2011 RIVERINA WINE SHOW
RULES 2011
Download 2011 wine show booklet
IMPORTANT INFORMATION
The Riverina Wine Show is only open to finished wines i.e. wines that have been bottled during a commercial bottling run with a seal/cork that the consumer will break to consume. THEY NEED NOT necessarily bear a commercial label or be available for sale at the time of judging. Where a finished wine is not commercially labelled, the exhibitor must list on the entry form the commercial brand under which the wine will be sold. Failure to do so may see the wine disqualified. Commercial labels should NOT be removed from exhibits.
1. All classes are open for competition to winemakers and distillers and wine and spirit merchants. A wine merchant shall mean any person, association or company buying wine and brandy for re-sale or wholesale. A winemaker shall mean any person or firm manufacturing wine from grapes.
2. An Exhibitor shall mean the person(s), business or company as designated on the Wine Show entry form and also includes an agent and anyone acting or purporting to be acting on the Exhibitor's behalf, whether or not employed by the Exhibitor.
3. The Committee means the Riverina Wine Show Committee convened under the Riverina Winemakers Association Inc.
4. "Riverina" means the geographical indication registered as "Riverina".
5. 2011 entry fee is $45.00 (inc. gst).
6. There is no limit to the number of entries in any Class.
7. Entries in the still and sparkling classes shall comprise FOUR bottles. Entries in the fortified classes shall comprise three bottles.
8. An exhibitor may be awarded more than one medal in any one Class.
9. No exhibit may be entered in more than one class, and no exhibit may be entered in the show by more than one exhibitor.
10. MINIMUM QUANTITIES: 100 by one-dozen cases of 750ml bottles or equivalent at the time of entry or at the time of judging. To be eligible for the popular premium trophies an exhibitor must hold a minimum of 5,000 cases at the time of judging or entry and this may be a combination of bottled stock and stock stored in tank. Any stock stored in bulk must be in bottle ready condition and be identical in all respects to the bottled stock. A minimum stock of 1,000 Cases must be bottled, commercially labelled and available for purchase at time of judging.
11. Exhibits will be judged on points on the following scale:-
Colour and Clarity 3 points
Bouquet 7 points
Palate 10 points
TOTAL 20 points
12. Medals will be awarded as follows, based on the average score of the three judge panel:
Bronze Medal 15.5 to 16.9 points
Silver Medal 17.0 to 18.4 points
Gold Medal 18.5 to 20.0 points
13. Entries may be made on the form supplied by the Riverina Winemakers Association or on-line at www.riverina-winemakers.org.au.
14. No person will be permitted to inspect an entry form after receipt by the Secretary. No person will be permitted access to the exhibits, with the exception of the Judges, Stewards, Secretary and staff, until the awards have been determined.
15. Exhibits are to bear the labels supplied by the Committee. Commercially labelled wines should retain commercial labels. Please apply Committee labels on the entries in a manner that allows the organisers to ascertain product descriptions and other label matters.
16. Varietal wines must comprise at least 85% of the nominated variety. To be eligible for Riverina Trophies, wines must contain at least 85% Riverina fruit. Labelling of blended wines must conform to the Australian Food standards and the Australian Wine and Brandy Corporation Acts and Regulations as amended from time to time.
17. Still table wines may contain a small amount of residual sugar to balance the palate. However they must have a dry finish and exhibitors should refer to the wine style descriptors.All still table wines entered with a residual sugar greater than 7.5g/L must declare the level of residual sugar on the entry form. Sweet white table wines are encouraged to enter the International Sweet Wine Challenge www.sweetwinechallenge.com.au
18. Entries in the Dry Sparkling wine classes may contain a small amount of residual sugar not exceeding 25g/L to balance the palate. However they must have a dry finish and exhibitors should refer to the wine style descriptors. Effervescence must be via natural fermentation; carbonated and flavoured wines will not be accepted.
19. Entries in the Sparkling wine - other styles classes may be made in any style and sweetness, however, residual sugar level must be noted on the entry form. Effervescence may be via natural fermentation or carbonation. Flavoured wines and/or wine products will not be accepted.
20. All exhibits shall become the property of the Committee.
21. Exhibits must be solely the produce of Australian grapes and must conform to the respective Acts of the States and the Commonwealth which govern the manufacture of Australian Wine and Brandy. The Committee reserves the right to have any exhibit inspected and/or analysed by one or more persons appointed for that purpose.
22. No protest will be entertained unless made within seven (7) days of the announcement of the awards.
23. No entry will be received from any person or persons disqualified by this or any other similar Wine Show Organisation. Should any entry be accepted, it shall, when discovered, be deemed void, and the entry fee and exhibit shall be forfeited.
24. All persons exhibiting shall accept the decision of the Judges appointed by the Committee, as to the merits of the exhibits.
25. Exhibitors agree that their results can be published in the catalogue of results.
26. Up to 3 dozen wines may be requested at wholesale price for the presentation dinner.
27. Audit of exhibits and use of medals will be undertaken. This may involve establishing minimum stock levels and consistency between exhibits and commercially obtained products. It is a condition of entry that exhibitors will cooperate with auditors acting at the request of the Riverina Wine Show. If requested, exhibitors will provide samples from company warehouses.
TROPHY AND MEDAL ASSESSMENT
28. With the exception of the Most Successful Exhibitor Trophies, trophies will only be awarded where a wine has won a gold medal in the Show.
29. Points counted towards the trophies for the Most Successful Exhibitor and the Most Successful Exhibitor of Still Table Wines from Riverina Fruit are determined as follows:
- Only one wine from each class is eligible and points will be allotted on the basis of five for Gold medals, three for Silver medals and one for Bronze medals. Where an exhibitor has gained more than one medal in a Class, the higher will count towards the Trophy.
- In the event of a tie in points, the exhibitor gaining the higher number of Gold medals will be the winner. If still tied, the higher number of Silver medals will be the winner.
30. Judges will judge each Class without collaboration. The Chairman of Judges shall have the final power to arbitrate the Awards.
31. Judges will not have access to the exhibits apart from the glass placed in front of them by the Stewards. Judging will be conducted in accordance with the rules of the show.
32. The judges shall have the power to disqualify or dismiss, as not being eligible for judging, any exhibit which, in their opinion, does not comply with regulations in every respect, and any such disqualification shall be accepted as final.
33. Awards may be withheld in any Class where exhibits are considered unworthy.
DISPLAY OF AWARDS
34. The Riverina Wine Show adheres to the Winemakers Federation of Australia Code of Practice governing the display of awards. This states that producers will not use medals, stickers, symbols or other devices on a bottle in order to misleadingly convey the impression the wine has received an award at an open, objective and independent competition.
35. Awards received by an individual wine will bear the year of the award and the class description and shall only apply to wines bearing the name under which the exhibit was entered.
36. Compliance by a producer to the WFA's Code of Practice for the display of awards is a prerequisite for entry to the Riverina Wine Show.
37. Any exhibitor making improper use of Awards for Advertising purposes may be disqualified from any future shows.
