NSW Sommelier's Wine List of the Year winners - hospitality

This week, the top winners of the NSW Sommelier’s Wine List of the Year awards were announced in a ceremony held at Government House, Sydney.

The awards – run by NSW in strategic partnership with Destination NSW, Winedepot and the Restaurant & Catering Association – aimed to celebrate sommeliers and venues that were doing outstanding work to showcase local wines. The seven award categories promoted recognition of wine lists in both urban and regional areas.

The award for Best NSW Wine List in a Regional Venue – Small went to David Lowe from The Zin House in Mudgee; while Pete Cutcliffe from Bill’s Fishhouse in Port Macquarie nabbed the prize for a large regional venue.

In the accommodation categories, Matt Underwood from The Newcastle Club in Newcastle took out Best NSW Wine List in a Regional NSW Accommodation Venue; while Matthew Brooks from TWR, Crown Sydney took out the equivalent prize for Sydney.

The prize for Best NSW Wine List in a Sydney Venue was awarded to Louella Mathews from bibo wine bar in Double Bay, which judges described as “a wonderful list – well thought-out and structured”.

The award for Outstanding Support of the NSW Wine Industry went to David Collins from Charred Kitchen & Bar in Orange. This special award, given at the discretion of NSW Wine Industry Association President Mark Bourne, recognises someone who has shown outstanding commitment to showcasing local wines. Bourne said of his decision, “David’s list hosts 244 wines from all over NSW (840 wines in total), making it arguably the biggest list of NSW wines in the country.”

Finally, the top prize of the night – the 2021 NSW Sommelier’s Wine List of the Year – went to newcomer TWR at Crown Sydney, led by sommelier Matthew Brooks. Nearly 100 per cent of the venue’s wines by-the-glass come from NSW, backed up by a bottle list that the judges described as “bold and impressive”.

The full list of finalists for the 2021 NSW Sommelier’s Wine List of the Year can be viewed here.