Winners Celebrated at the 2020 Mornington Peninsula Wine Show

In a fitting way to wave off 2020, the vignerons of the Mornington Peninsula were celebrating excellence in viticulture and winemaking yesterday at the annual Mornington Peninsula Wine Show.

The Show Committee Chairman Lindsay McCall and Chair of Judges David Bicknell delivered the results and trophies across 13 categories which demonstrated the breadth and depth of winemaking on the Mornington Peninsula at one of the very few wine shows to go ahead this year.

An eighth trophy was introduced to the awards in 2020 with the addition of “Best Sparkling Wine”, to parallel the growing reputation the region is securing in the sparkling wine market.  The class attracted a strong set of entries which averaged very high scores from the judging panel.  “An excellent class of sparkling wines traversing a range of styles and ages” said David Bicknell.  “Nice to see such a high strike rate too.  The top wine was a lovely demonstration of tirage aged complexity, line and length.  A compelling top exhibit.”

Pinot Noir and Chardonnay continue to lead as hero varieties for the region, culminating in the Provenance Awards, Lindsay McCall explains; "The Provenance Awards were envisaged as a different way of assessing Chardonnay and Pinot Noir, looking at three vintages of a wine in detail, and in the context of consistency of quality, vineyard character, and winemaking style. As the Mornington Peninsula focuses more and more on individual site characteristics and vineyard recognition, these awards allow the judges to explore the subtleties of terroir in a formal wine show format."

From a judging perspective David added of the Pinot Noir and Pinot Gris/Grigio classes; “Thoroughly enjoyable classes to judge.  2019 was such a strong vintage with many, many good exhibits.  Different sizes, styles and ripeness levels were all rewarded.”

Congratulations to our 2020 trophy winners:  

Best Sparkling Wine - 2016 Stonier Chardonnay Pinot Noir

Best Pinot Grigio/Pinot Gris - 2019 Willow Creek Pinot Gris

Best White Varietal or Blend - 2016 Crittenden Estate Cri de Coeur Savagnin

Best Chardonnay - 2018 Portsea Estate Back Beach Chardonnay

Best Red Varietal or Blend - 2019 Montalto Pennon Hill Shiraz

Best Pinot Noir - 2019 Paringa Estate Robinson Single Vineyard Pinot Noir

Chardonnay Provenance Award - Crittenden Estate The Zuma Chardonnay  – 2018, 2017, 2014

Pinot Noir Provenance Award - Montalto Estate Pinot Noir  – 2019, 2015, 2012

We thank our generous sponsors for their ongoing support of MP Wine and the wine industry on the Mornington Peninsula.