A Bellarine shiraz has beaten more than 300 wines from across Australia to claim the top honour at a prestigious national wine competition.
Jack Rabbit Vineyard’s 2025 Shiraz was named Best in Show at the 2026 Saint Martin Oak Great Australian Shiraz Challenge, also taking home the award for Best Victorian Shiraz.
Winemaker Nyall Condon said the team was thrilled to see a wine from the Bellarine Peninsula recognised alongside some of Australia’s leading shiraz producers.
“To put a little region like Geelong and the Bellarine Peninsula on the map and to be competing up there with the big boys, we were just ecstatic,” he said.
“There’s a lot of great shiraz producers in Australia.
“It ended up going head to head with some very highly regarded wines and it’s come out on top. I don’t know what to say, it’s still sinking in.”
The recognition comes at a challenging time for Australia’s wine industry, which is grappling with oversupply and changing consumer drinking habits.
Wine Australia reported in July that the nation’s 2026 wine grape crush had fallen to 1.27m tonnes, its smallest since 2000, equivalent to around 33m fewer cases of wine.
Jack Rabbit Vineyard winemaker Nyall Condon is celebrating national recognition for the Bellarine winery’s 2025 Shiraz. Photo: Matthew O’Donnell/Hails + Shine.
Jack Rabbit’s award-winning shiraz is made using grapes from two Bellarine vineyards, where the vines are between 30 and 35 years old.
The coastal Cliffington site has fine, sandy volcanic soils, while the Bundaleer vineyard features a mix of basalt-rich volcanic loams and cracking clay.
Condon described the wine as a typical cool-climate shiraz, with characteristics distinctive to the greater Geelong region.
“[Geelong shirazes] come across with this kind of lovely smoky richness to it,” he said.
“It’s got white pepper notes and silky smooth, velvety tannins.”
Despite its young age, Condon said the wine had the potential to develop further over time.
“It’s drinking impeccably, so I’m excited to see how it improves,” he said.
The award marks another national success for Condon, who was also behind Flying Brick Cider Co’s Best in Show win at the Australian Cider Awards last month.
Condon said both achievements reflected positively on the Bellarine Peninsula and its producers.
The 2025 Jack Rabbit Shiraz is available through the winery’s website.
Dining and Cooking