Ngeringa Vineyard has taken out top honours at the Australian Organic Wine Awards for the second time in three years. The awards, hosted by Australian Organic Limited (AOL), saw 45 certified organic and biodynamic wine producers from 32 regions across the country submit 211 bottles for judging.
Based at Mount Barker in the Adelaide Hills, South Australia, Ngeringa Vineyard’s 2021 Iluma Syrah won the Cullen Wines Trophy for Wine of Show, as well as the top prize for Red of Show, and a Gold Medal.
In the 2021 awards – its inaugural year – Ngeringa’s 2019 Iluma Syrah was also awarded the best wine of show.
Led by wine expert, Mike Bennie, the panel of judges included: Negociants key account manager, Ramon Arnavas; STK Group group beverage director Alexandra McPherson; and Australian Organic Wine Awards associate scholarship recipient, Sophia Gannon.
Bennie said the quality of wines this year was impressive, with the Iluma Syrah boasting a wild streak, making it interesting, character-filled, complex and appealing.
“The Iluma Syrah reflects the new wave of Australian shiraz making, with a svelte, medium weight, red fruited, spicy and silky-textured red emerging, in superb balance with a great extension of flavour and very high drinkability.
“All judges were impressed by its elegance and yet great energy. It’s a beautiful wine reflecting the exacting viticulture and cooler climate place from which it has come,” Bennie said.
Bringing home the White of Show award was McLaren Vale-based Jackson Wine Estates’ 2022 Yangarra Estate Vineyard Blanc, produced from primarily French white grape varieties including Grenache Blanc, Roussanne, Bourboulenc, Clairette, Grenache Gris and Piquepoul.
“This is a white that is vibrant, has excellent length with nutty notes, yet encapsulates sweet and savoury fruit,” Bennie said.
Red wines proved the most popular entrants with 138 bottles judged, followed by 60 whites and 13 rosés, with 70 varieties of grapes showcased across the awards, reflecting the diversity of Australia’s certified organic wine industry.
A Gold Medal and Trophy for the Best Chillable Red was awarded to Barossa Valley’s Tscharke vineyard for their 2021 ‘A thing of beauty’ Grenache. The Tscharke took home the White of Show at the 2021 awards.
The Best New Entrant Trophy and Gold Medal was awarded to Victorian winery, Carlei Wines, for its 2020 Carlei Estate Fruit Day Shiraz.
For consumers who appreciate a nice tipple while enjoying a picnic in the park, the 2022 Yalumba Gen Viognier, produced by Hill-Smith Family Estates in South Australia, won the Gold Medal and Trophy for Best Park Wine.
Margaret River’s 2022 Stormflower Vineyards Pet Nat, short for ‘pétillant naturel', was awarded a Silver Medal and Trophy for Best Left of Centre Wine with judges saying it was a good example of the ‘naturally sparkling’ wine.
AOL CEO, Niki Ford, congratulated the 2023 Australian Organic Wine Award winners for their outstanding results.
“Without a doubt, producing wine is a labour of love. We know how hard these winemakers work to maintain organic certification and to allow consumers to experience exceptional wines, with the highest standards of sustainability.
“It’s these wines that are gaining an enviable reputation here at home and overseas, with certified organic wines popular in Sweden, Canada and the United States,” Ford said.
