Go On, Young Gun, Have A Crack!

The Young Gun of Wine Awards – designed to celebrate and showcase both young wine labels and winemakers on the rise – is now open for registrations.

WBM – Australia’s Wine Business Magazine, sponsors the awards.

Held every year since its inception in 2007, the awards is now into its 15th consecutive year, with not even Covid interrupting the annual event.

With Australia in lockdown, the organisers took 2020’s edition online, running eight virtual events to showcase the 50 winemaker finalists from all corners of Australia. With all those makers in contention, the final trophy presentation was also a virtual event, which included appearances from wine royalty including Jancis Robinson MW.

In an evolution of the awards, for the first time in the 15-year history, they will now be providing feedback to winemakers on their entries from the panel tasting that decides the finalists and trophy winners.

As well, they are creating a new trophy to recognise the best vigneron winemaker – that is, for a winemaker who is also managing the vines.

“The aim of these awards is to provide a platform for emerging people and businesses, to foster creativity and to unite a diverse group of winemakers that represent the gamut of geography, wine styles and ideas in Australia, from experimental and natural wines to refined versions of the classics, whether still, sparkling, fortified or even infused,” says Young Gun founder Rory Kent.

“Added to that, we want to talk more about the role of the vineyard in the finished wine, and the art of viticulture, and so we are introducing an award that will single out a winemaker that is managing the vines.”

Uniquely, the YGOW Awards are about the person: winemakers submit two wines that may tell a story about their body of work, and the panel looks at the two wines from each maker side by side.

“Beyond the glass, we take into account the winemaker’s creativity and leadership, and what it all represents in today’s context,” Rory says.

“Our aim is to curate and celebrate a large group of finalists, and share their stories with all forms of wine buyers.

All finalists will have a profile of themselves, their brand and their wines written for the YGOW website, with additional in-depth articles, social media engagement and virtual or in-person trade and consumer events in the lead-up to the trophy presentation.