Aussie Sparkling Wine lovers looking for the best bubbles to enjoy this festive season need look no further than premium Tasmanian label House of Arras – which has now scooped the ‘Best Sparkling Trophy’ at every capital city wine show in Australia this year.
Ed Carr, House of Arras Winemaker, is celebrating this phenomenal clean sweep after the results of the Royal Hobart Wine Show last night where they won four trophies in total; Best Wine of Show, Best Tasmanian Sparkling, Best Tasmanian Wine and Best Sparkling for the Blanc de Blanc 2008.
“These awards have topped a superlative year for House of Arras. Such endorsement across a broad range of judges is an absolute statement of quality and the entire viticulture and winemaking team is extremely proud of this achievement.
“It is particularly pleasing to be awarded ‘the home state’ trophy for the ‘Best Tasmanian Wine’ in Hobart from a field of strong competition across many premium cold climate wine styles,” said Carr.
The seven Best Sparkling capital city trophies were split between the House of Arras Grand Vintage 2008 which took home three trophies and Blanc de Blancs 2008 which received four.
Last week, House of Arras also received the ‘Best Australian Producer’ Trophy at the prestigious International Wine & Spirit Competition. An esteemed global competition, this is the first time that the top Australian producer trophy has been awarded to a sparkling wine brand.
With these kinds of accolades under his belt, it’s no wonder that wine critics have dubbed Carr the “Godfather of Australian Sparkling”.
“It is absolutely fantastic to see our philosophy of fastidious viticulture and winemaking come to fruition and receive these awards from such discerning wine judges in recognised quality competitions both here in Australian and overseas,” said Carr.
House of Arras is part of the Accolade Wines portfolio, which features other premium brands including Grant Burge, Hardys, St Hallett and Croser.
Fruit for House of Arras is sourced across Tasmania’s premium cool climate regions, ideal for long, slow and consistent fruit development.
The entire portfolio of Arras sparkling wines is held back between 3-10 years to give them the distinction, quality and maturity they require to be world-class, said Carr.
“What sets House of Arras apart from other Australian sparkling wines on the market is the age of its wine. There are plenty of cold climate sparkling Chardonnays, Pinot Noirs and Pinot Meuniers, but to take it to world parity, it had to be the same age as benchmark wines and that’s what we are achieving.”
In addition to the trophy winning Grand Vintage 2008 (RRP $79.99) and Blanc de Blancs 2008 ($86.99), the House of Arras portfolio includes a Brut Elite (RRP $50), Rosé 2006 ($86.99) and the E.J. Carr Late Disgorged 2003 ($189.99) which won ‘Best Wine of Show’ at the Australian Sparkling Wine Show this year.
With this selection, House of Arras has a wine for everyone this sparkling season. December is understandably the peak sales period for Sparkling Wine with 19 per cent of category value being generated[1].
Australian Sparkling Wine accounts for over 58 per cent of all Sparkling sales (vs Champagne accounting for 31.7 per cent of Sparkling Sales), and over 60 million bottles were sold in Australia in the last 12 months, of which 10 million were sold in December.
Wine Show Trophies 2017
Royal Queensland Wine Show (July) – Best Sparkling Trophy ‘House of Arras 2008 Grand Vintage’
Royal Sydney Wine Show (August) – Best Sparkling Trophy ‘House of Arras 2008 Grand Vintage’
Royal Perth Wine Show (September) – Best Sparkling Trophy ‘House of Arras Blanc de Blancs 2008’
Royal Adelaide Wine Show (September) – Best Sparkling Trophy ‘House of Arras Blanc de Blancs 2008’
Royal Melbourne Wine Show (October) – Best Sparkling Trophy ‘House of Arras 2008 Grand Vintage’
Royal Hobart Wine Show (November) – Best Sparkling Trophy ‘House of Arras Blanc de Blancs 2008’
National Wine Show – Canberra (November) – Best Sparkling Trophy ‘House of Arras Blanc de Blancs 2008’
The Australian Sparkling Wine Show (October) – Wine of Show ‘House of Arras 2003 EJ Carr Late Disgorged’
International Wine & Spirit Competition (November) – Best Australian Producer Trophy
[1] Source: IRI Market Edge Total Market database MAT 29/10/17
