A CHARDONNAY from a 4.8-hectare family-owned vineyard on the banks of the Allyn River on the Hunter wine region's outskirts of East Gresford has been crowned 2022 Sydney Wine Show's best small producer's wine.
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The $45-a-bottle Boydell's 2021 Reserve Chardonnay was one of five trophy-winning Hunter wines in the prestigious Sydney competition, which attracted entries from around Australia.
The now-unavailable Tyrrell's 2013 Vat 1 Semillion won two trophies, the best semillon and the best mature vintage white wine.
The Silkman 2022 Single Vineyard Blackberry Semillon was the best current-vintage white trophy winner and the McGuigan 2017 Personal Reserve Vanessa Vale Shiraz took the best mature red wine trophy.
The Vanessa Vale red is currently available at $100 at the McGuigan McDonalds Road, Pokolbin, cellar door.
The Silkman trophy semillon is from the eponymous boutique wine brand of husband and wife Liz and Shaun Silkman, who are respectively First Creek winery's chief winemaker and chief of production and bottling.
The Boydell's chardonnay, made under contract at First Creek by winemaking ace Liz Silkman, can be bought at boydells.com.au and at the cellar door and restaurant in Green St, Morpeth.
The charming boutique venture is owned by Daniel and Jane Maroulis. Jane's family is from Morpeth and Bourke-born Dan previously worked in farming and grazing at Narromine and Dubbo.
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The couple and their four daughters came to the Hunter in late 2016 when they bought the 85-hectare former Camyr Allyn cattle grazing and vineyard property of John and Judy Evers.
Camyr Allyn was settled in 1826 by area pioneer Charles Boydell, who raised sheep, cattle, dairying, wheat, corn, tobacco and wine grapes on his crown grant.
Gresford was where Dr H.J. Lindeman founded the once-great Lindeman wine empire, but in the 1900s the centre of gravity shifted to Pokolbin. Gresford winegrowing petered out and finally ceased by 1911 - only to be revived in 1998 as the Evers family put in vines where Boydell had his vineyard.
The Hunter also starred last week when the Briar Ridge and Brokenwood brands were judged top varietals in the 2023 Halliday Wine Companion Awards.
The Briar Ridge 2021 Limited Release Albarino (al-bah-rin-yo) was judged the Other White and Blends Wine of the Year and the Brokenwood 2014 Sunshine Vineyard Semillon was declared Semillon of the Year.
The semillon was made from grapes grown on a vineyard owned by the Sydney Astra Labels-owning Staas family. Next to Black Creek at Pokolbin, the vineyard was previously part of the famous Lindeman's Sunshine estate.
The awards were presented at a Melbourne dinner on Wednesday night and came from tastings by Wine Companion experts' of 8000 wines from 50 different producers.
The $35 Briar Ridge 2021 Albarino, which is now sold out and replaced by the 2022 vintage version, was crafted by winemaker Alex Beckett, who recently won the 2022 Hunter Valley Wine Awards Valley Young Achiever of the Year title.
Briar Ridge vineyard and winery are part of the Davis family wine group founded by geologist-turned vigneron John Davis. The group also includes the Pepper Tree operation in Halls Rd, Pokolbin, the Tallavera Grove vineyard and vineyards at Orange, Coonawarra and Wrattonbully.
John Davis's daughter Jaclyn Davis is owner of Briar Ridge.
