We have received three gold medals at the prestigious Sydney International Wine Competition 2018. Now in its 34th year, this competition is unique, in that it judges its finalists beside food dishes of similar palate weight. A panel of thirteen international judges led by Kym Milne, Master of Wine (MW) assessed 2,000 entries via a three phase blind judging system, which includes the final 400 wines being assessed with food.
We scooped golds for our Pinot Noir 2015 and Pinot Gris 2016. The Nine Barrels Pinot Noir 2015 also received a Blue Gold Medal and was rated one of the Top 100 wines of the competition.
“The benefit of the Sydney International Wine Competition is that the top wines are re-judged with food, and therefore wines with good balance tend to show up really well in the line-up,” said Chair of Judges Kym Milne MW. “The Pinot Noir category was dominated by wines from New Zealand; in fact all the gold medals were awarded to Kiwi Pinots, including some great examples from the Central Otago region.”
“As a small boutique producer, we are delighted to have received 3 gold medals in this highly regarded competition,” commented our General Manager Rebecca Poynter. “Furthermore, the competition is extremely relevant, given that wine is best appreciated with food, and it’s a testament to our winemaking style that these wines have been judged as highly food friendly.”
A list of the full results can be found here.
Other accolades for these wines include:
Rockburn Pinot Noir 2015:
Gold Medal – Decanter Wine Awards 2017
Gold Medal – Melbourne International Wine Competition 2017
Gold Medal – New World Wine Awards Premier NZ Selection 2017
5 Stars & Top 10 – Cuisines Magazine 2017
5 Stars – Bob Campbell MW
Rockburn Nine Barrels Pinot Noir 2015:
Gold Medal – New Zealand Internaitonal Wine Show 2017
Gold Medal – Bragato Wine Awards 2017
5 Stars/95 Points – Bob Campbell MW
5 Stars – Winestate Central Otago Tasting 2017
Rockburn Pinot Gris 2016:
Silver Medal – San Francisco International Wine Competition 2017
Silver Medal – Melbourne International Wine Competition 2017
4.5 Stars – Winestate Central Otago Tasting 2017