Hahndorf Hill co-owner Larry Jacobs

An Adelaide Hills Grüner Veltliner has taken out the Wine of Show trophy at the Australian Cool Climate Wine Show 2022 at Murrumbateman in New South Wales over the weekend.

The Hahndorf Hill Green Angel Grüner Veltliner Late Harvest 2021, described by the judges as ‘delicious’, won three trophies, including Best White Wine of Show and the competition’s top honour, Wine of Show.

The wine marks the first time a Grüner Veltliner has won the award for Wine of Show at the Australian Cool Climate Wine Show, which has traditionally been dominated by Pinot Noir and Chardonnay.

Larry Jacobs, co-owner of Hahndorf Hill, said he was delighted at this achievement.

“This is such a thrill because it’s not often that a dessert wine will take out the very top award at any wine show – but the fact that it’s a Gruner Veltliner wine makes it all the more sweet for me,” he said.

Hahndorf Hill produced South Australia’s first Grüner Veltliner wine in 2010 and the boutique operation currently makes four different styles of wine from this variety.

The Adelaide Hills wine region is currently the epicentre for Grüner Veltliner in Australia, with the Austrian white grape becoming the region’s fifth most harvested white variety according to the Vinehealth Australia SA Wine Grape Crush Survey 2022.

In addition, this annual report recorded that Grüner Veltliner grapes achieved the highest average price per tonne for white grapes in the region.

“There are some fantastic Grüner Veltliner wines coming out of the Adelaide Hills from various producers at the moment, and these wines are doing really well on both national and international stages,” said Jacobs.

Hahndorf Hill has chosen to specialise in Austrian variety wines such as Grüner Veltliner, Blaufrankisch and Zweigelt. Mr Jacobs said he was particularly excited about the debut release next month of his new Austrian red wine, Saint Laurent.

“This will be the first production of Saint Laurent in Australia and it has recently been confirmed via DNA analysis that this grape is the genetic daughter of Pinot Noir, so it is a perfect fit for the cool Adelaide Hills wine region,” he said.

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