The 2015 Australian Small Winemakers Show (ASWS) has again confirmed the national strength of wineries in the Granite Belt.
Severnlea’s Ridgemill Estate was one of the big winners this year.
Ridgemill’s 2014 WYP Chardonnay was awarded Trophy and National Champion and Trophy and Best Queensland White Wine in Classes 1-21.
They were further rewarded with winemaker and viticulturist Peter McGlashan awarded Trophy for Champion Viticulturist.
Owner Martin Cooper said they would look forward to showcasing their new trophy winning wine.
Peter McGlashan thanked the Granite Belt wine industry members for their ongoing support and assistance.
The new awards continue a long line of success for the winery following a gold medal and trophy win at the James Halliday 2013 Chardonnay Challenge for its 2012 Chardonnay and a history of strong showings in the International Chardonnay Challenge.
The other big winner on the night was Ballandean’s Golden Grove Estate, taking home the awards for Industry Technical Excellence in Queensland Winemaking and Most Successful Queensland Exhibitor. Whisky Gully Wines in Severnlea also picked up the Dick de Luca Memorial Trophy for Best Queensland Shiraz with its 2012 Black Rod.
ASWS president John Lucas said the awards were a good opportunity to showcase smaller winemakers.
“The Australian Small Winemakers Show is a unique opportunity for small producers to showcase their wines and to benchmark them against others with a similar scale of production across Australia and New Zealand,” he said.
There were more than 5000 bottles of wine and 8000 glasses used throughout the show.
