Oakdene Vineyards | Bellarine Peninsula, Victoria

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Bellarine Peninsula, Victoria, Australia

The Bellarine Peninsula is one of Australia’s best-kept secrets. Oakdene Vineyards is the reason it won’t stay secret for much longer.

Established in 2001 in Wallington — where Port Phillip Bay and the Bass Strait conspire to keep things cool, maritime, and honest — Oakdene is a family affair in the best possible sense. Steven and his daughter Issy run the estate with a shared obsession for precision: low yields, gentle handling, and an unwillingness to rush anything. The Chardonnay has genuine textural complexity without heaviness. The Pinot Noir has the cool-climate lift and fine-boned elegance the variety demands. And the Shiraz — maritime, savoury, and nothing like a Barossa red — surprises almost everyone who tries it.

The Bellarine Peninsula sits between Geelong and the Mornington Peninsula — Victoria’s cool-climate heartland — and is shaped by its proximity to some of the coldest stretches of water in the Southern Ocean. That maritime influence keeps growing seasons long and temperatures moderate, which is exactly what Chardonnay and Pinot Noir need to develop complexity rather than just ripeness. Oakdene’s loamy, free-draining soils add another dimension: excellent drainage that stresses the vines just enough to concentrate flavour without punishing the yields.

Beyond the headline varieties, Oakdene also grow Pinot Gris, Sauvignon Blanc, Merlot and Cabernet Franc — all with the same precision and restraint that defines the estate. If you’re looking for a producer whose whole range you can trust, Oakdene is it. Every bottle we’ve opened has rewarded the attention.

We met Steven and Issy at the London Australia tasting, fell immediately for their wines, and then ran into them in the pub later that evening — which felt entirely right. It’s that kind of producer. Serious about quality, brilliant to spend time with, and making wine that rewards your attention.