Wine Ark has revealed the top 10 most cellared wines of the last 12 months, with a Western Australian Chardonnay named the surprise number one bottle of the year.

Australia’s largest wine storage provider catalogued the 195,000 bottles placed in its care in 2024 to provide insights on the tastes, trends and treasured collections of Australia’s most discerning wine drinkers.

Notable highlights from 2024’s most cellared wines:

• A white wine was the most collected of the year: Leeuwin Estate Art Series Chardonnay 2021
• The producer with the most bottles collected this year was Penfolds
• There was a 15% increase in the number of bottles placed into storage from 2023 to 2024
• Barossa Valley was the most cellared region making up 23.4% of the wines submitted this year, followed by Margaret River (14.8%)

Wine Ark’s John Cuff said the 2024 results demonstrate a growing awareness of the age-ability of Australia’s biggest white wine variety.

“Over the years, we’ve observed a marked increase in the appetite for age-worthy chardonnay,” he said.

“However, I fully expected a red wine to take the top spot this year. There are over seven chardonnays in the Top 25
wines added in 2024 including four in the top 10.”

The results also highlighted a preference for boutique and family wineries.

“It’s been a tough year for the wine trade. It’s heartening to see that the vast majority of wines purchased and stored at Wine Ark this year were produced by smaller, family-run wineries,” Cuff said.

“While iconic names like Leeuwin, Giaconda and Pierro Chardonnay dominate the Top 10, I was truly blown away to see the 2022 Savaterre Chardonnay from Beechworth rank as the seventh most cellared wine of 2024.”

Savaterre owner and winemaker Keppell Smith said: “We put a lot of effort into delivering a great wine. I’m flattered and thrilled that people are using excellent storage for our wines. It’s terrific to be in such great company.”

Despite a challenging year for the wine industry overall, Cuff also noted an interesting uptick in wine storage
this year.

“There was a 15% increase in the number of bottles placed into storage from 2023 to 2024. Whether this reflects clients taking advantage of discounted parcels from retailers and wineries, or a shift toward purchasing larger volumes at lower price points to save for later,” he said.

Top 10 wines cellared in 2024

1. Leeuwin Estate Art Series Chardonnay 2021
2. Penfolds St Henri Shiraz 2018
3. Grosset Polish Hill Riesling 2024
4. Mount Mary Quintet Cabernet Blend 2022
5. Tolpuddle Vineyard Pinot Noir 2023
6. Giaconda Estate Chardonnay 2022
7. Savaterre Chardonnay 2022
8. Pierro Chardonnay 2023
9. Standish Lamella Shiraz 2022
10. Lake’s Folly Shiraz Merlot Petit Verdot 2022

Top 5 producers cellared in 2024

1. Penfolds
2. Rockford
3. Tyrrells
4. Lake’s Folly
5. Mount Mary

Top 5 varietals cellared in 2024

1. Shiraz
2. Chardonnay
3. Pinot Noir
4. Cabernet Sauvignon
5. Cabernet Blend

Top 5 regions cellared in 2024

1. Barossa Valley
2. Margaret River
3. Hunter
4. Yarra Valley
5. McLaren Vale

Established in 1999, Wine Ark has 15 climate-controlled facilities located in in Adelaide, Brisbane, Melbourne, Sydney, Perth
and on Queensland’s Sunshine Co. It stores more than two million bottles of wine for clients in 30 countries.