The second cellar door that we visited in the Yarra Valley was Giant Steps. Giant Steps was founded by Phil Sexton who was also the founder of the Matilda Bay and Little Creatures Breweries as well as the Devil’s Lair Vineyard in Margaret River Western Australia, where Phil grew up. The reason for establishing Giant Steps, in 2003, was to fulfill Phil’s desire to produce quality cool climate Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and Syrah.

The Giant Steps Cellar Door is not situated on one of their 5 vineyards, it is located within the township of Healesville and is also a pretty good restaurant, definitely worth a visit for lunch or dinner if you are in the area.

In Their Own Words:

When the saxophonist John Coltrane split with Miles Davis in the late 50s, he wasted little time releasing his visionary Giant Steps album. Owner Phil Sexton is a jazz fan and was inspired by the album and Coltrane’s foresight. When he sold his Devil’s Lair vineyard in Margaret River to relocate and replant in the Yarra Valley, he named his wine in Coltrane’s honour.

Giant Steps is a privately owned, estate based, Yarra Valley grower and winemaker. Giant Steps has forged a reputation for delivering some of Australia’s most consistent, over-performing, varietal wines. These wines have received global acclaim and established a strong reputation in restaurants and fine wine stores around the world.

Since 2003 Giant Steps wines have collectively been awarded 19 trophies and over 50 gold medals at major international and domestic wine shows, and has been named one of the Top 100 Wineries in the World by Wine & Spirits Magazine, US for each of the last four years.

Giant Steps Cellar Door Tasting

The Cellar Door is a purpose-built facility that houses a tasting room, restaurant, barrel room and a working winery, which makes it a great spot to visit. A tasting flight at Giant Steps cost about USD7.50 which, if you buy a bottle or two is refunded.

Their Wines

• Yarra Valley Chardonnay
• Applejack Vineyard Chardonnay
• Gruyere Farm Vineyard ‘Ocarina’ Chardonnay
• Sexton Vineyard Chardonnay
• Tarraford Vineyard Chardonnay
• Wombat Creek Vineyard Chardonnay
• Yarra Valley Pinot Noir
• Applejack Vineyard Pinot Noir
• Sexton Vineyard Pinot Noir
• Wombat Creek Pinot Noir
• Yarra Valley LDR (Light Dry Red)
• Yarra Valley Syrah
• Tarraford Vineyard Syrah
• Yarra Valley Merlot
• Harry’s Monster
• Known Pleasures Shiraz

Oz’s Ratings

Icon	Rating	Description
	1	1 out of 5	Bug spray, good for cleaning or powering vehicles
	2	2 out of 5	Acceptable at a pinch (must be extremely desperate)
	3	2.5 out of 5	Drinkable, might improve with age or decanting, good for the last bottle of the night when there is nothing else available
	4	3 out of 5	A good wine, may improve with time, a quaffer
	5	3.5 out of 5	A very good wine, worth a try and probably a bit of patience if it is a young wine
	6	4 out of 5	A great wine! Recommended by Oz
	7	4.5 out of 5	A great wine, definitely one that Oz recommends!!
	11	5 out of 5	Amazing, WoW. Highly recommended, please give me more!

Oz’s Wine Reviews

My picks from this tasting were:

• 2016 Tarraford Vineyard Syrah
• 2016 Sexton Vineyard Chardonnay
• 2017 Yarra Valley Chardonnay
• 2017 Yarra Valley Pinot Noir
• 2016 Primavera Vineyard Pinot Noir

Rating	Wine
1		> Name: Giant Steps Year: 2017 Region: Yarra Valley, Victoria, Australia Vineyard: Applejack, Gruyere Farm, Sexton, Tarraford, Wombat Creek Varietal: Chardonnay Oz's Rating: 3.5 out 5 Bright pale straw in appearance with an enjoyable mix of peach, grapefruit and vanilla aromas. The palate is crisp and refreshing and refreshing with a medium finish. Enjoyable. <
2		> Name: Giant Steps Year: 2016 Region: Yarra Valley, Victoria, Australia Vineyard: Sexton Varietal: Chardonnay Oz's Rating: 3.5 out 5 Bright pale straw in appearance with a refreshing combo of grapefruit, cashew, vanilla and a hint of spice aromas. On the palate this wine is lively, balanced and crisp with a medium finish. I liked this a fraction more than the Yarra Valley Chardonnay as there was more energy. <
3		> Name: Giant Steps Year: 2016 Region: Yarra Valley, Victoria, Australia Vineyard: Lusatia Park Varietal: Chardonnay Oz's Rating: 2.5 out 5 Bright pale yellow straw in appearance with a fresh mix of peach and pear aromas. On the palate this wine crisp with a medium finish. This was not my thing. Not really sure why, but it did not appeal to me <
4		> > Name: Giant Steps Ocarina Year: 2016 Region: Yarra Valley, Victoria, Australia Vineyard: Gruyere Farm Varietal: Chardonnay Oz's Rating: 2.5 out 5 Bright light yellow straw in appearance with a pleasant nose. The palate is balanced, but did not do anything for me, with a medium finish. Another wine that was not my thing, maybe I was "chardied" out by then. <
5		> Name: Giant Steps Year: 2017 Region: Yarra Valley, Victoria, Australia Vineyard: Applejack, Primavera, Sexton, Tarraford, Wombat Creek Varietal: Pinot Noir Oz's Rating: 3.5 out 5 Lively light ruby in appearance with a perfumed combo of cherry, earthy, cedar and spice aromas. On the palate this is subtle, delicate, enjoyable with soft savoury tannins and medium to long finish A good Pinot Noir that will improve with age. Great quality at a very reasonable price!! <
6		> Name: Giant Steps Light Dry Red Year: 2017 Region: Yarra Valley, Victoria, Australia Vineyard: Primavera, Sexton Varietal: 51% Pinot Noir, 49% Syrah Oz's Rating: 3 out 5 Vivid medium weight garnet in appearance with a medium-bodied pleasant mix of cherry, strawberry, dried herb, and a hint of aniseed aromas. It has a complex, medium-bodied palate with firm, evolving tannins and a medium to long finish Drinking well now, but will improve with a few extra years of patience. <
7		> Name: Giant Steps Year: 2016 Region: Yarra Valley, Victoria, Australia Vineyard: Tarraford and Sexton Varietal: Syrah Oz's Rating: 3 out 5 Bright medium weight ruby in appearance with a pleasant complex combo of blackberry, cherry, white pepper, and spice aromas. The medium-bodied palate has an enjoyable peppery medium length finish with savoury tannins Nice drop, another quality wine for a reasonable price <
8		> Name: Giant Steps Year: 2016 Region: Yarra Valley, Victoria, Australia Vineyard: Tarraford Varietal: Syrah Oz's Rating: 4 out 5 Bright medium deep crimson in appearance with a complex perfumed combination of blackberry, black pepper, chocolate and spice aromas. A lush, rich medium-bodied palate with a medium to long finish with silky tannins. Really enjoyed this, will continue to improve with time. <
9		> Name: Giant Steps Year: 2016 Region: Yarra Valley, Victoria, Australia Vineyard: Sexton Varietal: Merlot Oz's Rating: 3 out 5 Rich medium deep crimson in appearance with a medium-bodied complex mixture of blackcurrant, earthy, cedar and spice aromas. The wine has a medium-bodied palate that is slightly sour on the edges with firm tannins and a medium finish. An interesting wine <
10		> Name: Giant Steps Year: 2016 Region: Yarra Valley, Victoria, Australia Vineyard: Primavera Varietal: Pinot Noir Oz's Rating: 3.5 out 5 Vivid medium garnet in appearance with a medium-bodied earthy mixture of cherry, herbal and spice aromas. The complex medium-bodied palate on the edges with silky tannins and a medium finish. Another good Yarra Valley Pinot Noir <

Oz’s Wine Reviews

Oz’s Winery Reviews

Giant Steps Cellar Door Tasting

We lucked in here, whilst Giant Steps is not known as one of the premium Yarra Valley wineries it is certainly a winery that produces good quality and value wines, their Cellar Door and Restaurant complex makes it easy to enjoy them and then an excellent meal.

The staff at the Cellar Door are very engaging, knowledgeable and helpful, they add to the experience making it a more personal tasting than a manufactured one.

The restaurant is a worth a visit in its own right, they use only the best quality produce and the dishes produced by the Chefs are of pretty good, make sure you include at least one, probably two, pizza in your order. The Menu. Enjoy!

BTW, this was my 200th post!!

Cheers!