on the finish. A recurring echo of alpine strawberry keeps the wine journeying on. Impressive; a mark of a very expressive vintage under caring and precise hands. |
| Swift Blanc de Noirs 2021 | Pinot Meunier Pinot Noir | 95 | 53/47% pinot meunier/pinot noir, disgorged in October 2024 and a total of 36 months on lees with a low dosage of 3.5 g/L. The first time this wine has been dominated by pinot meunier. Rainier cherries, honeysuckle and grey pumice stone. A curl of lemon skin and paperbark, candied almonds and chalk dust. A middle-palate weight with some sandy grip and cold peach tea bitters. Acidity refreshes the palate with those lemon candies and chrysanthemum coming through on the finish. A well-balanced wine that doesn’t lack for anything, at times a hard task to accomplish in these blends. |
| Swift Brut Rosé #12 NV | Chardonnay Pinot Noir | 95 | 75/25% chardonnay/pinot noir with the base from the 2019 vintage. There is a Japanese garden of cherry blossom, pickled plum and cranberry. Cooked quince and orange bitters. Monte Carlo biscuits and rosehip. Some savoury tones that surprise with paprika and peppercorn. A touch of raspberry tea leaf tannins and finishing quite dry. This wine screams for an array of food; it’s moreish in its dry finish despite its 5g/L dosage. A kaleidoscope of flavours wrapped in its fine bead. So much value for your coin here. |
| Swift Brut Rosé #13 NV | Pinot Noir Chardonnay | 95 | 67/33% pinot noir/chardonnay. Based on the ’21 vintage. Disgorged in October ’24 with a total of 36 months on lees and 5.5g/L dosage. The first vintage that pinot noir is the dominant variety and no red wine adjustment for colour this bottling. Fragrant cherry blossoms, rambutans and blush nectarines. A surge of strawberry and peach Bellini on the palate with a touch of salinity to the long lines of recurring acidity. A focused and fruit-forward rosé where the pinot noir fruit is singing. Delightful. |
| Swift Cuvée Brut #15 NV | Pinot Noir Chardonnay | 95 | 51/49% pinot noir/chardonnay; base vintage from 2019 with 14% reserve wines. Lifted green apple and lemon balm, white tea and honey cakes. Autolysis characters begin to show through in raw cookie dough and cashew. There is purity here and preserved youth, delicacy in the acidity that draws a long line of fine flavour. It’s a wine that shows its ripeness of fruit from its 2019 base but ultimately the tension of its cool climate. Well balanced with a 5g/L dosage that feels just right. A wine of confidence and irrefutable precision. |
| Swift Cuvée Brut #16 NV | Pinot Noir Chardonnay | 95 | 51/49% pinot noir/chardonnay. Based on the ’19 vintage with the addition of 14% reserve wines. 60 months on lees. Disgorged October ’24 with 4.5g/L dosage. White peach, lemon skin and cider apples. Orange blossom, honeysuckle and yellow plum. A dancing bead of fine bubble and some richness from ripe fruit intermingling with dosage. The palate is left with bright peachy notes and lingering acidity. A squeaky-clean wine with a subtle touch of frozen yoghurt creaminess and proofing dough from yeast autolysis. |
| Topography Andesite 2024 | Pinot Gris Gewürztramier Riesling | 95 | Drew Tuckwell gives assistant winemaker Viv Wheaton the freedom of expression in the Andesite bottling. A good thing, too, because this is a wine that is as delectable as it is fragrant. A blend of 42/34/24% pinot gris/gewürztraminer/riesling; all varieties harvested on the same day and co-fermented mostly in stainless steel and a touch of 500L puncheons for complexity. It gives off aromas of an Asian fruit display. Rambutans, mangosteen, star fruit and calamansi limes. Orchids and tiger lilies, pandan and fresh coconut. The wine is stitched together, with threads from each variety discernible, but the wine is greater than the sum of its parts. Pin-point acidity meets luscious fruit sweetness and a mesh of grippy phenolics. This is an exciting wine from start to finish and the love of aromatic varieties is on full display. |
| Topography Pinot Gris 2024 | Pinot Gris | 95 | A pretty blush pink hue in the glass. Pickled ginger, papaya and poached red wine pears. There is a slippery quality to the natural acidity with cool tones of white strawberry, Pink Lady apples and quince. The wine has glimmers of just-discernible fruit nectar which lingers, however, the wine finishes dry and moreish. This is a wine that has been made with a good understanding of the attraction of the variety and the use of different picking time and vessels to produce a beautiful and compelling pinot gris. The beauty here is that no matter if you are a pinot grigio or a pinot gris drinker, this wine is of such quality that everyone would enjoy it. |
| Super-Duper Chardonnay 2022 | Chardonnay | 93 | 100% Wattleview vineyard fruit this vintage, 1050m above sea level; 50% new oak for 10 months and a further 8 months in stainless. It is lathered in the highest quality oak barrels with pomelo segments, white peach and gardenia blooms. There is a beautiful ripe pineapple core to this wine which carries its toasty cedar, calendula and honeycomb spice. It’s richly weighted and decadent. This is a highly-sought-after style and would be a treat on a table with anything smothered in cream and butter. |
| Millwood Chardonnay 2022 | Chardonnay | 93 | 950m above sea level; 30% new French oak, lees stirred and 50% mlf. Yellow grapefruit, mango cheek and lemon zested over whipped mascarpone. Firecracker smoke, grated turmeric. Acidity flows evenly and elegantly with a hazelnut praline creaminess. It’s comfortable, with its new oak providing a strong frame, but with zesty fruit alive and shining. Millwood is the front runner for single vineyards this year. |
| Super-Duper Syrah NV | Shiraz | 92 | Fruit is grown at 620m above sea level; a mix of whole bunches and destemmed fruit. Matured for 18 months in 500L French puncheons. Hawthorn, black cherry, blackcurrant and prune. There is a char of meat, spices and cedar. Acidity is bright, as you’d expect, and the middle palate is dense with carob and espresso. There is a brooding sense to the wine but with plenty of detail and flavour. A concerted effort is made to allow this wine to have flair without being pressed down upon by oak. The savoury components allow this wine to stand out in a crowd. |
| Wattleview Chardonnay 2022 | Chardonnay | 92 | 1050m above sea level; 50% new French oak, lees stirred. Partial mlf. Candlewax, sparkler flint and brûlée toffee. Yellow peach cheeks, Meyer lemon and candied grapefruit. Toasty oak with good fruit weight in support. Acidity builds over time with cooking spices of nutmeg, cinnamon and cumin coming through. This wine has character and flair and an edge of sturdy oak spice. |
| Mountain Range Sauvignon Blanc 2024 | Sauvignon Blanc | 91 | Elderflower, grapefruit and guava. A hint of breakfast juice and tropical punch. Flavours deliver what is promised on the nose with a direct line of punchy acidity and a nice dry finish. A focused and great value Australian sauvignon blanc. |
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