[yellow tail] Wins the Oscars of the Wine World

SYDNEY, November 3, 2011 /PRNewswire/ --

[yellow tail] Limited Release 2005 Shiraz named Red Wine of the Year at 2011 International Wine Challenge of Vienna (AWC)

Last night, at a gala dinner in Austria's capital city attended by more than 2,500 wine experts and enthusiasts from around the world, Australia's [yellow tail] Limited Release 2005 Shiraz was named Red Wine of the Year 2011.

The International Wine Challenge of Vienna (AWC) is the largest wine show in the world. This year, 9,632 wines from 1,487 producers out of 36 nations contributed wines to the competition.

Previously, wines that have been named Red Wine of the Year have come from the USA, Germany and Austria. This is the first time in eight years that an Australian wine has won this award.

The panel of judges is made up of national and international oenologists, wine experts, sommeliers, gastronomes, wine traders and journalists. Panel members are required to have previously passed a wine exam recognised by the Austrian Wine Law.

There are more than 35 categories of wines split by variety, age and style. Each wine is given a score out of 100. Wines that earn more than 90 points win a gold medal and one wine out of all gold-medal winners is deemed Best in Category. The Best in Category wines are then re-evaluated to find the international trophy winner for Best White Wine, Best Red Wine, Best Sweet Wine and Best Winery of the Year.

John Casella runs his family business out of a small town called Yenda in the Riverina region of New South Wales. Since he created [yellow tail] in 2001, he has grown to be the largest Australian winery producing 12 million cases of [yellow tail] each year. John puts the taste preferences of his consumers first and is thrilled to know that the best wine experts in the world think highly of his premium Limited Release Shiraz.

"It feels as though we've just won the Oscar for Best Picture of the wine world. To receive a gold medal in this show is a great honour, but to also receive Best in Category and Best Red Wine of the Year is incredible.

"Our Limited Release range is [yellow tail]'s pinnacle offering and is perfect for special occasions like this one," added John.

[yellow tail] Limited Release Shiraz (RRP AUD$39.99) is made of fruit sourced from Wrattonbully on the Limestone Coast of South Australia. This region is ideal for producing well-balanced fruit that is rich in flavour. It has delicious concentrated berry, plum and sweet oak flavours with hints of classic cracked pepper spice. Complementary mocha vanillin notes come from maturation in American oak barrels.

[yellow tail] Limited Release Shiraz is available at selected independent outlets nationally.

For more information about the 2011 AWC, visit: http://www.awc-vienna.at

MEDIA CONTACT:
Australia:
Gillian Martin at Casella Wines
+61-2-9330-4717
gillian.martin@casellawines.com

UK/Europe:
Richard Tatton at Fruit Driven Wines
+44(0)7825-076775
richard@fruitdrivenwines.com

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/yellowtailaustralia
Twitter: @yellowtail_aust