Lake's Folly

16/01/2026

We are immensely proud to share these recent reviews of all 4 of our wines (released in 2025) by Halliday Wine Companion, published on their website this week:

▫️97+ Points - Lake’s Folly 2023 Cabernets
▫️97 Points - Lake’s Folly 2023 Hill Block Shiraz
▫️97 Points - Lake’s Folly 2024 Hill Block Chardonnay
▫️96 Points - Lake’s Folly Chardonnay

Although these vintages have now sold out - very quickly after their respective releases last year, thanks to our many loyal members and customers who purchase year after year - we are nonetheless delighted to receive these reviews that continue to speak of the consistency produced from this small single-site estate, with each passing season: proudly 100% Hunter Valley, grown and made here since 1963.

Many of our Members and Customers will already have these vintages in their cellars - and we hope you’ll be as pleased to read these reviews as an endorsement of what you already know and love about our wines and, for that, we’re most grateful for your commitment to Lake’s Folly!

We look forward to next contacting our Members and Customers in April this year with our new vintage release offer of 2024 Cabernets and 2025 Chardonnay; both are excellent!

Until then, cheers from all the
Team at Lake’s Folly!🍷

16/11/2025

Today is a significant milestone for Rod Kempe, marking 25 years as Lake’s Folly’s Winemaker.

Joining us in 2000 when the Fogarty family became owners, Rod said: “Driving past this vineyard for so many years, I would never have thought I’d get to work at a place like Lake’s Folly, but when offered the role, my younger self leapt at the opportunity!”.

With Rod’s family having roots in the Valley and neighbouring town of Cessnock dating back to the early 1900s, to say he’s Hunter Valley to the core, would be an understatement, and he’s always been a passionate advocate for wines grown and made from our region.

“To work alongside a small crew who feel equally as passionate and dedicated to this site is pretty unique - it’s a special place, and it’s one of the great things about working here, how much we all love it.”

A double celebration today, that coincides with Rod’s 60th birthday!

Congratulations, Rod. 🎉

17/10/2025

Our team is delighted to share that Lake’s Folly has been awarded a place in internationally-renowned wine critic James Suckling’s ‘Top 100 Wines of Australia 2025’, for our
2023 Hill Block Chardonnay.

Lake’s Folly 2023 Hill Block Chardonnay | 96 Points
www.jamessuckling.com:

“This is a flashy chardonnay compared to the regular bottling, yet undeniably delicious. Generous aromas of lemon confit, grapefruit, spices, lime leaves, pastry and flint. The palate has a pithy drive with focused acidity, a textural and minerally finish and a light, bright feel.”

Since the first Hill Block wines were produced from our 2011 vintage, they have become a favourite addition to the cellars of many of Lake’s Folly’s members and, with just a couple of hundred cases made from outstanding seasons, are always eagerly-awaited ahead of their release.

While this 2023 vintage has sold out, we look forward to sharing our next Chardonnay release in 2026.

Please feel free to enquire via the link in our bio, if you’d like more information ahead of our next release.

26/06/2025

💔 It is with heavy hearts, that we share the sad news that our colleague and great friend, Roger Paterson, passed away yesterday, after a short illness.

Loved by many, and truly one of the greats, he will be sorely missed by our team here at Lake’s Folly, and many of our members who came to know Roger well over his 18 years at the Folly, as cellar door manager - not to mention countless others during Roger’s time in the Hunter Valley wine industry, at Terrace Vale, Marsh Estate, Rothbury Estate and Brokenwood Wines.

RIP to our dear mate, and our love to his partner Sharon, and their extended families.

Please raise a glass of your finest in Roger’s honour. 🍷

Funeral details will be posted soon via Smyth’s Funerals, Cessnock, on their website.

24/10/2024

We’re proud to share the news that Lake’s Folly has been named in the Halliday Wine Companion Top 100 Wineries of 2024, at number 31.

From a starting ‘long list’ of 1100 producers, whose wines were reviewed in the last 12 months, to the Top 100 published today, we’re delighted with this recognition by the Halliday team, who wrote:

“The Top 100 recognises and celebrates the very best producers of Australian wine right now…They are names that resonate with excellence.”

This great news follows on from our 2022 Red’s recent inclusion in the Halliday Wine Companion Top 100 Wines of 2024.

Our small team here has a great passion and commitment to all that Lake’s Folly represents, and we’re also very thankful to our many loyal followers, members and customers.

Congratulations also to our fellow Hunter producers in the Top 100: Tyrrell’s, Poole’s Rock, Mount Pleasant, De Iuliis, Brokenwood and Silkman Wines.

Cheers! 🍷

12/10/2024

We’re delighted to share that our 2022 Red has been named in the Top 100 Wines of 2024, by Halliday Wine Companion, in the ‘Reds Over $50’ category.

As a producer of wines made from a small single-site vineyard, we are particularly proud of the acknowledgment of the consistent ‘style’ that is Lake’s Folly - something our team always strives to achieve, regardless of the season:

“Few wineries have such a powerful and consistent style signature, and for this, it deserves high praise.”
- Toni Paterson, MW

We’re also incredibly grateful to our very loyal Members and Customers, who enthusiastically snapped up this vintage after its release earlier this year - which is now sold out - and we’re excited for our next red release in April 2025.

Cheers to that! 🍷

11/12/2023

AUSTRALIA’S MOST COLLECTED CABERNET BLEND
We’re delighted to again be featured in Wine Ark’s ‘Australia’s Most Collected Wines’ list.

Every three years, Australia’s largest and most-recommended wine storage provider, Wine Ark, conducts a comprehensive audit of over one million bottles of wine in their climate-controlled cellars across Australia, which results in this one-of-a-kind snapshot of the most-collected wines for collectors from within, and outside, Australia.

This is testament to the continued loyalty and love of our wines shown by our members and customers, many of whom are longstanding, and many with multiple vintages of Lake’s Folly in their cellars - a big thanks to all of you!

from …

No. 6 - Lakes Folly Cabernets.

Cabernets comes in at number 6 in the Australia’s Most Collected Wines 2023, also taking 1st place as Australia’s Most Collected Cabernet blend. A sentimental favourite for the Wine Ark crew and generous holdings nationally. Also worth noting the Lakes Folly Chardonnay jumped 4 positions to No. 22 on the list, the third most collected Chardonnay in the country. 👏

08/12/2023

Today we bid ‘Happy Retirement’ to Lake’s Folly’s longest-serving employee, Pete Payard, who has worked as assistant winemaker, since 1984, commencing during the Lake family’s time, and since 2000 under the Fogarty family’s ownership.

Pete has worked alongside all of Lake’s Folly’s winemakers; first with Max and Stephen Lake, and then Rod Kempe for the last 23 years.

Just a few months shy of 40 years’ service is a milestone rarely seen or achieved in the current era, and Pete’s loyalty and commitment to his role has never wavered.

Many of our members and customers have also come to know Pete well over the years.

Please join us in wishing Pete all the best in his retirement.

Enjoy the sleep-ins Pete, and some well-earned time off with your family!

19/04/2022

Our annual Members’ wine despatches have started today, with the first of four truckloads now on its way.
Our team has been busy this past month, since the release of our latest vintages.
Check our stories for more fast-paced, behind-the-scenes action!

14/04/2022

Some great news that we’re excited to share - we’ve been named in Gourmet Traveller WINE Magazine’s ‘Australia’s Best Cellar Door Awards’ for 2022 - our 5th appearance in the last 7 years - this year for ‘Best Additonal Cellar Door Experience (Historic Site and Atmosphere)’.

Our Cellar Door has just re-opened with the latest releases and we hope to see you soon!

Congrats to the Hunter Valley wineries who won in the other categories.🍷👏

01/04/2022

RELEASE DAY | LINK BELOW to read more & order online…

It’s been a while ‘between drinks’ - almost nine months, in fact, since we sold out of last year’s releases in record time - so, we’re delighted to announce that our latest vintages are now available!

The Cellar Door has also just re-opened for wine tastings and sales - Roger, with Rod and Pete (our expert Cellar Door/Winemaking team!) are looking forward to welcoming our visitors.

This time of year is something our team looks forward to, and we’re immensely proud of the wines produced here. From the vineyard - tended by Jason, Mick, and Brandon - to the finished wine in bottle; the result of hard work, dedication and love for what we do, and we’re always excited to share the fruits of our labour at release time (no pun intended!).

One of the best aspects of Lake’s Folly, is the uncompromising approach to true estate-made wines. As the vineyard approaches its 60th year, we feel most proud of the fact that Lake’s Folly remains family-owned - the Fogarty family at the helm now for 22 years – and remains, as it was in 1963, a single-site vineyard that produces unique, distinguished wines, with a thread of consistency, year in-year out. Our wines really do demonstrate that ‘terroir’ isn’t unique to the French!
When you visit our cellar door, you’ll drive past the vines that produce the wines you’ve come here to sample. And, a working winery is just behind the doors; it’s not merely a shopfront.

Grown here and made here since 1963.
Here’s Cheers! to 🍷

After a long wait, we’re delighted to be back to announce the much-anticipated release of our latest vintages! Fortunately, for the team here, work and life at Lake’s Folly has continued largely as normal over the past year - the only exception being that the cellar door was closed for almost ni...