BY MELISSA MEEHAN
IT WAS a night of glitz, glamour and of course sparkling as winemakers from around Australia came together in Marysville to celebrate the Australian Sparkling Wine Show gala on Friday night.
Tumbarumba winery, Courabyra Wines, can now claim it produces the best sparkling wine in Australia after winning the ‘Wine of the Show’.
Courabyra Wines won the prestigious award for its Courabyra 805 2011 Pinot Noir Chardonnay Pinot Meunier, from a field of about 200 entries from all over Australia.
Judge Kelly Healey, from Domain Chandon, said the organisers had done a magnificent job of putting the show together and commended those who entered for some fantastic work.
“We had some really solid entries with great expression, poise, balance, strength and persistence of flavour,” Mr Healey said.
“There were some wines that really sung and grabbed our attention and while there weren’t a large number of those who entered the rose category, I did love to see that people had a red-hot crack at it.”
Mr Healey said that there were almost 180 entries this year, and it was obvious that all entrants took their wine seriously.
Australia’s Wine Communicator of the Year, Tyson Stelzer was the guest speaker at the event and said he was proud to be a part of something so special.
“Marysville is alive and well,” Mr Stelzer said.
“For me it’s so great to be part of something that was all about rebuilding Marysville. Because at the end of the day, wine is all about the people. That’s what it should be about and here in Marysville that’s what it is.”
Other winners included:
Class 1 Sparkling White Wine: Leura Park Estate Vineyard, Bellarine Peninsula –
Grande Blanc de Blanc.
Class 2 Sparkling White Wine: Courabyra Wines, Tumbarumba – Courabyra 805.
Class 3 Sparkling Red Wine: Sheer Drop Wines, Faraday (near Bendigo) – Sheer Drop Sparkling Red.
Class 4 Sparkling Rosé Wine: House of Arras, Tasmania – Arras Rose.
Initially developed to support the growth of the Marysville Triangle region after the 2009 bushfires, The Australian Sparkling Wine Show is in its fourth year and has become a feature on the Australian wine industry calendar.
This year’s show also included a Champagne Masterclass for locals and industry representatives conducted by Mr Stelzer.
