Ben Thoman from Vinarchy at Rowland Flat reports on an uplifting moment at a celebration of the Barossa wine community on Friday.
Amongst the negativity in the wine industry that seems to continue to float to the surface – despite plenty of pleas for a more positive outlook – Friday’s Barossa Wine Show lunch was more than just a good news story.
Emcee Merrick Watts was his usual self-deprecating self: funny, warm and very good at making a room full of wine people feel comfortable with themselves.
Tim Pelquest-Hunt (TPH) did a brilliant job as committee chair and nailed his welcome speech.
Full disclosure: I’ve worked with Tim for more than a decade and consider him a good friend, so I may be slightly biased.
The real highlight, however, came when TPH accepted the Best Wine of Show trophy – Grant Burge 2024 Balthasar Shiraz – as the new chief winemaker of Grant Burge Wines (Vinarchy).
In a genuinely touching moment, he insisted that the slightly reluctant Craig Stansborough join him on stage.
As Craig retires from Vinarchy after more than three decades with Grant Burge Wines, it was a fitting recognition of the enormous contribution he has made to the brand and the broader wine industry.
He was instrumental in making the wine that took out the gong, but his contribution goes well beyond what ends up in a bottle.
Over that journey, Craig has mentored, developed and encouraged countless wine industry professionals.
Personally, I was lucky enough to work directly with Craig for only four years or so, but I’ve continued to benefit from his experience, both professionally and personally.
He is one of those people in the industry whose influence extends well beyond the years you actually work alongside them.
As TPH closed out his acceptance speech by saying that the Barossa is synonymous with Shiraz, and that it was great to see Shiraz take the trophy, it seemed like a pretty good moment to celebrate what the Barossa does so well.
So here’s to Barossa Shiraz, to 50 years of the Barossa Valley Wine Show, and to Craig Stansborough, one of the industry’s all-round great humans.
Photograph: From left, Tim Pelquest-Hunt, Craig Stansborough and Erin Ogilvie Baulderstone.
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