Kooyong Estate's Faultline Chardonnay 2010 from the Mornington Peninsula in Victoria and Yalumba's The Signature Shiraz-Cabernet Sauvignon 2008 from the Barossa Valley in South Australia took the top prizes in the annual Mamba Awards last night.
Yvonne May (Wine Australia), Sue Jones (The Harrow) and Emma Crowther (Negociants) collecting the award for best Shiraz
Supported by Decanter and Wine Australia, the awards were set up in 2006 by Roger and Sue Jones, chef/proprietor and front of house respectively of the Michelin-starred The Harrow at Little Bedwyn in Wiltshire, along with glassware maker Riedel.
The awards highlight the quality and value of latest-release Australian wines in the UK market and are judged (non-blind, with prices revealed) by 100 consumers and wine trade members.
This year the focus was on Chardonnay (41 entries) and Shiraz/Shiraz blends (54 entries), with the winners of each category receiving a Mamba decanter from Riedel and dinner at The Harrow.
Roger Jones is one of the judges on the Australia panel at the Decanter World Wine Awards and regularly judges Australian wines at Decanter panel tastings. The Harrow’s wine list of 1,000 bins is more than a third Australian.
The top six wines from each category in this year’s awards were:
Chardonnay
1. Kooyong Estate, Faultline Chardonnay, Mornington Peninsula, Victoria 2010 (£37.50 via UK agent Enotria)
2. Ocean Eight, Verve Chardonnay, Mornington Peninsula, Victoria 2011 (£28.95 via UK agent Hallowed Ground)
=3. Harewood Estate, Reserve Chardonnay, Great Southern, Western Australia 2012 (£16.25 – for basic Chardonnay – Christopher Keiller)
=3. Vasse Felix, Heytesbury Chardonnay, Margaret River, Western Australia 2011 (£45.70 via UK agent Negociants)
=5. Petaluma, Chardonnay, Piccadilly Valley, South Australia 2011 (£17.50 via UK agent Bibendum)
=5. Shaw & Smith, Chardonnay, Adelaide Hills, South Australia 2011 (£24.99 via UK agent Liberty Wines)
Shiraz/Shiraz blends
1. Yalumba, The Signature (Shiraz-Cabernet Sauvignon), Barossa Valley, South Australia 2008 (£32.50 via UK agent Negociants)
2. Harewood Estate, Reserve Shiraz, Great Southern, Western Australia 2010 (£15.83 – for basic Shiraz – Christopher Keiller)
3. Henschke, Keyneton Euphonium (Shiraz-Cabernet Sauvignon-Merlot-Cabernet-Franc) Barossa Valley, South Australia 2009 (£27.50 via UK agent Enotria)
4. Wakefield, St Andrews, Shiraz, Clare Valley, South Australia 2009 (£29.99 via UK agent Louis Latour)
5. Peter Lehmann, Stonewell Shiraz, Barossa Valley, South Australia 2008 (£34.99 via UK agent Hallgarten)
6. Yalumba, Reserve Shiraz, Barossa Valley, South Australia 2004 (£57.99 via UK agent Negociants)
See the pictures from the evening here
Written by Tina Gellie
