David Bicknell needs little introduction in Australian wine circles having worked for many years at de Bortoli and now at Oakridge where he was recently names Gourmet Traveller WINE Magazine, Winemaker of the Year.

Bicknell FC is a family winemaking project of Dave Bicknell and Nicky Harris. The project started as random wines from interesting sites, but as they have moved through the years, getting their eye in so to speak, they have settled into the good fortune of leasing one of those interesting sites.

The Chardonnay & Pinot Noir currently available are from Val Stewart’s vineyard at the top of the hill in Gladysdale. There is 1.0 Ha of chardonnay and 1.5 Ha of pinot noir. It was planted in 1988 with 3,660 plants/Ha, and sits between 332-363m ASL, in red volcanic soil.

Rating: 96 Points.  "Partial whole-bunch fermentation (20%) and three days on skins before maturation in older French oak. A bright, light–medium crimson red. From a great year, there's an extra degree of oomph in the 2021 pinot compared to ’20. Strawberries, redcurrant and a little whole-bunch derived rose petal lead onto the palate, which is ripe, bright, crunchy and long. An excellent effort from this very cool Upper Yarra site. Only 97 dozen made."  Philip Rich.  Halliday Wine Companion.