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(L-R) Huon Hooke along with his Australian panel co-chair Justin Knock MW, Anne Healey, DWWA co-chair Michael Hill Smith MW, Lenka Sedlackova MW and Andrea Pritzker MW. Huon Hooke
The Decanter World Wine Awards (DWWA) is the world’s greatest wine competitors, this yr setting one other file, with entry numbers topping 18,000. Entries have been acquired from 57 international locations.
A large group of 236 judges was assembled from all corners of the earth, together with 69 masters of wine (MW) and grasp sommeliers (MS). A handful of Australians made the journey to London this yr for per week of tasting 80 wines a day in one of many best-run wine reveals I’ve ever participated in.
One of many pleasures of judging at DWWA is that daily, we panel chairs style with totally different individuals, typically from disparate components of the world.
Retired Brokenwood chief winemaker and MD Iain Riggs AM and Sydney wine educator Andrea Pritzker MW joined myself and Australian-born Londoner Justin Knock MW and co-chair (chief decide) of the competitors, Michael Hill Smith MW AM, for the week. Justin and I chair the 2 Australian panels.
I can’t let you know the outcomes as they gained’t be introduced for a number of weeks and we judges gained’t know the identities of the wines we tasted till then.
The joke after I arrived was that Australia had gained an nearly embarrassing variety of gold medals final yr. To the response “Ought to we be more durable this yr?” the reply was invariably “No, under no circumstances. The wines deserved their outcomes.”
What did I style?
Nearly every little thing Australia produces from luscious outdated Rutherglen muscats and topaques to glowing wines, and much and many shiraz. Stand-outs for me personally have been the Margaret River and Adelaide Hills chardonnays, the Tasmanian and Macedon Ranges pinot noirs, the mid-priced Victorian shirazes and naturally these outdated Rutherglen dessert fortified wines.
Tasting the various flights of shiraz, it struck me how oaky the Barossa shirazes nonetheless are: whereas the remainder of Australia has moved decisively away from over-oaking, the Barossa remains to be caught in that groove. It was particularly noticeable, as my panel judged a number of flights of Barossa shirazes in addition to Victorian and south-west WA shirazes, which offered a stark distinction. The cooler-climate shirazes have been far much less oaky, and showcased their varietal and regional traits far more clearly. These wines have been extra elegant, extra balanced, extra drinkable, and extra stunning.
The query was requested repeatedly: when nearly your entire wine world at the moment is championing regional and winery character, why cram a wine so stuffed with domineering oak flavour that it tastes of little else?
We might acknowledge that this conventional type has many supporters amongst lovers of full-bodied purple wine, however it isn’t what the world of style leaders considers to be nice wine. There should exist many drinkers who need this kind of wine, however it isn’t the long run.
One of many pleasures of judging at DWWA is that daily, we panel chairs style with totally different individuals, typically from disparate components of the world. Every brings his or her personal perspective.
A panel consists of three individuals: the panel chair and two different judges. On Day 1, I tasted with Li Demei, a professor of oenology at Beijing Agricultural Faculty, and Jonas Röjerman MW, a Swedish sommelier, wine educator and marketing consultant.
Day 2 was with Li Demei once more and Gareth Ferreira MS, a South African wine man who’s at the moment beverage director at three-Michelin-star restaurant Core by Clare Smyth.
Day 3: Swedish-born worldwide wine marketing consultant Madeleine Stenwreth MW and Australian-born Canadian at the moment working in Oregon, Bree Inventory MW.
Day 4: Eddie McDougall, an Australian-born wine man who lives in Macau and makes wine in Australia beneath the Flying Winemaker model, and Daisuke Kawai, Japanese sommelier and wine marketing consultant.
Day 5: English wine skilled Sara Muirhead MW and Ben Chan, an Australian working in London for main wine service provider Berry Bros & Rudd.
Outcomes shall be revealed on the Decanter web site on June 19.
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