Regional Wine Awards Celebrates Older Wines…

For Immediate Release

Monday 8th August 2011

Regional Wine Awards Celebrates Older Wines…

As the call for entries to the 2011 Hawke’s Bay A&P Mercedes-Benz Wine Awards went out this week there is just as much excitement about the older wines being put forward for judging as there is about the new releases.

As part of the development of New Zealand’s oldest Regional wine awards, the organisers have opted to introduce a couple of initiatives that will extend further the relevance and strength of this competition.

The Museum Class:

From 2011, all wines that win a category trophy will gain automatic and free entry into the museum class. The wine will be carefully cellared by the A&P Society and at the Society’s cost will be entered into the Museum Class to be judged against all wines entered into that class for the next 12 years. To ensure the highest calibre of museum entries each year, a wine which wins a bronze or less will not be entered the following year.

“We are committed to developing the pedigree for Hawke’s Bay Wine and must develop not only the recognition but also understanding of how HB wine ages” says Max Morton, Chairman of the Hawke’s Bay A&P Mercedes-Benz Wine Awards Committee. “This is a major building block to cementing international, national and regional credibility for our wines”.

The Exhibitors Tasting:

In 2010, the first Exhibitors Tasting was held at EIT the day after the judging was completed. “This is an invaluable opportunity for vineyard and winery staff to critically assess wines being produced in Hawke’s Bay and to compare their own products with those of their peers” says Rod McDonald, Chairman of Judges. “We realised last year that an important way in which to continue the improvement of the breed in our region was to open the floor up to tasting, comparison and discussion within our industry. Our senior judges will also be on hand to discuss wine styles along with category highs and disappointments.

According to Rod, Hawke’s Bay needs to work together to build a category for itself overseas. “There’s got to be a point to this show apart from celebrating our great wines while sitting down to a snazzy big dinner and a great night out” he adds, “the whole idea is to gather the tools we need to do a better job tomorrow than we are today”. All of the wines entered in the show are able to be tasted and the medal results available for all to see.

The Hawkes Bay Wine Awards Committee is committed to improving our regional industry and appreciates your ongoing support in developing a robust, relevant wine show that serves the wine industry at large.

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