See all the happenings from the Halliday Wine Companion Awards 2017

Author and namesake James Halliday was joined by some of the best winemaker in the country, as well as special guests including John Eales, Jordan Lewis, Mark Skaife and Jeff Kennett. Guests were treated to a six-course degustation menu that was  expertly designed to match the award-winning wines that were served throughout the night.  The 26 award-winning wines served were worth over $95,000, including a perfect 100-point 1916 Seppeltsfield Para Liqueur retailing for $700 per 100ml! 

This year Halliday annointed Sarah Crowe of Yarra Yering his Winemaker of the Year for 2017 – the first time a female winemaker has won arguably the most prestigious award in the country. We also saw Wine of the Year awarded to Best’s Thomson Family Great Western Shiraz 2014 and Winery of the Year going to the Hunter Valley’s Mount Pleasant.

 

For this year’s book, Halliday was once again joined in the tasting room by Campbell Mattinson and Tyson Stelzer. Together they tasted more than 9000 wines over a period of 630 hours or 24 cumulative days. Halliday said, “There are more than 1300 wineries profiled in this edition and I often get asked 'How do you do it?' With help, of course, but even after 11 editions it still brings me great joy in seeing the quality of wines and the increasing talent of winemakers from Australia. And now we see are an ever-increasing diversity of sub-regions and varietals. It continues to be a very exciting industry to be working alongside.”

Some Fun Facts about the Halliday Wine Companion 2017 and the Qantas epiQure Halliday Australian Wine Companion Awards:

• 9018, the number of wines tasted for the Halliday Wine Companion 2017 Edition
• 405,810, the approximate mls of wine tasted (based on an average pour of 45-50ml per wine). This equates to 1.4 barrels or 541.5 bottles of wine.  And if we put these all on the wall side by side, the wall would be 4.329km long!
• 630, the approximate number of hours spent tasting
• 10, the approximate number Riedel glasses broken during the tasting process
• $95,000 the total retail cost of the wine to be served at this year’s Halliday Wine Companion Awards
• $4,000 the retail cost for a bottle of each of the wines to be served at this year’s Halliday Wine Companion Awards
• $375 the retail cost for a glass of each of the wines to be served at this year’s Halliday Wine Companion Awards
• 2200, the number of Riedel glasses used at this years awards night
• $66,000 the total retail cost of the Riedel glasses used at this year’s Halliday Wine Companion Award

And don’t forget to pick up your copy of the new edition for the tastings notes of all your favourite wines!