Young Guns of Wine are the industry's rising stars

Rory Kent

Jul 6 2016

The annual Young Guns of Wine awards have celebrated the industry's hottest rising stars for the tenth year. Industry legend Brian Walsh, chairman of Wine Australia, describes the awards as an incubator for emerging talent and a who's who of the contemporary wine scene.

A panel of industry experts choose 12 finalists as the best young winemakers in the country, with this year's crop including eight first-time finalists in five major states.

The four major trophies include the official Riedel Young Gun of Wine, the Wine Australia Best New Act recognising a finalist making a big impact early in their career, The Ocean Eight Winemaker's Choice as voted by the 12 finalists themselves, and the People's Choice determined by the wine-buying public.

Top gun

This year's Riedel Young Gun of Wine was won by Josephine Perry of Dormilona in Margaret River. Perry, a third-time finalist, picked up the Best New Act in 2013.

Perry's wines push creative boundaries whilst maintaining precision and quality. At the 2015 Margaret River Wine Show, her unconventional Skinnie sauvignon blanc, made with extended skin contact in a terracotta amphora, caused such a commotion the organisers had to make a new class in the show for it in order to give the wine a medal.

The Clayface chardonnay Perry entered this year - also made in an amphora - was one of the highlights of the judging day. What she's doing with Dormilona, particularly given the Margaret River location – which is more remote than say an Adelaide Hills or the Yarra Valley – is remarkable. She's really breaking new ground, and this is what got her the big win.

Class act

The Wine Australia Best New Act was won by Jasper Button of Commune of Buttons in the Adelaide Hills. Button focuses on wines with 'drinkability', made in an organic and biodynamic vineyard. With only minimal sulphur at bottling, the wines are "natural" and reflect what is perhaps the biggest trend in wine over the last few years.

There's a cult of like-minded winemakers in South Australia's Basket Range right now. "It's a very exciting and cool time to be making wine," says Button. "The Adelaide Hills and more specifically Basket Range has got some brilliant makers and minds in it … In fact, a stupidly high ratio of goodness is going on all around us. It's hard not to be inspired by the big guns that live next door!"

Winemaker's choice

The Ocean Eight Winemaker's Choice was won by Michael Downer of Murdoch Hill in the Adelaide Hills, going back-to-back after tying for the same award last year.

Murdoch Hill's Artisan Series, which Downer created in 2012, is terrific. One of the highlights of this premium range is the "Surrey" Pinot Munier – one of only a few examples in Australia of red wine with this grape conventionally used as a blending component of Champagne.

Fellow finalist and the 2014 Winemaker's Choice, Brendon Keys, offers a winemaker's perspective on Downer's win: "He's a great guy and his chardonnay is absolutely ripping. Chardonnay styles have been swinging from opposite extremes like a pendulum but Michael's chardonnay is on point."

The people have spoken

The People's Choice was taken by Ricky Evans of Two Tonne Tasmania. Evans juggles his own label with his day job (Bay of Fires), a path for many emerging winemakers committed to their craft. As you may guess from the name of his wine label, Two Tonne Tasmania is all about small scale, high quality production. He's exploring sub regionality of Tasmania and applying his own stylistic interpretations.

He picked up his place in the final 12 and his trophy with his two pinot noirs. That he won the People's Choice with two pinots, and a quarter of the wines in the competition were pinots, makes a clear statement about the burgeoning love of the variety.

Evans has an intriguing "Spring Red" coming out in September which is a pinot noir co-fermented with gewürztraminer and riesling skins which will be worth keeping an eye out for.

Top dozen

The judging is rigorous and spots for the final 12 fiercely competitive. Any one of the finalists in the top 12 could have walked away with a trophy. They are creating outstanding wines and their broader vision is striking a chord in the industry. Their wines are worth seeking out.