Hat Trick for Cottage Block at Royal Easter Show

Media release 25th March 2009

Hat Trick for Cottage Block at The Royal Easter Show 2009 Wine Awards

At the 56th Royal Easter Show Wine Awards Dinner held at the ASB Showground’s in Auckland on Saturday the 21st of March, Corbans Cottage Block Chardonnay 2007 was awarded Champion Chardonnay and Champion Wine of Show. To cap off this amazing achievement Tony Robb, Corbans Winemaker, was declared Winemaker of the Year. Success was not confined to Corbans however, with Montana Reserve Chardonnay Pinot Noir Rosé being awarded Champion Sparkling Wine and Church Road Reserve Merlot Cabernet 2006 awarded Champion Merlot or Merlot Dominant Blend.

Tony Robb, in accepting the Chardonnay trophies, paid tribute to Graham Bartlett and the viticulture team for providing him with truly excellent fruit and noted that, “these awards reflect the passion and dedication of the whole Hawke’s Bay team in crafting truly great Chardonnay”.

“It is always great to get a Trophy, but especially so for a Bordeaux blend – Hawke’s Bay’s flagship wine style, now being increasingly recognised abroad by publications such as Decanter in the UK and the Wine Advocate in the USA” enthused Chris Scott, senior winemaker at Church Road.

Steve Voysey, Montana’s Regional Winemaker in Gisborne, said “I am thrilled to accept this award not just because it’s exciting to win a trophy for a new wine, but also because a lot of growers contributed fruit to this wine and its success will be enjoyed by a great many people”.

Aside from the 5 trophies, a total of 65 medals were awarded to wines from the Pernod Ricard portfolio, an almost 75% success rate and well above the competition average.

Gold medal winners:
Corbans Cottage Block Hawke's Bay Chardonnay 2007 (Champion Chardonnay & Champion Wine of Show)
Stoneleigh Marlborough Riesling 2008
Church Road Reserve Hawke's Bay Merlot Cabernet 2006 (Champion Merlot or Merlot Dominant Blend)
Church Road Reserve Hawke's Bay Syrah 2007
Montana Reserve Chardonnay Pinot Noir Rosé (Champion Sparkling Wine)

Silver medal winners:
Corbans Private Bin Hawke's Bay Chardonnay 2006
Huntaway Reserve Gisborne Chardonnay 2007
Montana Patutahi Gisborne Gewürztraminer 2007
Huntaway Reserve Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2008
Montana Brancott Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2008
Montana Reserve Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2008
Montana Terroir Series Festival Block Sauvignon Blanc 2008
Camshorn Classic Riesling 2008
Boundary Vineyards Paper Lane Pinot Gris 2008
Church Road Hawke's Bay Pinot Gris 2008
Huntaway Reserve Gisborne Pinot Gris 2008
Montana Reserve Hawke's Bay Pinot Gris 2008
Camshorn Pinot Gris 2008
Church Road Reserve Hawke's Bay Viognier 2007
Church Road Cuve Cabernet Sauvignon 2005
Church Road Hawke's Bay Merlot Cabernet 2007
Corbans Cottage Block Hawke's Bay Cabernet Sauvignon Merlot 2006
Church Road Cuve Merlot 2005
Corbans Cottage Block Hawke's Bay Syrah 2006
Montana Terraces Marlborough Pinot Noir 2007
Stoneleigh Marlborough Pinot Noir Rosé 2008
Lindauer Special Reserve Blanc de Blanc
Montana Reserve Chardonnay Pinot Noir Brut Cuvée
Corbans Cottage Block Chardonnay 2007 (RRP $35.95) and Montana Reserve Chardonnay Pinot Noir Rosé (RRP $22.95) are available from selected restaurants and fine wine merchants. Church Road Reserve Merlot Cabernet 2006 (RRP $35.95) is available from selected restaurants, fine wine merchants and the Church Road Winery Cellar Door.

The Royal Easter Show is the oldest wine show in New Zealand and the 2009 show saw the biggest ever entry of wines. Terry Dunleavy MBE, competition director, noted that; “Across all the classes, the gold medal winners were outstanding examples of world-class winemaking skill applied to grapes grown to the highest international standards of viticulture. It’s no wonder that New Zealand wines are in such high demand in overseas markets. It’s heartening to know that in these current times of doom and gloom, at least we can celebrate the fact that our people are producing wines for which all New Zealanders can be proud.”

ENDS

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