Auckland chardonnay steals the show at wine awards

August 31, 2016

Auckland chardonnay steals the show at wine awards

Chairman of the judges, Ben Glover, left, with international judges Andrea Frost and Nick Ryan. Photo: Alexander Tange

Auckland’s Villa Maria winery swept the show at the 2016 Bragato Wine Awards, announced on Friday. It took the title of best wine from a single vineyard and the esteemed Bragato Champion Wine of the Show trophy, plus other awards.

The 22nd annual Bragato Wine Awards saw 224 growers from New Zealand compete for jury members’ taste buds in best wine categories as well as individual competitions for wines such as shiraz and pinot noir.

Villa Maria’s Single Vineyard Ihumatao Chardonnay 2014, the wine that won the main Bragato Champion Wine award, earned high praise.

Chairman of the 12 judges, Ben Glover, said:

“This chardonnay demonstrated exceptional respect to the variety and is a shining example of what hard graft in the vineyard and soft touch in the winery can achieve.

“It shows wonderful expression and captures the essence of the Ihumatao vineyard. Simply stunning!”

The judging team had tasted 616 wines over two days before announcing the winner at the New Zealand Winegrowers Romeo Bragato national conference in Marlborough on Friday.

Mr Glover said he had the task of assembling a team of like-minded judges, who could provoke each other.

He said there had been many good arguments about style and looks from a diverse panel which included writers, growers and retailers, with international guests such as Australian writer Nick Ryan.

“We’ve seen some seriously good wine the last couple of days. The one class that I think I enjoyed judging the most was the syrah class, where 11 wines made the cut to the discussions about gold medals, and there were really some sexy wines in that class,” Nick Ryan told Te Waha Nui during the judging held at AUT.

The awards seek to recognise the influence of Kiwi growers and their vineyards. To claim the title award, a wine has to be composed of at least 95 per cent grapes from a single New Zealand vineyard.

“Research suggests that wines that win trophies generally increase their sales, and anecdotally we get reports that this happens,” said Angela Willis, manager of global events at New Zealand Winegrowers, which organises the event.

New Zealand wine is experiencing good days. An annual report released a week ago by New Zealand Winegrowers showed a 10 per cent increase in wine exports.

“I think New Zealand wine is in a really strong position. Every time I look at the industry it seems to be improving a bit more, and there’s a real diversity in New Zealand wine which is an exciting thing,” Mr Ryan said.

“And they are wines that couldn’t come from anywhere else in the world,” he said.

Keen on tasting some of New Zealand’s finest wine yourself? Try one of the winners of the 2016 Bragato Wine Awards:

Bragato Champion Wine of the Show and Champion Single Vineyard Wine - Villa Maria Single Vineyard Ihumatao Chardonnay 2014, Champion Domaine and Classical Red Wine - Villa Maria Reserve Gimblett Gravels Hawke’s Bay Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon Merlot 2014, Champion Gewürztraminer - Villa Maria Single Vineyard Ihumatao Gewürztraminer 2014, Champion Sweet Wine - Villa Maria Reserve Marlborough Noble Riesling Botrytis Selection 2015, Champion Sauvignon Blanc - Tohu Single Vineyard Sauvignon Blanc Marlborough 2016, Champion Pinot Noir - Black Quail Estate Pinot Noir Central Otago 2013, Champion Riesling - Maude, Mt Maude Vineyard East Block Riesling Central Otago 2016, Champion Syrah - Falcon Ridge Estate Syrah Nelson 2015, Champion Pinot Gris - Aronui Pinot Gris Single Vineyard Nelson 2016, Champion Rosé - Wooing Tree Rosé Central Otago 2016, Champion Other Red Wine - Coopers Creek SV Hawke’s Bay Malbec ‘Saint John’ 2013

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