Sydney Cellar Door: Wine, Dine & Dance!

2012 NSW Wine Festival ~ Feb 25 to March 31

Sydney Cellar Door kicks off the 2012 NSW Wine Festival, brought to you by Citibank, on Saturday 25 and Sunday 26 February in Sydney's Hyde Park South. It's a chance to taste wines from all over NSW (more than 400 of them!) and to meet face-to-face the talented men and women behind the creation of some of our country's finest wines. Learn the stories behind the labels and be the first to discover the new secret gems of NSW wines.

Add to this ultimate array of NSW wines, Sydney's leading restaurateurs, live music from a mix of well-known and up-and-coming artists and 30,000 like-minded food and wine lovers and you have a world-class festival vibe!

Announcing the 2012 Sydney Cellar Door LIVE MUSIC line-up…

The Cellar Door Stage starts out easy on Saturday with Dixieland trad jazz from Robbers Dogs, before erupting with the high octane sounds of The Myall High Club and Sydney's hottest young group of artists, Aston.

Sunday sees last year's hit duo Kinetic Method return to start the day with a bang, handing over to Bluehouse from Melbourne and The My Ty's, who provide boppy tunes with a hint of reggae that you can't help but move to.

2012 Food and Wine Matching…

Find your favourite stylish Rosé to match the equally groovy barbecue pork, leek and jalapeño from Porteño Restaurant & Bar, or a chilled Pinot Gris to cool the spicy pepper and garlic prawns from Nilgiris. With 14 NSW Wine Regions to sample from, you can create your own matches but a Hunter Valley Sangiovese could be an ideal accompaniment to the Syrian specialities from Almond Bar or maybe an Orange Merlot to complement last year's sell-out success, the famous homemade meatball wraps from Wine Odyssey?

NSW regional produce will be celebrated with NSW Wagyu Beef from Restaurant Cuvee and award-winning cheese platters from the Hunter Valley Cheese Company.

Don't forget, after Sydney Cellar Door and throughout March you can still enjoy a glass or two of NSW's finest thanks to NSW Wine of the Month (NEW in 2012) and Dine with NSW Wine - February 27 to March 31, 2012. NSW Wine of the Month sees a selection of Sydney's best wine bars – Firefly, Water Bar at Blue, Zeta Bar at The Hilton, Time to Vino, Grasshopper, The Gazebo, The Owl House, and many more - offering a glass of NSW wine and matching bar snack for just $15.

When you've done sipping and grazing, tuck in to Dine with NSW Wine, with many of the state's leading restaurants offering exclusive, great value wine-matched menus from just $30-$50.

For a full list of participating bars and restaurants and to pre-purchase SCD tokens, visit www.nswwinefestival.com.au

 

NZ Winery Finds Favour with International Airlines

They may be rivals on the ground and in the air, but when it comes to knowing a good wine it seems some of the world's best airlines are in agreement on which wine to serve their passengers.

A number of The Mud House Group's internationally honoured vintages have been selected for in-flight dining on several prestigious airlines for Asia Pacific routes and as far afield as Denmark, Norway and Sweden.

The Mud House Wine Group marketing manager Cathy Wansink, says Scandinavian Airlines will now be serving the celebrated 2010 Mud House Sauvignon Blanc to its business class guests from June this year. The same wine has also been selected for Singapore Airlines business class flights, she says.

Wansink says the company is thrilled to have also found favour with Australia's national carrier, with Qantas choosing the 2009 Mud House Swan Pinot Noir for its business class passengers.

"We pride ourselves on producing a range of exceptional wines from both the Waipara Hills and Mud House brands which are unsurpassed in their quality and taste, we are thrilled that so many global airlines are recognizing our wines in this way, " says Wansink.

The company's wines are also a huge hit with our own domestic carrier, Air New Zealand choosing to serve the popular 2008 Waipara Hills Waipara Chardonnay on international business premier class flights recently. The Mud House wines continue to enjoy their position as industry heavyweights.

"The 2010 Mud House Central Otago Pinot Noir has been selected by Air New Zealand for international economy class flights and will be available in the near future while the 2009 varietal can be enjoyed in Koru Lounges throughout the country already," says Wansink.

The award-winning 2010 Waipara Hills Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc remains a standout success, helping Jetstar win the 'Best Business Class White' in the influential Cellars in the Sky Awards 2011 held in London earlier this month. 

The awards, run by Business Traveller magazine, recognise the best business and first class wines served by airlines worldwide, with more than 250 wines entered by a total of 32 carriers*.

Described by the judging panel as "crisp, fresh and herby with a hint of celery… A good core – balanced, focused and intense," the 2010 Waipara Hills Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc received a mark of 95 out of 100 to take out the prestigious title.

Wansink says the award is a great achievement for the company which continues to make its mark on the world stage.

"The Cellars in the Sky Awards is a particularly unique competition in that it recognises the best wines served to passengers by airlines during in-flight dining. Our brands have continued to impress in this category and have been enjoyed by many thousands of people on a number of different carriers," says Wansink.

For more information, visit www.waiparahills.co.nz or www.mudhouse.co.nz

AUSSIE CHARDONNAYS HIT THE COME-BACK TRAIL

NEW-look Aussie Chardonnay to
enjoy with grilled lemon chicken.

Wc13Feb12

David Ellis

WINE consultant, tutor, critic and author, Rob Geddes noted recently that Aussie Chardonnays are making a come-back, after falling off the rails in the 1990s and their sales being hammered further by rising star Sauvignon Blanc.

Rob blames the Chardonnay demise on makers here following the Californian experience and coming up with what he calls their "Dolly Parton-style – full-bodied, up-front and with everything on show." In brief, he says, "they were over-scented, thickly textured and laden with toasty oak."

As we know sales of our Chardonnays spiralled downwards over the past decade, but Rob says we've learned our lesson and Aussie Chardonnays today are more likely to be more elegant, lean and streamlined. And certainly one that falls into that category is Cumulus Estate's 2011 Rolling Chardonnay that's possibly the best that their winemaker Debbie Lauritz has ever produced.

Made from fruit from the company's vineyards on the Central Ranges and at Orange NSW, this is a Chardonnay that's elegant with finer than usual fruit flavours ranging through citrus, white stone-fruits and riper tropicals, and with some acidity and a wonderful mouthfeel.

INVEST for the cellar, or team this one
now with almost any red-meat dishes

At $17.95 enjoy this new-look Aussie Chardonnay with grilled lemon chicken.

ONE FOR LUNCH: SMALLER than average crops in the Hunter Valley in 2010 produced some wonderfully intensely-flavoured fruit for winemakers, and one stand-out drop that resulted from this was Mount Eyre Vineyards' 2010 Three Ponds Merlot.

A wine with generous dark berry fruit flavours and some nice soft tannins, it's a lovely drink now but will develop further complexity over the next ten years if you'd like to tuck it away. If more interested in enjoying it now, pay $22.95 and share it on the table with almost any red-meat dishes.

(NEED A FOOD/DRINK IDEA? Check out  http://www.vintnews.com )

NSW Wine Festival | Tour of the Regions Dinners

2012 NSW Wine Festival ~ February 25 – March 31

Tour of the Regions Dinners

Media Release

One of the most popular experiences in the NSW Wine Festival program is the series of exclusive degustation dinners entitled 'Tour of the Regions Dinners'.

These dinners bring together some of the country's most knowledgeable and entertaining food and wine commentators, four of Sydney's best chefs, 10 of NSW's most talented winemakers and an intimate number of dinners, offering guests the ultimate way to tour the 14 Wine Regions of NSW without leaving the dinner table.

Tickets to these dining events go on sale today (starting from $150 per person, including degustation menu and wine) and sell out fast so don't delay!

2012 NSW Wine Festival 'Tour of the Regions Dinners':

OTTO RISTORANTE ~ Tour of the Regions "Trophy Winners" Dinner with Huon Hooke, Richard Ptacnik & Nick Paterson

Tuesday 28 February, 6.30pm – for 7.00pm start

What a way to start the series of 'Tour of the Regions' Dinners! An exceptional degustation menu of finely crafted dishes matched to the ultimate selection of Trophy winning wines from the recent 2011 Citibank NSW Wine Awards.

This dinner will unite the talents of Chef, Richard Ptacnik; Nick Paterson (winemaker of the 2011 Citibank NSW Wine of the Year) and one of Australia's most renowned wine critics and Chair of the NSW Wine Awards Judging panel, Huon Hooke. Explore the 'best of the best' of NSW Wine with their experienced guidance, learn what the experts think are the cream-of-the-crop from NSW's 14 diverse regions and find out what it takes to make a Trophy winning wine.

Host Chef:                               Richard Ptacnik                    

MC:                                         Huon Hooke

Featured Winemaker:            Nick Paterson, Mistletoe Wines winemaker & winner of 2011 Citibank NSW Wine of the Year

Address:                                 6 Cowper Wharf Rd Woolloomooloo NSW

Price:                                      $150 per person                     Bookings: 02 9368 7488


BUON RICORDO ~ Tour of the Regions Dinner with Armando Percuoco & Lyndey Milan

Tuesday 13 March, 6.30pm – for 7.00pm start

Armando Percuoco is an icon in the world of authentic Italian cuisine and Lyndey Milan is the most recent recipient of The Sydney Morning Herald Good Food Guide Legend Award, making them the perfect hosts to offer you the ultimate Mediterranean meets NSW experience. They will be joined by three leading NSW winemakers who will share their passion for the amazing variety of wines being produced in NSW today and the tricks of the trade to achieve great food and wine matching with this equally diverse cuisine.

Host Chefs:                             Armando Percuoco               

MC:                                         Lyndey Milan

Guest Winemakers:               Westend Estate Wines, Moppity Vineyards, Bimbadgen Estate

Address:                                 108 Boundary Street, Paddington NSW

Price:                                      $150 per person                     Bookings: 02 9360 6729

 
MARQUE RESTAURANT ~ Tour of the Regions Dinner with Nick Stock & Mark Best

Tuesday 20 March, 7.00pm – for 7.30pm start

Yet again Marque Restaurant has achieved the prestigious three hats in The Sydney Morning Herald Good Food Guide, continuing to inspire customers with cutting edge cuisine that provides the unexpected from the extraordinary. During this year's NSW Wine Festival, Marque's Owner/Chef Mark Best will be joined by wine expert Nick Stock (author of The Sydney Morning Herald Good Wine Guide) and three of the State's most forward-thinking winemakers to showcase how NSW winemakers are pushing wine styles to new heights.

Host Chef:                               Mark Best                              

MC:                                         Nick Stock

Guest Winemakers:               McGuigan Wines, Cumulus Estate Wines, Audrey Wilkinson

Address:                                 4/5 355 Crown Street, Surry Hills NSW

Price:                                      $160 per person                     Bookings: 02 9332 2225

 

SEPIA RESTAURANT ~ Tour of the Regions Dinner with Joanna Savill & Martin Benn

Tuesday 27 March, 6.30pm – for 7.00pm start

This exceptional Eurasian restaurant is the latest winner of the prestigious title of The Sydney Morning Herald Good Food Guide 2012 Restaurant of the Year. Joanna Savill, co-editor of The Sydney Morning Herald Good Food Guide, and Chef Martin Benn will present an unforgettable menu and a panel of NSW winemakers will introduce guests to some of the best new wines from NSW.

Host Chef:                               Martin Benn

MC:                                         Joanna Savill

Guest Winemakers:               Logan Wines, Printhie Wines, De Iuliis, Brokenwood

Address:                                 201 Sussex Street, Sydney NSW

Price:                                      $155 per person                    Bookings: 02 9283 1990


Visit www.nswwinefestival.com.au for further program and pricing/ticketing information.

NSW Wine Festival     @NSWwinefestival

 

Winner of the Best Sommelier of Australia competition

Presentation of the Marc and Eva Besen Perpetual Trophy to Franck Moreau

Recently crowned the winner of the inaugural three-year title of ‘Best Sommelier of Australia’, Franck Moreau will be officially presented with the Marc and Eva Besen Perpetual Trophy in Sydney on Monday 27 February, receiving an extraordinary piece of sculpture created by renowned silversmith Robert Baines.

In late 2011 Franck Moreau from the Merivale Group took out the title of ‘Best Sommelier of Australia’. He was joined by fellow finalists Mark Protheroe (Grossi Group VIC) and Daniel Wegener (Quay, NSW) in a gruelling on-stage examination. The finalist trio were tested on service, tasting, vineyard recognition and wine list correction, all demonstrating the key elements that make a brilliant sommelier. But there could only be one winner.

Marc and Eva Besen have had a long-standing commitment to the Australian wine industry and the arts via their acclaimed Yarra Valley based winery, TarraWarra Estate and the privately funded, public TarraWarra Museum of Art. They have kindly commissioned this handcrafted perpetual trophy in recognition and acknowledgement of the sommelier profession, aiming to inspire future talent to continue to reach for the best in food and wine service.

The trophy has been designed by Professor Robert Baines who has applied his trademark technique of delicately interlaced powder-coated silver in a stunning design that features wine bottles and glassware. Now completed, it is ready to be handed over to its worthy recipient.

The top 14 sommeliers that competed for this coveted award were:

· Matthew Brooke – Circa, VIC
· Joseph Burton – The Source Restaurant at MONA, TAS
· Jeannette Clarke – Ezard, VIC
· Banjo Harris Plane – Attica, VIC
· Yuki Hirose – Rockpool Bar & Grill, NSW
· Travis Howe – Coda, VIC
· Alan Hunter – E’cco, QLD
· Sally Humble – Kumo Izakaya, VIC
· Jarrod Mills – Merivale, NSW
· Franck Moreau - Merivale, NSW
· Emma Plumridge – Rockpool, NSW
· Mark Protheroe – Grossi Group. VIC
· Daniel Wegener – Quay, NSW
· Sanpellegrino ‘Young Gun Wild Card’ entrant, Sarah Ward – Circa, VIC

The competition was developed by the Sommeliers Australia Education Committee comprising Ben Edwards (Sommeliers Australia President; Director of The Wine Guide), David Lawler (Sommeliers Australia Education Committee Chair and Vice President; Head Sommelier at Rockpool Bar & Grill Melbourne), Dan Sims (Sommeliers Australia Education Committee member; Project Manager at The Wine Guide) and Chris Crawford (Sommeliers Australia Education Committee member).

Fowles Wine: the winery formerly known as Plunkett Fowles

On 1 February Plunkett Fowles winery will be known as Fowles Wine to reflect the future direction of the winery.

Late last year, the Fowles Family purchased the remaining interest in the winery from Alan Plunkett. In the circumstances, Sam Plunkett has decided to pursue his Master of Wine.

These key developments are a significant milestone, marking what the Fowles Family feel is an exciting opportunity toevolve the winery's name from Plunkett Fowles to Fowles Wine.

Fowles Wine will continue to be led by Matt Fowles, with Victor Nash stepping up to lead the Fowles Wine winemakingteam as Chief Winemaker.

Matt Fowles said: "We have an incredible team here at Fowles Wine and a real winemaking talent in Victor Nash. Victorhas worked alongside Sam Plunkett crafting our award winning wine for over ten years and has had full operationalresponsibility for the winery since 2007."

Matt Fowles said: "There will be no changes to any of our wine or wine brands. We continue to be wholly focused onpouring the best of the Strathbogie Ranges into the glasses of our loyal followers. We only intend to make a smallcosmetic change on our logo to reflect the winery's ownership change.

As a family we're excited about the next phase and, in particular, continuing to take the best of the 'Bogies to the world.

"For further comment or more information please contact Matt Fowles: 0413 605 447 or matt.fowles@plunkettfowles.com.au

1 month Countdown has begun! 2012 NSW Wine Festival ~ Feb 25 to March 31

Click to visit Facebook page

On track to be even bigger and better than last year, The Sydney Morning Herald NSW Wine Festival, bought to you by Citibank,  begins in just under one month and runs throughout the month of March.

The festivities kick-off on Saturday 25 and Sunday 26 February with Sydney Cellar Door in Hyde Park South, one of the country's largest outdoor wine and food experiences, followed by a month-long celebration of NSW wines in bars and restaurants throughout the city and state-wide.

Tokens are on sale now for Sydney Cellar Door at  www.nswwinefestival.com.au

With an estimated 30,000 people due to enjoy this fabulous weekend in the park, buying tokens in advance online is a great way to maximize your time spent sampling from over 100 of NSW's most exciting wine brands. But visitors can also just arrive on the day, with FREE entry and Tasting Packages available from the token stands from just $25.

Meet the talented winemakers behind your favourite drops up-close-and-personal, including some of the State's most stellar wineries like Audrey Wilkinson, Bimbadgen, Brokenwood, Cumulus Estate Wines, De Iuliis Wines, Logan Wines, Moppity Vineyards, Printhie Wines, McGuigan Wines and Westend Estate Wines.

All the wines on offer can be deliciously complemented by food from 25 of the city's hottest restaurants (many of which are featured in The Sydney Morning Herald Good Food Guide) including Bodega and Porteno, Almond Bar, Efendy, Zushi, Peruvian hot spot Morena and more.  Regional food and restaurant stalls include Esca Bimbadgen, the Hunter Valley Cheese Company and Restaurant Cuvee.

A new layout to this year's Sydney Cellar Door, running along the length of Park Street in Hyde Park South, will provide a bigger area than ever before and even more shaded seating areas to relax and enjoy discovering your way around NSW's best wine styles, new hidden wine gems and finest culinary delights. Not forgetting free all-day music and live entertainment, including the My Ty's and electro-acoustic band Kinetic Method - creating a world-class festival vibe!


The 2012 NSW Wine Festival program continues after Sydney Cellar Door, with bars and restaurants throughout Sydney and regional NSW featuring many food and wine matches and exclusive degustation dinners. The program is:

·       NEW TO 2012 … NSW Wine of the Month – February 27 to March 31, 2012

A selection of Sydney's wine bars offering a glass of NSW wine and matching bar snack for just $15.

·       Dine with NSW Wine – February 27 to March 31, 2012

Leading Sydney Morning Herald Good Food Guide restaurants throughout NSW create exclusive, great value wine-matched menus from just $30-$50, letting everyone enjoy the best our state has to offer.

·       Tour NSW Wine Regions Dinners - selected dates throughout March, 2012

Don't miss the very special Tour NSW Wine Regions Dinners - a series of unique degustation dinners featuring fresh NSW produce matched to the finest NSW wines, and hosted by leading food and wine personalities.

·       NSW Wine at The Sydney Morning Herald Growers' Market ~ Sat 3 March, 2012

Leading wine experts will treat market-goers to guided tastings of premium NSW wines, along with advice on pairing wines with delicious tidbits from key food producers.

For full details, a list of participating bars and restaurants and pre-purchase tokens, visit www.nswwinefestival.com.au and look out for the special NSW Wine Festival program in The Sydney Morning Herald's Good Living section on Tuesday, February 21, 2012.

Twitter       @NSWwinefestival