An Adelaide Hills chardonnay, praised by Australia’s top wine judges as ‘an explosion of flavour on the palate,’ won the nation’s top wine award last night at the National Press Club in Canberra, in front of an audience that included Prime Minister Anthony Albanese.

Murdoch Hill’s 2022 Rocket Chardonnay claimed the prestigious Prime Minister’s Trophy for Champion Wine of Show at the National Wine Show of Australia, narrowly edging out a Margaret River cabernet sauvignon.

National Wine Show of Australia chair of judges, Matt Harrop, said the Rocket Chardonnay, from a family-owned vineyard in Oakbank, was a beautifully made wine that stood out from the first round of tasting through to the trophy judging.

“The feedback from all 12 judges was just how much flavour this wine has. To get a chardonnay with such powerful and precise flavours is due to a combination of a great vineyard that’s perfectly tended, with sensibly grown grapes and sensitive winemaking. It’s a great, great wine,” Mr Harrop said.

As winner of the Len Evans Memorial Trophy for White Wine of Show, Murdoch Hill’s 2022 Rocket Chardonnay battled it out for the Prime Minister’s Trophy against the James Halliday Red Wine of Show, Devil’s Lair’s 2022 Margaret River Cabernet Sauvignon.

“The Devil’s Lair has everything you could want in a young cabernet – a lot of flavour, lovely colour, perfect aromatics. If you were going to say, ‘here’s an example of how good Australian cabernet can be’, you don’t need to go further than this wine,” Mr Harrop said.

Devil’s Lair ended the dominance of fellow Margaret River winery Xanadu, which has taken out the top cabernet trophy in the nation’s leading wine show for the past nine years.

To be eligible to enter the National Wine Show of Australia, presented by Endeavour Group, wines must have won a gold or silver medal at one of 32 qualifying capital city or regional shows, meaning its winners have been through one of the most comprehensive wine assessment processes in the world.

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