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NZ’s Ara Zeroes In On Inaugural Trophy

By Thursday 16 June 2022September 28th, 2023No Comments

Ara Zero Sauvignon Blanc NV has won the trophy for Best Wine at the inaugural Winepilot Zero Alcohol Wine Show.

The winners of the show were announced last night at an awards dinner and tasting at The KittyHawk in Sydney.

Forty-nine wines were judged in four classes with trophies awarded to the best wines in each class as well as for Best Winemaker and Best Wine overall.

Some of Australia and New Zealand’s largest wineries scooped the awards with trophies awarded to Jacob’s Creek and Wolf Blass.

The only small winemaker to win a trophy was Sobriety Society, which was awarded the Best Chillable Red Trophy.

Judges included PJ Charteris, Mike DeGaris, Angus Hughson, Annette Lacey MW, Matt Dunne and Tony Love.

Show founder Angus Hughson says, “Zero alcohol and low alcohol is the fast growing wine category and our judging showed that, at this moment in time, the larger wineries are leading the pack.

“It was also fascinating to see that some wine styles are better suited to zero alcohol than others and that some unusual styles, such as Sparkling Riesling, actually work very well in a zero alcohol context.

“Zero alcohol is a brave new world for the wine industry and offers the opportunity for winemakers to innovate, and potentially develop new wines that become best-sellers in local and export markets.”

Trophies

Best Wine
Ara Zero Sauvignon Blanc NV

Best Winemaker
Giesen Group Ltd

Best Sparkling Wine
Jacob’s Creek Unvined Sparkling NV

Best White Wine
Ara Zero Sauvignon Blanc NV

Best Chillable Red Wine
Sobriety Society Shiraz Tempranillo 2021

Best Red Wine
Wolf Blass Zero Shiraz 2021

A list of all the entries and awards can be found here.

Photo: Trophy winners, from left: Ross Marshall, managing director, Fourth Wave Wine; Lexi O’Toole, senior brand manager, Pernod Ricard Winemakers; Dan Chorley, country manager, Giesen Group; and Chris Hatcher, chief winemaker, Wolf Blass. Photo credit: Edgeline Photography.

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