Image courtesy Adelaide Hills Wine Show
The trophy winners of the 2023 Adelaide Hills Wine Show were announced yesterday at a gala luncheon at Lot 100 in Nairne, revealing the top wines made in the Adelaide Hills Wine Region.
The intrinsic diversity of the Adelaide Hills was evident with fifteen different wines receiving trophies across the various categories.
Gamay makes a move
In an Australian wine show first, a new Trophy was created for Best Gamay, which was won by Golding Single Vineyard Series 2023 Ombre Gamay. Gamay is a newly emerging varietal star of the Adelaide Hills and a record number of fourteen Gamay wines were entered into the show this year.
“There is fantastic potential for the Adelaide Hills wine region to become the leader for Gamay in Australia,” said Trescowthick. “The unique red grape variety grows beautifully in our cool climate and produces elegant, medium-bodied wines with finesse and flavour.”
Crowe echoed this sentiment.
“In a couple of years’ time, Adelaide Hills Gamay will be a very exciting category. My decision to award a trophy for Gamay this year will hopefully drive Adelaide Hills’ wine producers to continue to strive for excellence.”
Sidewood triumphs
In total, Sidewood Estate was awarded seven trophies – the first time a single producer has won so many categories with three different wines in the show’s twenty-six-year history.
The wine of the day was Sidewood 2021 Mappinga Chardonnay which won the Best Wine of the Show, Best White Wine, Best Chardonnay, and Best Single Vineyard Wine. Their 2015 Isabella Rosé Sparkling was deemed Best Sparkling Wine, and 2023 The Mad Cat Rosé was granted Best Rosé. These results culminated in Sidewood Estate being named the Best Producer of the Show >100 tonnes for the second year running.
The president of Adelaide Hills Wine Region, Alex Trescowthick was thrilled with the results.
“Sidewood Estate’s commitment and passion for the Adelaide Hills wine region is indisputable. For the past 20 years, Owen and Cassandra Inglis have dedicated themselves to outstanding wine quality and they must be bursting with pride in their achievements. I’d say there will be some big celebrations over in Hahndorf this week.”
Sarah Crowe, head of judges, was surprised when she found out that so many of the awarded wines came from one producer:.
“The judging of the wines is all done blind, so none of the judges (including me) know the identity of any of the wines during the judging process. We are purely assessing each wine on its individual merits and scoring them accordingly.”
“The best wine of the show, whose identity was later revealed to me as the Sidewood 2021 Mappinga Chardonnay, showed excellent balance and complexity; perfectly treading the fine line between refinement and flintiness, and generosity of flavour and complexity,” said Crowe.
Longview Vineyard also took home a number of accolades, winning a total of four trophies. Longview collected Best Red Wine of Show and Best Shiraz for its 2022 Macclesfield Syrah Best Red, Best Cabernet or Blend for Devil’s Elbow 2022 Cabernet Sauvignon, as well as Best Grüner Veltliner with their 2023 Macclesfield wine.
“Regarding the Best Red Wine, the Longview 2022 Macclesfield Syrah had a lovely fruit profile, good volume on palate, and a wonderful acid line,” said Crowe. “There was also a lovely nettle-like grip on the palate that gave the wine an extra element of freshness.”
Meanwhile, boutique winery Mount Lofty Ranges Vineyard in Lenswood took the award for Best Producer of the Show <100 tonnes, on the back of its 2023 Home Block Riesling which was deemed Best Riesling.
2023 Adelaide Hills Wine Show Top Trophy winners include:
Best Wine of the Show
Sidewood 2021 Mappinga Chardonnay
Best White Wine of the Show
Sidewood 2021 Mappinga Chardonnay
Best Sparkling Wine of the Show
Sidewood 2015 Isabella Rosé Sparkling
Best Red Wine of the Show
Longview 2022 Macclesfield Syrah
Best Producer of the Show <100 tonnes
Mt Lofty Ranges Vineyard
Best Producer of the Show >100 tonnes
Sidewood Estate
2023 Adelaide Hills Wine Show Trophy winners by style/variety include:
Best Single Vineyard Wine
Sidewood 2021 Mappinga Chardonnay
Best Chardonnay of the Show
Sidewood 2021 Mappinga Chardonnay
Best Riesling of the Show
Mt Lofty Ranges Vineyard 2023 Home Block Riesling
Best Sauvignon Blanc of the Show
K1 Wines 2023 Sauvignon Blanc
Best Pinot Gris/Grigio of the Show
Lloyd Brothers 2023 Pinot Grigio
Best Grüner Veltliner of the Show
Longview Macclesfield 2023 Grüner Veltliner
Best White Wine in Classes
Artwine 2023 The Real Thing Albarino
Best Rosé of the Show
Sidewood Estate 2023 The Mad Cat Rosé
Best Pinot Noir of the Show
Shaw + Smith 2022 Pinot Noir
Best Shiraz of the Show
Longview Macclesfield 2022 Syrah
Best Cabernet family or Blend of the Show
Longview Devil’s Elbow 2022 Cabernet Sauvignon
Best Gamay of the Show
Golding Single Vineyard Series 2023 Ombre Gamay
Best Red Wine in Classes Other
Berrigan Wines 2022 “Shining Rock” Sangiovese
Best Wine in Museum Classes
Wicks Estate 2013 Pamela Sparkling
Best Wine of Provenance
The Pawn 2023, 2021, 2015 Grüner Veltliner
A total of 627 wines were entered and judged in the 2023 wine show, up 3% from 2022.
The full catalogue of results is available here: https://www.adelaidehillswine.com.au/events/wineshow/
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