Australia has “maintained its place among the world’s leading wine regions” at the 2024 Decanter Awards. (Supplied)
Australian wines have claimed a “stunning” victory at the prestigious Decanter International Wine Competition in London last night.
After tasting more than 18,000 wines, eight Australian wines were selected as the world’s top 50 wines.
Only France won more Best of Show medals than Australia, prompting Decanter magazine to declare that Australia “has retained its leading position among the world’s major wine producing countries.”
South Australia was the top performing state, with Barossa Valley winery Chaffey Bros one of three in the state to receive the coveted Best of Show medal.
Daniel Chaffey Hartwig, Huon Fechner and Theo Engela of Chaffey Brothers Wines. (Provided)
“This is amazing news,” said Daniel Chaffey Hartwig, co-founder of the winery.
“They call it the Olympics of wine. It’s a great metaphor because the wines have to build up throughout the finals.
“It’s very humbling and incredible that our $40 wine can stand up against some of the most expensive wines in the world.”
Stella Bella in Margaret River also took top honours for its Luminosa Chardonnay, with judges calling the iconic wine region in Western Australia’s south-west “the source of world-class Chardonnay.”
Tom Barnes of Stella Bella said: “The team feels really accomplished.
“It’s really a little bit unbelievable.”
Recognition during reckoning
The Decanter Wine Awards is known as the world’s largest wine event, with 243 international wine experts gathering in London for an exhaustive series of blind tastings.
Australia won a total of 71 gold, platinum and best in show medals.
Australia won the second most Best of Show medals at the 2024 Decanter Wine Awards. (Image courtesy)
Two Tasmanian Pinot Noir wines have been ranked among the world’s best for the first time, with judges describing the state as “a very promising Pinot Noir region.”
Although there is often skepticism about the value of the awards, their results are still a shot in the arm for the local industry during turbulent times.
Australia has so much wine that it’s estimated there are around 500 million litres of red wine alone sitting in tanks, barrels and bottles across Australia.
Younger generations of Australians are drinking less wine than their parents and grandparents. (ABC News: Jeremy Storey-Carter)
The federal government last week announced $3.5 million in funding to help wine growers deal with oversupply.
The amount is far less than the $85 million some in the industry had called for to help growers pull out their vines and exit the industry after the collapse of the Chinese market.
For Mr. Chaffee Hartwig, this moment of reckoning is also a moment of opportunity.
Australian wines won multiple awards at the 2024 Decanter World Wine Awards. (ABC News: Jeremy Storey-Carter)
“When China closed its market, everyone in South Australia and Australia realised that the rest of the world was drinking more light, elegant styles of wine and we had to pay attention to these global trends,” he said.
“Sticking to what we’re good at, of course, but there’s no reason we can’t really embrace that because our district can do those styles very well.”
A ‘new era’ for Australian wine
It is no accident that the Chaffey Bros Best in Show wine is labelled Syrah rather than the more widely used term Shiraz in the Barossa Valley.
Both wines are made from the same grapes, but their use reflects a slightly different approach to winemaking that is gaining traction in the emerging wine culture.
Stella Bella Vineyard on the banks of Margaret River. (Photo source: provided)
“It’s just a little bit lighter, a little bit more refined. There’s a lot more to the Barossa Valley that deserves another look,” he said.
“I just spoke to an American importer the other day and they said they were very excited to see Shiraz coming from Australia because they had a better understanding of it.
“There is clearly a demand for lighter, lower alcohol and balanced wines. This shows that this is a new era and trend for Australia.”
Evangeline Syrah of Chaffey Brothers Winery received the coveted Best of Show medal. (Supplied)
Stella Bella also received a gold and four silver medals, with Tom Barnes describing an approach to viticulture that was both “very hands-off” and very detail-oriented.
He said: “We focus on the quality of the wine without going too far into mass production.
“Obviously we’re just one of many small producers, but we feel like we’re probably doing more than we can handle.”
Stella Bella is a small winery committed to “going above and beyond”. (Image credit: Supplied)
Mr Chaffee-Hartwig said with Australian wineries represented in so many award categories, confidence in the local wine industry was evident on the world stage.
He said: “I think the Decanter Wine Awards have entered an exciting new era.
“It gives us a little hope after a few tough years.”
Australian wines awarded Best in Show medals
Tasmania
- Lowestoft 2022 Single Vineyard Jacoben Pinot Noir – Derwent Valley
- Bay of Fires Pinot Noir 2022
New South Wales
- McGuigan 2014 Bin 9000 Semillon – Hunter Valley
South Australia
- Red Knot by Shingleback 2022 Classified GSM — McLaren Vale
- Penny’s Hill 2023 Yenonga Grenache – McLaren Vale
- Chaffey Bros 2021 Evangeline Shiraz – Eden Valley
Western Australia
- Fermoy Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon 2020 – Margaret River
- Strabella 2022 Luminosa Chardonnay – Margaret River
