A NUMBER of local winemakers have been celebrated at this year's North East Victorian Wine Challenge (NEVWC).
Hosted at the Myrtleford Bowls Club on November 22, some 16 awards were presented to winemakers from the five different wine regions of North East Victoria: Alpine Valleys, Beechworth, Glenrowan, King Valley and Rutherglen.
The NEVWC is a regional wine show dedicated to showcasing and celebrating the magnificent wines of the region.
Alpine Valleys Vignerons hosted this year's challenge, receiving 286 entries, which were judged by a range of different experts in the wine industry.
Beechworth winemaker, Mark Walpole from Fighting Gully Road Winery, submitted the 2023 Verdicchio and came away with five trophies: 'Best White Table Wine', 'Best Alternative White Wine', 'Best Wine of Region: Beechworth', 'Viticulturalist of the Year' and above all, the 'Wine of Show' trophy.
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Alex Phillips, a winemaker from Mount Beauty's Spring Spur, entered the Spring Spur 2023 Shiraz and collected both the 'Best Red Table Wine' and 'Best Wine of Region: Alpine Valleys' trophies.
Winemaker, Grace Douglas, from Porepunkah's Feathertop Winery, also won the 'Best Prosecco' award with the Feathertop 2019 Prosecco.
"There was a really amazing variety of wines this year," said Bridget Phillips, secretary and treasurer of Alpine Valleys Vignerons.
"It's really exciting that our whole region is getting more recognition for alternative variety wines.
"With more recognition, tourists have more reasons to visit the area.
"Award shows such as these lift the profile of the whole region and it encourages more people to buy our beautiful wines.
"We had a lot of great sponsors this year and so many people were involved; all of the volunteers were amazing.
"Keep an eye out for next year's challenge, as it's going to be bigger and better than ever."
Jo Marsh, another AVV member, said the Regional Shield Challenge was the closest it's ever been.
"The Alpine Valleys won the shield by only eight points, with the King Valley coming in a very close second," she said.
"The shield is awarded based on the number of aggregate points for all entries tallied up from each region.
"Interestingly, this is the first year of the challenge where the five finalists eligible for 'Wine of Show' came from each of the five different wine regions.
"Any of the five regions could have won it this year."
Beechworth will host the NEVWC next year.
The NEVWC also ran a free Wine Trade Tasting at Wangaratta's Quality Hotel Gateway on November 27, seeking to get more local wines on more local shelves.
