Sydney International Wine Competition returns for 2021 contest

The Sydney International Wine Competition will return this year, after being cancelled in 2020.

This year's competition will have a panel of 13 highly credentialed judges, including four Masters of Wine, from Australia and New Zealand, chaired once again by Warren Gibson. Due to travel restrictions, there will be no international judges on the panel this year.

Co-convenor of the Sydney International Wine Competition, Brett Ling, said given the difficulties faced by the wine industry over the past year, it is important for competitions such as the Sydney International to proceed to highlight to consumers the exceptional range of food-friendly wines available to be enjoyed at restaurants and at home.

“This is a very important year for the Australian and New Zealand wine industries as they come out of Covid and have to face additional issues with international distribution,” said Mr Ling.

“While there will be greater emphasis on wines from Australia and New Zealand this year because of logistical issues, our region has never been more open to competing against other international producers, so we expect very keen interest in the competition from across the world.

“Our judging panel this year will be made up of judges from Australia and New Zealand, which are traditionally powerhouses in the competition, so we can only hope that the trans-Tasman travel ‘bubble’ is floating by the time judging takes place in late October. However, we have built in contingency plans just in case.”

Wines the world over are eligible for entry. Entries are capped at 2000, and the final 400 wines will be set aside for re-judging with appropriate food, which ultimately leads to about 250 wines being awarded Top 100, Blue Gold and Gold medals, along with 25 trophies.

The Sydney International Wine Competition is the only international wine show that judges all its finalists in combination with suitable food dishes, to ensure that medal-winning wines are both technically excellent and relevant for consumers.

In past years, up to 12 countries have been represented, featuring most of the major wine producers as well as smaller producers such as Georgia and Turkey.

With no minimum production requirements, this show is particularly attractive to experimental and small makers where they can test their wines alongside wines from major producers.

Entries are being accepted from 12 July, and judging will take place in late October. Provisional award and trophy winners will be announced on 8 November 2021.

Full details of the competition’s 2021 schedule can be found here .