Trophy winners in the Hawke’s Bay A&P Mercedes-Benz Wine Awards will be announced Tuesday night at a gala dinner.
Now in its 11th year, this event celebrates Hawke’s Bay’s successful evolution from the 1960s when the area was known as the ‘Fruitbowl of New Zealand’ to becoming one of the world’s most highly regarded fine-wine regions.
It took two teams of some of the finest palates in New Zealand two days in the confines of EIT’s sensory laboratory to work their way through 338 entries but the result was 30 gold medals.
Chardonnay ruled the classes when it came to the heavy metal, with seven gold’s going to the likes of Villa Maria, Vidal, Esk, Morton and Osawa and it was closely followed by rising star Syrah scooping six gold medals.
Trinity Hill, Ash Ridge, Alpha Domus, Pernod-Ricard, Te Awa and Squawking Magpie were victorious in that class.
Another great result was seven golds being spread among the merlot and merlot-dominant classes including wines from Church Road, Esk Valley, Te Awa, Trinity Hill, Villa Maria and Matariki – along with two gold medals given to ‘sensational cabernet-dominant reds’.
“The results showed what great vintages 2009 and 2010 were for Hawke’s Bay, with the early release 2011 HB sauvignon blancs showing real class,” says chairman of judges, Rod McDonald.
“Again the percentage of golds in chardonnay, syrah and blended reds were high, defining their strengths in the region. What was really pleasing to the judges was the real development of modern winemaking styles especially in chardonnay – it’s all tied into decisions around ripeness, acidity and use of oak. This was equally true of syrah,” he says.
The consensus amongst the judges was that the level of quality of wines entered was better than ever before.
“Before the first show, there was concern we’d be overly generous because it’s our own regional show but that’s never been the reality” says McDonald.
“We’ve worked really hard since the show’s inception to always have highly experienced, international judges coming in to work alongside our local professionals.
“That way we can ensure that the quality of our wines are up to the mark nationally and internationally. The high percentage of gold medals and indeed medals given across the board, says to me that the quality is definitely there in Hawke’s Bay, and that each and every medal-winning wine has been judged in a national and international context. Medals of any colour are not easily won in this show.”
The trophy winners will be announced in front of a crowd of four hundred guests at the gala dinner at Waikoko Gardens in Hastings Tuesday night.
A complete list of results can be viewed at www.wineshow.co.nz.