Melanie Chester

Melanie Chester joined Giant Steps as Head Winemaker in 2021, and by 2024, the winery had been awarded the coveted 'Winery of the Year' title by the Halliday Wine Companion. Mel is known as a force of nature and has achieved a lot in a short space of time including becoming the youngest scholar selected for the Len Evans Tutorial (2014), being named Young Winemaker of the Year by Gourmet Traveller WINE (2015), and was recognised by Young Gun of Wine as the People’s Choice award winner (2018), reinforcing why she is widely regarded as one of Australia's best winemakers. 

Melanie’s love affair with Giant Steps (and Yarra Valley Chardonnay and Pinot Noir) started long before she became Head of Winemaking and Viticulture, collecting the wines from our iconic vineyards for her personal cellar for many years. Her long-held admiration for the winery comes with an intrinsic pressure to honour the individual personalities and qualities of our sites. For Mel, this means keeping the winemaking tight and transparent, so the diversity of place is what you taste in the glass. 

Now as the General Manager of Giant Steps, Mel brings an intense passion for wine and great Burgundy. Outside of work she is an avid cook and fan of the simple pleasure in life – a good margarita, a bowl of handmade pasta, home grown herbs, loud music, filter coffee, ocean swims, fishing and time with friends and family.