Top drops face taste test in Canberra

More than 300 vineyards are vying for prestigious awards at the National Wine Show of Australia in Canberra.

Tasting of more than 1,000 wines is underway by a panel of 13 sommeliers, wine writers, retailers and restaurateurs from Australia, Tokyo and Sweden.

To compete in the four day show, entrants need to have won specific capital city or regional wine shows.

Sommeliers, wine writers, retailers and restaurateurs will taste more than 1,000 wines during the four day show.

Marni Tebbutt from the Royal National Capital Agricultural Society says a lot of new wineries have entered this year.

She says they had expected a drop in entries because of severe summer weather in south-eastern Australia.

"But they have actually come up again from last year. So we don't seem to think it has affected the vintages that badly," she said.

The 13 judges are divided into smaller panels of three, with each panel assessing different wines.

The wines have been entered across 77 classes which include premium and commercial table wines, sparking, fortified and brandies.

Stewards prepare the wines in a separate space to the judges' tasting area and the judges are presented with a blind tasting.

The judges will taste up to 150 wines per day, with bread cheese and olives to freshen the palette in between tastings.

The panels then reach a consensus score after discussing their findings.

Chairman of judges Stephen Pannell says it is good to see newer and more challenging wine styles such as the sparking white wine Prosecco.

"In the past you have seen Shiraz, Chardonnay, Cabernet, Sauvignon Blanc. You are starting to see blends of these things," he said.

Japan-based wine buyer and judge Ned Goodwin says he has observed other trends.

"There's an expression of greater freshness and, dare I say, drinkability," he said.

"We have lost a lot of traction in the last decade, Australian wine.

"Australian producers are trying to get their wines in at a lower alcohol level."

Winemakers will be invited to join judges in tasting the field of entries next week.

Source: ABC News, 13 November 2012