Brokenwood Semillon ILR Reserve 2014

ILR Reserve is only ever made in the estate's finest years — and the 2014, sourced from the historic Trevena Vineyard on Hermitage Road (planted way back in 1926 on pale sandy soil), is widely considered one of the greatest releases the label has ever produced. Hand-picked, crushed and chilled immediately, fermented on neutral yeast with zero oak and no malolactic — just pure fruit and bottle age doing all the work. It went on to win back-to-back James Halliday Semillon of the Year honours (99 points, Platinum Award) and 98 points from Huon Hooke — a genuinely rare achievement for the category.

Now over a decade old, it's drinking exactly where great Hunter Semillon is meant to shine: lemon curd, beeswax, brioche and toast layer over lively lime and citrus, backed by that famously bracing, zesty acid line that keeps it feeling youthful even as real richness and honeyed complexity build through the finish. It's the wine that converts Semillon sceptics on the spot — pour it blind for anyone who thinks they know what the grape does, and watch them reassess entirely. Serve it with fresh oysters, sashimi, or a rich seafood pasta, or simply on its own to watch a great vintage do exactly what it promised years ago. This is cellared Hunter Semillon at its absolute best, and there's precious little of it left.