Andrew Thomas named Hunter Valley Winemaker of the Year

Making it three from three, Andrew Thomas of Thomas Wines wins Winemaker of the Year for a record third time at the Hunter Valley Wine Legends Awards.

Thomas’ eponymous wine label is known for its exceptional Semillion and Shiraz wines, and a third win put Thomas in rare company with only one other winemaker from the region ever receiving as many awards.

“I am humbled and delighted to receive this award, it gives recognition to all the hard work and attention to detail that we apply to our winemaking every day as well as the successes we have achieved with our wines, particularly over the last 12 months,” he said.

Away on a trade mission in Japan, “Thommo” wasn’t at the gala dinner to accept his award, but luckily his two sons Dan and Remy, who are both in the wine business, were on hand to receive the honour in his place.

Son Dan Thomas works at Thomas Wines as an Assistant Winemaker, and Remy Thomas works locally as a viticulturist.

“Making wine is definitely a team effort, and I would like to acknowledge my son Dan who has been working alongside me for the last three years, as well as all of my staff who work tirelessly in the pursuit of promoting excellence with the two signature varieties of our region.

“I was proud that Dan and Remy could accept this award in my absence, as it really is a combined effort for which he deserves to be a part of this recognition,” he said.

Thomas has worked in wine for 37 years, producing under his own label for 25 of those, winning Winemaker of the Year in 2008, 2014 and now again in 2023. The award recognises a Hunter Valley winemaker who has achieved recent success on the wine show circuit as well as having made a significant contribution to the promotion of Hunter Valley wines in general.

Some recent successes for Thomas Wines include four trophies and eight gold medals, including Trophy for Best Aged Semillon, Trophy for Best Mature Red, Best Open Vintage Shiraz and Most Successful Exhibitor at the 2022 Hunter Valley Boutique Wine Show.

Thomas Wines also won Trophy for Best Red of Show and Best One Year Old Shiraz at the NSW Small Winemakers Show and Best Young Semillon at the Winewise Awards in 2022.

Rounding out an outstanding 2022, Thomas also won Best One Year Old Shiraz of Show at the highly regarded Hunter Valley Wine Show in 2022 and won three Golds from three entries in the 2022 NSW Wine Awards.

Thomas Wines maintains the highest Halliday Wine Companion rating of Red 5 Stars for 2023, with both signature wines, the Thomas Kiss Shiraz and the Thomas Braemore Semillon, included in the inaugural The Real Review Classification, each receiving 2 Merits with the label named one of the Top Wineries Of Australia.

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