2016 Singapore Airlines Swan Valley Wine Show – The Results
As some of you may have seen on social media, Mr. Spittoon and I attended the 2016 Singapore Airlines Swan Valley Wine Show Awards Gala Dinner at Mandoon Estate on Friday night and what a wonderful night it was! The wines, food and company were undoubtedly awesome and today on the blog I wanted to share with you a few more pictures and the trophy list (i.e. your wine wish list!).
Firstly a big thank you to the Swan Valley & Regional Winemakers Association who invited Mr. Spittoon and I along as their guests. We were truly spoilt with such a great line-up of wine and food on the night.
There were some great speakers including Mr. Lim Hwee Peng from Singapore who was the International judge for the show. He let us in on some of the behind the scenes info, like how the team of judges decide what wines get gold, silver and bronze – his sense of humour had everyone in the room chuckling:
Gold – A wine the judge personally enjoys and would buy a case of
Silver – A wine you’d enjoy with your girlfriend/boyfriend/husband/wife
Bronze – A wine you’d buy for your mother-in-law
I’m not too sure about the above explanations for how they award the medals – I’m sure there’s a bit more thought and skill that goes into it 😉 However let’s all just remember that everyone has a unique palate and you should drink what you enjoy at all times (hopefully that means a lot of awesome SV wines!).
All up their were 225 wines entered in the 2016 wine show, out of these wines, 10% earned silver medals and 35% bronze. Mr. Lim Hwee Peng said the standouts were from the Chenin Blanc and Verdelho categories and as always the fortified wines impressed the judges with their amazing fruit intensity and balance. Ray Jordan, the Wine Editor of The West Australian popped up an article this weekend about the Swan Valley needing to overcome an identity problem – basically saying that it would be better to say the SV is more of a Mediterranean climate (rather than a hot climate) and the wines need to be appreciated in this context. What do you guys think? Leave a comment below!
Without further adieu let’s take a look at the trophy winners for this years wine show…
2016 Swan Valley Wine Show – Trophy List
Best Dry White Table Wine (grown outside Greater Perth Zone)
Sandalford Estate Reserve Verdelho 2015
Best Dry Red Table Wine (grown outside the Greater Perth Zone)
Mandoon Estate Frankland River Reserve Shiraz 2014
Best Varietal Wine (other than Verdelho & Shiraz)
Pinelli Estate Family Reserve Chenin Blanc 2007
Best Swan Valley Table Wine
Pinelli Estate Family Reserve Chenin Blanc 2007
Best 2016 Verdelho
Garbin Estate Wines Verdelho 2016
Best Blend (Red or White)
Sittella Wines Musem Silk 2009
Best Dry White Table Wine
Pinelli Estate Family Reserve Chenin Blanc 2007
Best Dry Red Table Wine
Mandoon Estate The Pact Shiraz 2014
Best Shiraz
Mandoon Estate The Pact Shiraz 2014
Best Fortified Wine
Talijancich Julian James White Liqueur NV
Chairman’s Trophy
Pinelli Estate Family Reserve Chenin Blanc 2007
Media Award for Most Successful Producer
Talijancich Wines
City of Swan Trophy
Talijancich Wines
Singapore Airlines Trophy for Best Wine of Show
Talijancich Julian James White Liqueur NV
For a full run down of the gold, silver and bronze medal winning wines – check out the PDF booklet here.
Also a big well done to Pinelli Estate – the night Mr. Spittoon and I got engaged we actually had dinner at Fillaudeau’s and toasted with a glass of Pinelli’s Juliet. It’s awesome to see the 2007 Chenin do so well at the 2016 awards, here is my tasting note from when I tried it last year:
I also have to mention the food! Mandoon Estate put on an absolute feast for us, even the bread and butter (oh the butter!) was to die for. The standout for me had to be the beef, it didn’t sound like anything fancy on the menu but it was cooked to absolute perfection and it’s safe to say Mr. Spittoon had complete food envy! Oh and the pineapple sago, mango and coconut dessert was insanely delightful.
Well done to all the winners and all the wonderful wines that participated. It was a great evening to celebrate all the wonderful winos and wines of the Swan Valley! Don’t forget to check out my Swan Valley Guide to start planning your next trip out to this beautiful region!
PS: A special shout out to the wonderful Jenn at A Touch Of Class Florist for making my oh so beautiful flower crown for the night! For more pictures from the night, check out my Facebook album.
