Two trophies for the 2009 Lowe Zinfandel

Media Release

Lowe Wines has been awarded the 'Best Wine of the Show' at the 2011 Australia / New Zealand Organic Wine Show with the recently released 2009 Lowe Mudgee Zinfandel.

The Australia / New Zealand Organic Wine Show was established in 2005 and is the only annual organic wine show dedicated to the judging and promotion of certified organic and biodymanic wines from Australia and New Zealand.

Showcasing the diversity, regionality and quality of organic wines, the show aims to help the organic wine sector carve a larger niche for itself on the shelves of the wine trade and in the knowledge base of wine connoisseurs.

The 2009 Lowe Zinfandel won two prestigious trophies; the 'Trophy for the Best Red Wine of the Show' and the prestigious 'Gil Wahlquist Trophy for the Best Wine of the Show'.

According to the Organic Wine Show's website, "the Best Wine of Show is awarded the beautiful Gil Wahlquist Trophy, designed and carved by Nick Statham (from Rosnay Organic Wines in Cowra) from a fallen tree.  Gil Wahlquist planted the first organic vine in Australia in 1971, which then went on to become the first certified organic vineyard in 1984."

"2009 was a textbook season with a mild spring and good rainfall, then a benign, dry summer," explained Lowe Wines winemaker and owner, David Lowe.  "Following the drought from 2002 onwards, this was a godsend. We crop-thinned the unripe fruit twice in the vineyard which helped produce outstanding fruit."

The 2009 Zinfandel is only made in very limited quantities and only in years where David Lowe deems the fruit to be of outstanding quality.

The 2009 Zinfandel was also recently named in the NSW Top 40 wines of 2011.  The Citibank NSW Wines Awards will hold their Trophy Presentation and Awards dinner on 17 October 2011 at the Sydney Opera House.

Recent Awards:
• "Best Wine of the Show" Australia / New Zealand Organic Wine Show 2011
• "Best Red Wine of the Show" Australia / New Zealand Organic Wine Show 2011
• Gold Medal, Australia / New Zealand Organic Wine Show 2011 (19/20)
• Top 40, NSW Wines 2011
• The Gil Walhquist Perpetual Trophy for 'The Most Successful Exhibitor of the Show, Mudgee Wine Show 2011

Distribution: Lowe Wines are distributed by Single Vineyard Wines.  All wines within the Lowe portfolio are available on line via the Lowe website at  lowewine.com.au

The Sydney Boutique Wine Fair

Media Release

A handpicked collection of small family owned & operated wine estates are visiting Sydney this October for the launch of The Sydney Boutique Wine Fair 2011. The fair is a casual tasting experience for those that enjoy a glass of wine and are looking to discover something new.

So what does boutique mean? First of all it has to have small production, however for us it means more than that. Being family owned with a focus on quality with a story behind it creates a wine that not only tastes good but is interesting as well

The specialist wine team at The Oak Barrel has selected more than 15 of their favourite small wine estates from NSW and the rest of the country, to be a part of the inaugural boutique wine fair.

The Oak Barrel will be hosting the event at their spacious CBD bottle shop on Elizabeth Street.

Manager Simon Clarke says 'With the big chain stores ignoring quality in preference for price, the onus has fallen on passionate stores to reveal the gems that lie hidden beneath the surface'. The Sydney Boutique Wine Fair gives wine drinkers the opportunity to discover some distinctly boutique wineries and broaden their wine knowledge.

Tickets are on sale now and for more information visit www.sydneyboutiquewinefair.com.au.

Fast Facts:

Dates: 12:00 – 15:00 Saturday 22nd October 2011

Location: The Oak Barrel Bottle Shop, 152 Elizabeth Street, Sydney 2000

Winsor's choice: De Iuliis 2009 Steven Vineyard Shiraz

Winsor Dobbin

There is no doubt that Mike de Iuliis is among the brightest young winemaking talents in the Hunter Valley.

His 2011 semillon was one of the standouts of a recent Twitter tasting and this is another excellent offering made from the Hunter's other key grape variety.

Inky, with intense black pepper and wild berry aromas, it is full bodied on the palate with dark, rich fruit flavours, hints of earthiness and considerable poise and elegance (and only 13% alcohol).

A singe-vineyard wine from one of the Hunter's best blocks, this will almost certainly cellar well for a decade or more.

$40. www.dewine.com.au.

Canberra District home to Australia’s first winemaking Nobel Prize winner

MEDIA RELEASE

The Canberra District is home to Australia's first winemaking Nobel Prize winner and Australian National University Scientist, Brian Schmidt, who was yesterday named joint winner of the 2011 Nobel Physics Prize for his research into supernovae.

Brian Schmidt is a world renowned astrophysicist who led the team that discovered that the universe is accelerating. But it's not just the stars that are of interest to Brian, he's also a talented winemaker who puts much time and effort into his wines under the Maipenrai label.

"While Brian's off exploring the world of astronomy, people are discovering the high quality of his Pinot Noir," said Brad Schafferius, President of the Canberra District Wine Industry Association.

Schmidt lives in Sutton just outside of the ACT where he has planted 1.1 hectares of grapes, specialising in Pinot Noir. The small winery sits atop the Yass River Valley, 760 metres above sea level where the vineyard's rocky soil and cool climate make growing Pinot Noir a challenge, but what results is an intensely flavoured wine. Last year this was recognised with James Halliday awarding Maipenrai a four star status.

"What Brian is doing with his wines is to be commended. He is producing a wonderful Pinot Noir in a difficult climate.  The Canberra region is known more for Riesling and Shiraz but the Pinot continues to shine with a number of winemakers creating great drops," Brad said.

  "A lot of small winery winemakers have 'other jobs' to supplement their winery business.  The Canberra District has writers, teachers, public servants and now we can count a Nobel Prize winning physicist in that group," he continued.

Following Brian's Nobel Prize win yesterday, the Maipenrai Pinot Noir current vintage has sold out, but the next release of 2009 Maipenrai Pinot Noir will be available from December. Wines are available via mail order and select retailers and restaurants. See www.maipenrai.com.au for more information and stockists.

"The Canberra District wine makers congratulate Brian on this momentous award and look forward to the next release of Maipenrai Pinot Noir in December," Brad concluded.

Brian Schmidt can be followed on Twitter @cosmicpinot where he last night tweeted "I do not have the answer to life, the universe and everything. My advice. Work hard, take risks, have fun, and you never know..."

Canberra wines score well in NSW Top 40

Media Release

Five Canberra District wines have just been named in the NSW Top 40 wines at the 2011 Citibank NSW Wine Awards.

“The fact that Canberra District wines can take five of the top 40 spots is testament to the quality of cool climate wines being produced in our region,” said Brad Schafferius, the new President of the Canberra District Wine Industry Association.

The Canberra District wines named in the top 40 were Capital Wines for the 2011 The Whip Riesling, Eden Road for the 2010 Gundagai Shiraz, Mount Majura Vineyard for the 2010 Tempranillo, Nick O’Leary for the 2010 Shiraz, and Ravensworth for the 2009 Shiraz Viognier.

The Citibank NSW Wine Awards were created in 1996 to build awareness of the quality of wines produced in NSW. Entries were judged by five panels of four judges comprising retailers, sommeliers and winemakers. The judging was chaired by Huon Hooke with panel chairs Philip Shaw, Corey Ryan, Nick Bullied, PJ Charteris and Mike De Garis.

“Some of the district’s wineries are relatively small in comparison to some of the other wineries that entered the awards, so this is again more recognition of the fact that our winemakers are creating wines that can match it with the best in the state, and across several wine varieties,” Brad concluded.

For more information on wines and wineries of the Canberra District go to www.canberrawines.com.au

PERFECT VINTAGE FOLLOWS WOES OF 2006

WORTH an investment for the cellar:
or enjoy now with char-grilled eye fillet.

Wc03Oct11

David Ellis

STICKING by their philosophy of producing their popular Cabernet Sauvignon Merlot only when fruit quality warrants it, Margaret River maker Voyager Estate decided not to make and release the blend from the 2006 vintage.

"2006 was extremely challenging," says Voyager Manager of Winemaking and Viticulture, Steve James. "The winter was one of the coldest we've ever experienced, with rare, severe frosts. But by contrast we were rewarded in 2007 with a near-perfect growing season and warm to hot summer: it gave us fruit that was rich and ripe with excellent flavour concentration and tannins."

Steve chose the 88% Cabernet Sauvignon component from two major vineyards, and with a smaller quantity from a third and the 12% Merlot from yet a fourth, keeping each parcel of fruit separate throughout the winemaking process to achieve what he calls "exceptional balance" in the final blend.

This wine has rich dark berry fruits at its heart, and accompanying mocha and dark chocolate notes. At $60 its one well worth investing in for its cellaring potential and development up to 15 years, or to enjoy now while young with char-grilled eye fillet and a medley of corn and roasted peppers.

GREAT Australian Alsace-style Gewurztraminer to
savour with spicy, not- too-hot Thai dishes.

ONE FOR LUNCH: JOHN Cassegrain whose family winemaking heritage goes back to France in the 1600s, is a great believer that Australia really can produce wonderful examples of France's classic Alsace region aromatic Gewurztraminer… and he's using fruit from the cool NSW New England to achieve it at his Port Macquarie winery on the State's Mid North Coast.

"The variety suffered in 1970/80 when it was grown here in warm climates and blended with Riesling to produce sweetish, fairly ordinary wines," he says. "But delicate fruit we've sourced from Toppers Mountain Vineyard south of Inverell is perfect for great Alsace-style Gewurztraminer." Try his 2010 Edition Noir at $25 that's nicely fragrant and ideal with spicy, not-too-hot Thai dishes.

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

Winsor's choice: DiGiorgio Family 2008 Coonawarra Cabernet Sauvignon

Winsor Dobbin

The DiGiorgio family are unsung heroes of the Limestone Coast wine region, producing nicely balanced wines at very fair prices. This is a classic - and affordable - Coonawarra cabernet with ripe, supple and sweet dark fruit characters matched by black olives notes, soft tannins and unobtrusive toasty French oak. Made by veteran Coonawarra winemaker Peter Douglas in the historic former Rouge Homme winery, this ticks all the regional boxes and will probably cellar well for a decade or more. But my bet is most of it will be drunk relatively young - it's a hard wine to resist. $26. www.digiorgio.com.au.