NSW Wine Awards Gold Medal Winners

The medal-winning wines of the 2020 ICC Sydney NSW Wine Awards have been revealed, raising the anticipation of who will be awarded the top trophies and named the best wine in NSW at the 25th annual NSW Wine Awards Presentation Luncheon on 23rd October 2020.

Three days of judging saw 16 expert wine judges taste a record number of entrants (904), awarding 65 of these wines with gold medals.

When talking about the 2020 judging process, Chair of Judges Dave Brookes said, “The calibre of our judges and the rigorous procedures means that each awarded wine really is worth the medal it receives. One of the great pleasures of chairing the NSW Wine Awards is the robust discussions that surround the call-backs and taste-offs and this year, the Shiraz and Semillon classes, two of the great noble grape varieties of our state, were very strong, highlighting the diversity of style and the great vineyard sites of our famous wine regions."

“The Current Vintage Shiraz class was particularly impressive; out of the 184 Shiraz wines judged, 112 received a medal, 17 of which were gold medals! The recent run of outstanding red vintages in NSW was really highlighted in this class. The final line-up of gold medal winners was uniformly outstanding, showcasing the regional and stylistic diversity NSW is rightly famous for.

“The Semillon classes – both current and mature vintages – were also a pleasure to judge, again proving that no one does this variety better than NSW. 55 wines merited a medal, and the best wines showed real purity and very detailed winemaking.”

The 65 gold medal finalists will now move on to the next stage of the Awards, the exclusive 2020 ICC Sydney NSW Wine Awards Presentation Luncheon, where the top 2020 trophy winners will be announced on Friday 23rd October at ICC Sydney.

Mark Bourne, President NSW Wine said, “We are so lucky to have ICC Sydney as a partner for these Awards. Not only do they support our industry 365 days a year, with a commitment to a 100% NSW wine list, but with their hard work, detailed EventSafe Operating Framework and stunning, spacious venue, our judging and awards presentation have been able to take place in this challenging year for all.”

Guests at the 2020 ICC Sydney NSW Wine Awards Presentation Luncheon will get to taste a large range of this year's award-winning wines, accompanied by a delicious lunch. They will hear details of the judging process from the judges themselves and of course the presentation of which wines have won the 2020 trophies, including the ultimate NSW Governor’s Trophy for Best Wine in Show and title of ‘2020 NSW Wine of the Year’.

Gold medal-winning finalists from the Hunter Valley include Tintilla Estate’s 2014 Patriarch Shiraz, Hart & Hunter’s 2019 Single Vineyard Series Oakey Creek Reserve Semillon; Margan’s 2019 Saxonvale Mourvedre and 2019 Saxonvale Shiraz, Mount Pleasant’s 2018 High Paddock Shiraz and NV Tawny Port Syrah and McGuigan’s 2018 Bin 9000 Semillon. Stay tuned for the trophy winners in our next issue!