Madden Morris from Morris of Rutherglen was a winner on the night: pictured here with Steph McKellar from Tarac, a leading supplier of spirits to the wine industry.
Photo by
Anne Kileen
There's no better time to be drinking Australian wine than right now, according to Ellin Tritt from Fraser Gallop Estate in Western Australia after judging at this year’s Rutherglen Wine Show.
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“The diversity of wines was incredible,” Ellin said.
“As a judge you’re trying to find the beauty in each style and celebrate their uniqueness.
“It was a wonderful experience, and I learnt a lot about fortified; I loved the topaques.”
Rutherglen dominated the fortified wine categories, with local wineries taking out all eight trophies available in that bracket during the judging period, which concluded last week.
Morris of Rutherglen and Pfeiffer Wines took the lion’s share, with three trophies apiece, and Pfeiffer’s also winning the Best Australian Dry Red Table Wine category with their 2024 Durif, a signature of the region.
Stephen Chambers (L) with Matt Santos, Darin Owers and Kia Millis from Berton Wines, and Jen King, food and beverage manager at De Bortoli Wines, Rutherglen.
Committee chair Chris Pfeiffer said while Rutherglen wineries dominated the fortified market, competition was much fiercer in the table wine categories, because more people make table wine.
“This competition enables local winemakers to have their wines assessed in an arena that’s open nationally,” he said.
“That’s important because it helps them make better wine.
“It also attracts people to the area, which flows into tourism.”
This year, the wine show took 808 entries, with 677 table wines and 131 fortifieds vying for top honours.
Warrabilla’s Amy Smith (L) presented a trophy to Jen Pfeiffer of Pfeiffer Wines at last Thursday’s winemakers dinner event.
Local wineries were pitted against the best of the best of Australian wines from all around the country, and Chair of Judges, Russell Cody said that while the number of entries was down from previous years, the quality of entries was extremely good.
“The biggest winners on the day are the Australian consumers,” Russell said.
“I've been wine show judging since 1999 and the quality of the wines has increased greatly in that time, but the cost of a bottle of wine hasn’t.
“It was difficult to judge this year because the quality of the wines was fantastic, and that makes it more difficult for judges to pick the ones which are up to scratch.”
The premiere wine competition has been a showcase of Australian winemaking excellence for 138 years.
As one of the nation’s oldest and most respected wine shows, it brings together producers from across the country to celebrate craftsmanship, innovation, and the enduring spirit of the wine industry.
