Check Out the Winners of the 2022 Melbourne Royal Wine Awards

Gathering the country's best of the best, the annual Melbourne Royal Wine Awards (MRWA) took place on Thursday 27 October at the Victoria Pavilion after receiving a colossal 2,350 entries this year (South Australia submitted the most with 967).

Taking home The Champion Victorian Winery Trophy was Yarra Valley's Oakridge Wines led by chief winemaker David Bicknell. On top of its other five gold medals from this year, Oakridge also claimed Best Victorian Chardonnay in 2021.

Elsewhere, Scotchman's Hill snagged The Trevor Mast Trophy for Best Shiraz for its 2021 Shiraz, an offering that was also awarded Best Victorian Shiraz. As for the coveted Jimmy Watson Memorial Trophy, Barossa vineyard Hentley Farm had the honour of claiming the title this year thanks to its Old Legend grenache featuring a medium body and notes of strawberry, red currant and nutmeg.

"The Melbourne Royal Wine Awards recognise and celebrate excellence in Australian winemaking. The Jimmy Watson Memorial Trophy was first awarded 60 years ago and is the trophy winemakers from all around Australia want to win. Melbourne Royal congratulates South Australia's Hentley Farm on being the 2022 winner," Brad Jenkins, Melbourne Royal CEO, shared.

Meanwhile, for the first time in a number of years, The Francois De Castella Trophy for Best Young White went to a category other than chardonnay⁠—the Macclesfield Grüner Veltliner 2022 by Longview Vineyard in Adelaide Hills. In addition to its Francois De Castella Trophy, Longview Vineyard also earned Best Pinot Gris/Grigio, Best Single Varietal White, and Best Cabernet Sauvignon.

You can check out the full list of award winners at the Melbourne Royal Wine Awards website.

Top image: Kelsey Knight