Rockers Request Taste Of Top Drop

Newcastle Herald

Monday June 25, 2007

By DONNA SHARPE

THE Hunter's Wyndham Estate has won the Grand Vinitaly Award, the first winery in the southern hemisphere to take out the international honour.

The Dalwood winery received the award at the 2007 Vinitaly International Wine Competition held recently in Verona, Italy, for its Bin 555 Shiraz and its Show Reserve Cabernet Merlot 2001.

The event attracted 3500 entries from 30 countries with only 105 medals awarded confirming the competition standard.

News of the win did not take long to travel.

Wyndham Estate public relations and operations manager Tim Bowring made a lightning trip to Sydney late yesterday armed with four cases of the shiraz after red wine lovers and US heavy rockers Guns N' Roses requested a taste.

The band played in Sydney's Acer Arena last night and on Saturday night.

The Vinitaly International Wine Competition is regarded as the largest and most selective international wine competition in the world.

The competition is held as part of a five-day fair, this year attracting 150,000 people. A total of 38,000 buyers representing more than 100 countries attended the event.

The Grand Vinitaly Award is assigned to the winery totalling the highest score for two wines awarded medals in different groups.

The judging involved 21 juries including leading oenologists (wine experts) and senior journalists from across the globe.

Wyndham Estate now joins the Vinitaly Roll of Honour, which includes an impressive line up of previous winners such as Ernest and Julio Gallo from America, Segura Viudas di Torrelavit from Spain and four-time winner Banfi di Montalcino from Italy.

Mr Bowring said the secret to Wyndham's award winning shiraz was the estate's 80-year-old shiraz vines.

"They're not producing much but what they are producing is superior quality," Mr Bowring said.

He said the wine's popularity is likely to skyrocket.

The wine was already exported to 47 countries but he expected sales to increase significantly.

"The next vintage will be substantially less because of the drought and I expect there will be some pressure on supply," Mr Bowring said.

"This win will really stamp our prominence on shiraz both nationally and internationally."

© 2007 Newcastle Herald

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