The hunt is on for fine wines across Australia worthy of raising a glass to, with entries for the prestigious Royal Queensland Wine Show (RQWS) opening today.
Chief Judge David Bicknell will lead a team of expert judges for his second year at the helm, as they sniff, swirl and taste their way through the nation’s top drops, at the first capital city wine show of the season.
This means the RQWS judges will be the first to critically review the 2017 vintage in Australia, setting the benchmark for the industry and letting wine lovers know which bottles to look for.
In keeping up with changes in consumer interest, a new dry red wine class called ‘current drinking light dry red’ has been introduced to the competition for 2017.
Bicknell said the new class is for current release dry red wines that are bottled early for current consumption.
“This should be a fun class where we will see modern ‘bar wines’ that have captured the imagination of the wine savvy public,’’ he said.
“Winemaking technique and variety are irrelevant, enjoyment is paramount and we will hopefully see a few natural and low sulphur wines in the mix as well.”
More than 1,800 wines from 243 wineries were entered into this year’s competition, which saw a sparkling take out Grand Champion Wine of Show for the first time in RQWS history and a pinot noir claim the Stodart Trophy, which is usually won by shiraz.
Entries must be in by April 21, 2017, with judging taking place from June 26 and July 7.