For most Australians, a glass of wine is just a glass of wine. But for the connoisseurs amongst us, it’s almost a culinary sport that’s as complicated as reading code, running a science experiment or composing a masterpiece. Luckily, you don’t need a PhD in wine to discover the best bottles, as the experts have done the hard work for us.
This week, Australia’s most trusted wine guide, the Halliday Wine Companion, revealed Australia’s best wineries for 2026 across seven major categories – including Wine of the Year and Winemaker of the Year – as well as 17 varietal categories. Deciding the winners was no easy feat, with the Halliday Tasting Team sampling more than 7,000 wines from 1,000 wineries before crowning the champions.
Many of Australia’s most renowned wineries were recognised in the 2026 Halliday Wine Companion, including Brokenwood in Hunter Valley (Winery of the Year), Vasse Felix in Margaret River (Virginia Willcock for Winemaker of the Year), and Thisledown Wines in McLaren Vale (Wine of the Year). Beyond the big names, the awards also shine a light on standout newcomers, top-value wineries and regional hidden gems – including the Dark Horse Winery.
Located in Western Australia’s Geographe Wine Region, bakkheia beat nine finalists from across the country to claim the title of Australia’s best underdog winery for 2026. Established in 1999, this boutique vineyard produces just 1,000 to 1,200 cases of Mediterranean-style, minimal-intervention wines each year, sold exclusively to a private mailing list of 500 loyal customers.
Michael Edwards, owner and winemaker at bakkheia, says, “It’s hard to overstate the impact a Halliday Wine Companion award has on a micro-producer like us. This recognition fuels our passion, keeps our shoulders firmly to the wheel, and inspires us to continue crafting some of the world’s most memorable vinous treasures.”
Michael and his wife Ilonka lovingly tend the land, organically growing seven varieties of grapes – grenache, mourvèdre, graciano, tempranillo, shiraz, malbec and cabernet sauvignon – handpicking them and transforming them into small-batch wines. The most intriguing part of the process is that the pair don’t decide the retail price of their wines; rather, they leave it to 12 carefully chosen ‘cardinals’, whose feedback decides the cost of each case.
Michael says, “We have a number of unique aspects to this wine endeavour; the sum of these philosophical approaches to sharing our joys leads us to being the ‘personal winemaker’ to 500 Australians – where mutual loyalty and quality rule. We define ourselves with the feedback from our Patrons. While avoiding trends and keeping ‘real’ are essential to us staying on our chosen pathway.”
The eight other finalists for the Dark Horse Winery in 2026 were Farmer’s Leap Wines (SA), LS Merchants (WA), Ollin (SA), Patrick Underwood Wines / Little Reddie (VIC), Paul Nelson Wines (WA), Saltfleet Wines (SA), Trapeze (VIC) and Usher Tinkler Wines (NSW). You can find a full list of winners in the 2026 Halliday Wine Companion here, or check out the major awards below.
The 2026 Halliday Wine Companion winners
- Winery of the Year – Brokenwood, Hunter Valley, NSW
- Winemaker of the Year – Virginia Willcock, Vasse Felix, Margaret River, WA
- Viticulturist of the Year – Dr Dylan Grigg, Vinya Vella and Meristem Viticulture, Barossa Valley, SA
- Best Value Winery – Bondar Wines, McLaren Vale, SA
- Best New Winery – Elanto Vineyard, Mornington Peninsula, VIC
- Dark Horse Winery – bakkheia, Geographe, WA
- Wine of the Year – Thistledown Wines’ This Charming Man Single Vineyard Clarendon Grenache 2024, McLaren Vale, SA