A Clare Valley Shiraz named Australia’s best

A Clare Valley Shiraz has beaten the five year dominance of the whites and almost 1,900 entries to take out the title of Australia’s best wine at the RNA’s innovative Royal Queensland Wine Show (RQWS) in Brisbane last night.

The 2010 Annie’s Lane Copper Trail Shiraz was awarded the Grand Champion Title and The Courier-Mail Trophy while the 2011 Westend 3 Bridges Cabernet Sauvignon took out the prestigious Stodart Trophy for the best one year old dry red table wine.

The Annie’s Lane Copper Trail Shiraz scored 98 out of 100 and is an absolutely brilliant wine – it’s perfectly balanced, has a great fruit complexity and the oak is well integrated.  It was part of a class which had more than 260 wines entered so to not only come up with the number of gold medals that it did, but then to take out the entire competition just proves how good it is.

Chardonnays also showed significant improvement – there was more finesse, more balance and less oak and we are now seeing more modern chardonnays being exhibited which is great.”

As one of Australia’s oldest wine competitions – first staged in 1876 – and the first national show held in a capital city each year, the RQWS provides the platform for the nation’s best wine producers to reveal their new season’s vintage.

The 2012 competition attracted a 10 per cent increase in new exhibitors with 257 Australian wineries striving for one of the 24 trophies up for grabs.

In May this year, the RQWS announced its move to the internationally recognised 100-point scoring system from the 60-point system, which represents the first major wine show in Australia to do so.

The system has grown in popularity in the past five years in Australia and has become widely recognised by domestic consumers and used by leading wine critics including James Halliday.

The RQWS is one of eight competitions in the Royal Queensland Food and Wine Show – an exciting initiative of the RNA which showcases the best of the best from dairy, to ice-cream, wine, steak, lamb, chocolate, sausages and beer.  The next competition in the hunt for the top food and wine offerings is the Sausage King State Final on July 8.

Full list of RQWS 2012 trophy winners:

For the Grand Champion Wine of Show (Australia’s best wine) selected from all Trophy winning wines, excluding Current Vintage Whites, One Year Old Reds and Fortified Wines - The Courier-Mail Trophy
Annie’s Lane At Quelltaler – Class 32 Cat. No. 70 – Annie’s Lane Copper Trail Shiraz 2010

For the Best Gold Medal winning One Year Old Dry Red Table Wine in Classes 16 to 24  – The Stodart Trophy
Westend Estate Pty Ltd – Class 16 Cat. No. 7 – Westend 3 Bridges Cabernet Sauvignon 2011

For the best gold medal winning Queensland wine made and produced in Queensland by a Queensland winery to be judged by interstate judges only  -The Flinders Group Trophy
Golden Grove Estate – Class 5 Cat. No. 15 – Golden Grove Vermentino 2012

Most Significant Contribution by an individual to the Wine Industry in Queensland – The Queensland Wine Press Club Trophy
Tim Yule

For the Most Successful Queensland Exhibitor gaining the greatest number of points – The John G Marchant Memorial Trophy
Symphony Hill Wines Pty Ltd

Awarded to the Most Successful Exhibitor securing the highest number of points in Wine and Brandy Classes – The Dan O’Connor Trophy
Rosemount Estates Pty Ltd

For the Best Gold Medal winning Aged Brandy in Class 89  – The Maldwyn & Ian Davies Trophy
Angove’s Family Winemakers – Class 89 Cat. No. 4 – St Agnes XO Non Vintage

For the Best Fortified Wine of Show  – The Thomas Trophy
Morris Wines – Class 46 Cat. No. 3 – Morris Old Premium Liqueur Muscat NV

For the Best Gold Medal winning Sweet Red Dessert Tawny of Show in Classes 47 to 50 and 77 to 80 – The CSG Print Services Trophy
Morris Wines – Class 49 Cat. No. 3 – Morris Grand Tawny NV

For the Best Gold Medal winning Muscat of the Show in Classes 43 to 46 and 73 to 76 – The Royal Queensland Food & Wine Show Trophy
Morris Wines – Class 46 Cat. No. 3 – Morris Old Premium Liqueur Muscat NV

For the Best Gold Medal winning Alternative Red or White variety to be judged by Associate Judges – The John Chandler Memorial Trophy
Running With Bulls – Class 14 Cat. No. 17 – Running With Bulls Vermentino 2011

For the Best Gold Medal winning Dry Red Merlot of the Show in Classes 19, 33 and 66 – The Tattersall’s Wine Club Trophy
Leconfield Wines – Class 19 Cat. No. 3 – Richard Hamilton Lot 148 Merlot 2011

For the Best Gold Medal winning Dry Red Shiraz Wine in Mature Class 32 – The Brisbane Club Trophy
Annie’s Lane At Quelltaler – Class 32 Cat. No. 70 – Annie’s Lane Copper Trail Shiraz 2010

For the Best Gold Medal winning Pinot Noir of the Show in Classes 17, 31 and 64 – The BDO Trophy
Bay Of Fires – Class 17 Cat. No. 13 – Bay of Fires Pinot Noir 2011

For the Best Gold Medal Winning Dry Red Wine in Commercial Classes 63 to 71 – The Wine Guild of Australia Inc. (Queensland) Trophy
Majella Wines – Class 63 Cat. No. 62 – Majella Cabernet 2010

For the Best Gold Medal winning Mature Red Wine Two Years and older in Classes 30 to 38 – The Alan Cook MBE Trophy
Annie’s Lane At Quelltaler – Class 32 Cat. No. 70 – Annie’s Lane Copper Trail Shiraz 2010

For the Best Gold Medal winning Sweet White Wine of Show in Classes 15, 29 and 60 – The Royal Queensland Food & Wine Show Trophy
Nugan Estate Pty Ltd – Class 29 Cat. No. 4 – Cookoothama Botrytis Semillon 2009

For the Best Gold Medal winning Aged Riesling 2 Years and Over in Classes 25 and 54 – The Brisbane Club Trophy
Leasingham – Class 25 Cat. No. 14 – Leasingham Classic Clare Riesling 2008

For the Best Gold Medal winning Chardonnay of the Show in Classes 11, 26 and 55 – The A O Fleming Trophy
Abel’s Tempest – Class 55 Cat. No. 10 – Abel’s Tempest Chardonnay 2011

For the Best Gold Medal winning Dry White Wine in Commercial Classes 54 to 59 – The Taskpos Trophy
Abel’s Tempest – Class 55 Cat. No. 10 – Abel’s Tempest Chardonnay 2011

For the Best Gold Medal winning Mature White Wine, Two Years and Older in Classes 25 to 28 – The Royal Queensland Food & Wine Show Trophy
Leasingham – Class 25 Cat. No. 14 – Leasingham Classic Clare Riesling 2008

For the Best Gold Medal winning One Year Old Dry White Wine in Classes 9 to 14 – The Dinner at Eight Club Trophy
McWilliam’s Wines Group – Class 12 Cat. No. 4 – Mount Pleasant Lovedale Semillon 2011

For the Best Gold Medal winning Dry White Wine in Current Vintage Classes 1 to 6 – The Technology Effect Trophy
Pewsey Vale Vineyard – Class 1 Cat. No. 25 – Pewsey Vale Riesling 2012

For the Best Gold Medal winning Sparkling White Wine in Classes 61, 87 and 88 – The Culinart Trophy
Brown Brothers Milawa Vineyard – Class 87 Cat. No. 11 – Brown Brothers Pinot Noir Chardonnay Pinot Meunier NV

Source:  www,eatdrink.com.au - 9 July 2012