THE WINEWISE CHAMPIONSHIP 2011

The Ultimate Accolade - The Winewise Championship Medallion

In what amounts to a ‘best of the best competition’, the Winewise Championship 2011 acknowledges Australia’s finest wines, from producers large and small. The Championship benchmarks regional champions against national champions in an exercise which seeks to promote the best wine styles Australia has to offer. This year's Championship was held in Canberra on 17 and 18 February 2011.

The 2011 Medallion winners are:

CHAMPION DRY WHITE:	2009 Penfolds Reserve Bin 09A Chardonnay	(Adelaide Hills)
CHAMPION DRY RED:	2009 Shaw and Smith Shiraz	(Adelaide Hills)
Chardonnay Medallion:	2009 Penfolds Reserve Bin 09A Chardonnay	(Adelaide Hills)
Riesling Medallion:	2005 St Hallett Eden Valley Riesling	(Eden Valley)
Sauvignon Blanc Medallion:	2010 Wicks Estate Sauvignon Blanc	(Adelaide Hills)
Semillon Medallion:	2006 Tyrrell’s Vat 1 Semillon	(Hunter Valley)
Pinot Gris Medallion:	2010 Nepenthe Altitude Pinot Gris	(Adelaide Hills)
Viognier Medallion:	2009 Yalumba Eden Valley Viognier	(Eden Valley)
Other Dry White Medallion:	2006 Tahbilk Marsanne	(Goulburn Valley)
Sweet White Medallion:	2009 Yalumba FSW8B Botrytis Viognier	(Wrattonbully)
Sparkling Wine:	2000 Freycinet Radenti Sparkling	(Tasmania)
Pinot Noir Medallion:	2008 Paringa Estate Estate Pinot Noir	(Mornington Penninsula)
Cabernet Sauvignon Medallion:	2008 Fuddling Cup Cabernet Sauvignon	(Geographe WA)
Bordeaux Blend Medallion:	2009 Catching Thieves Cabernet Merlot	(Margaret River)
Merlot Medallion:	2009 Charnwood Estate Merlot	(Mudgee)
Classic Red Blend Medallion:	2008 Lindemans Limestone Ridge Shiraz Cabernet	(Coonawarra)
Shiraz Medallion:	2009 Shaw and Smith Shiraz	(Adelaide Hills)
Tempranillo Medallion:	2009 Running With Bulls Tempranillo	(Barossa Valley)
Other Red Blend Medallion:	2009 Gilligan Shiraz Grenache/Mourvèdre	(McLaren Vale)
Other Red Varietal Medallion:	2009 Terra Felix E'vette's Block Mourvedre	(Goulburn Valley)

The wines were assessed in small groups and ranked in order of preference by the judging panel comprised of four of the regular Winewise panel and experienced show judges – Lester Jesberg (Championship Chair), Deb Pearce, Len Sorbello and Phil Trickett – and two of Australia's most respected wine judges – Tom Carson (Chairman of the National Wine Show of Australia) and Huon Hooke (Sydney Morning Herald winewriter). The winning wines are each awarded a gold-plated 63 cm Medallion, specially struck by the Royal Australian Mint (as illustrated below).

The best wines from the following Australian wine shows during the period February 2010 - January 2011 were invited to participate in the 2011 Winewise Championship:

National Wine Show of Australia Winewise Small Vigneron Awards Adelaide Hills Wine Show Australian Alternative Varieties Wine Show Barossa Wine Show Canberra Regional Wine Show Clare Valley Wine Show Geelong Wine Show Gippsland Wine Show Hunter Valley Wine Show International Riesling Challenge International Sweet White Challenge Limestone Coast Wine Show Margaret River Wine Show McLaren Vale Wine Show Mudgee Wine Show National Cool Climate Wine Show New England Wine Show (Incl. Granite Belt, Qld) NSW Wine Awards Orange Region Wine Show Tasmanian Wine Show Victorian Wines Show Wine Show of Western Australia Yarra Valley Wine Show

To add balance, the Championship Chair, Lester Jesberg, invited some 'wildcard' entries from producers who don't normally enter wine shows but whose wines were previously assessed under show conditions. This is an important criteria for the Championship - only wines judged in competitive 'blind' tastings are eligible.

Lester Jesberg: “While the National Show has now revised its eligibility criteria to recognize the Winewise Small Vigneron Awards and selected Regional Shows, many smaller producers still find the criteria hard to meet and confine their wines to the regional shows, thus missing out on valuable benchmarking across the national spectrum. This competition brings all the wines together for the benefit of both winemakers and consumers."

Championship Chair's comments: "This competition again demonstrates the high quality of Australia's premium wines across a range of wine regions and grape varieties.

A look at the winners list tells some of the Championship story, but not all. The spoils were shared among producers of all sizes, and that’s a good thing. The Adelaide Hills was the ‘hot’ area this year, but the big themes for me are the emergence of ‘other’ red varieties and blends, and the closeness of the judging. Tempranillo, mourvèdre, GSM blends, and an inspired union of shiraz, grenache and tempranillo all thrilled the judges, and it was suggested by more than one that this is a segment to follow.

When we pull together such a strong line-up of wines from all over the country, we expect competition to be fierce. Fierce it was, and I daresay if we judged the Championship today, some of the results would be slightly different. Significantly for our readers we identified several wines of incredible value."

Full details of the 2011 Winewise Championship and descriptions of the all the wines entered in the competition will be published exclusively in the April 2011 edition of Winewise Magazine. Subscribe Now

MEDALLION WINERIES AND OTHER ENTRANTS CONTACT DETAILS
Click Here for the Contact Details of All the Championship Entrants, including Medallion Winners

THE JUDGES

Lester Jesberg, Huon Hooke & Tom Carson

Phil Trickett, Deb Pearce & Len Sorbello

DETAILED 2011 CHAMPIONSHIP RESULTS

Detailed results will be included on this website in April 2011 after the April edition of Winewise Magazine is published

RESULTS OF 2010 WINEWISE CHAMPIONSHIP

Full details of the 2010 Winewise Championship can be found here