Record entry numbers again!

21 Oct 2019

2019 Cider Awards entries hit another high with 276 entries

One of the world’s leading cider makers, Tom Oliver from multi-award winning UK cider company Oliver’s Cider & Perry, has landed in Australia and is preparing to critique hundreds of ciders in Australia’s largest cider show.

The judging of the 2019 Australian Cider Awards will take place this week in Melbourne as record entries signal the start of a bumper summer for fans of authentic, craft cider. 

Warwick Billings, chief steward of the Australian Cider Awards and Vice President of industry body Cider Australia commented that within the 276 entries received there are some interesting but not unexpected trends.

“The number of entries in standard cider and perry classes is stable overall but there is a shift towards the drier classes, reflecting the continuing evolution of consumer palates and preferences”, said Warwick.

“Growth in entries is largely driven by the specialty classes with a 50 per cent jump in entries in the cider with fruit class and 20 per cent more experimental products. We have responded to this development by introducing a new Best Specialty Cider/Perry trophy”.

“Each year we are seeing an improvement in the quality of entries, making the task of narrowing the field of stand-out products even more challenging. But our world-class team of judges is well qualified for the task”, said Warwick.

President of Cider Australia Sam Reid added, “The Australian cider industry is proud of what it has achieved in a relatively short timeframe in terms of diversifying the range of styles produced and making consistently high quality ciders”.

“Over the past week the Australian cider community has enjoyed showing Tom around the cider producing regions of Victoria and Tasmania and learning a lot along the way”, Sam said.

“After judging, Tom will venture over to Western Australia to explore parts of the newly established WA Cider Trail”, Mr Reid said.

Award winners will be announced on Friday 8 November at the industry’s annual gala dinner at The Craft & Co in Collingwood, Victoria.

Tickets to the Australian Cider Awards Dinner are $135 and available through Eventbrite.

cideraustralia.org.au

trailswa.com.au/trails/wa-cider-trail

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About Cider Australia

Cider Australia is an independent, not-for-profit organisation funded by cider businesses and sponsors, established in 2012. It aims to build a sustainable cider category by undertaking activities that improve the quality of ciders produced and marketed in Australia. The organisation represents the interests of the cider industry to policy makers, calling for regulations and policies that support a diverse and evolving cider industry, and runs the national cider conference (AusCider) and the Australian Cider Awards.

Australian Cider Awards

The 9th annual Australian Cider Awards will be held in Spring 2019. It is the largest cider competition in Australia and is leading the standardisation and improvement of cider judging across Australia. This year the Awards received a record 276 entries from 84 Australian and international producers.

Judging of the 2019 Awards will be held on 22-23 October 2019 at the William Angliss Institute in Melbourne. The panel comprises 7 full judges and 4 associates and brings expertise from across the alcoholic beverage industry including:

• Chair Sebastian Crowther MS (REAL Wines)
• Guest UK judge Tom Oliver
• Michael Henry (Henry of Harcourt)
• James Kendell (Small Acres Cyder)
• Loïc Le Calvez (Wine Truth)
• Briony Liebich (Lion Co)
• Jody Scott (NZ’s Zeffer Cider)

Full details on award classes including the 2019 Style Guide and rules are available on the Cider Australia website.  

Tom Oliver – Biography
Tom Oliver leads a fabulously full life. He is a farmer and the sound engineer and tour manager for The Proclaimers, but it’s for the quality of the ciders and perries he makes in Ocle Pychard, Herefordshire and his collaborations with brewers and cidermakers, that he has gained a reputation around the world. He enjoys drinking cider only just slightly more than he enjoys talking about it but most of all it is the people around cider that stimulates and excites him.

Key dates

MEDIA ENQUIRIES

For more details please contact Cider Australia executive officer Jane Anderson on 0434 559 759 or office@cideraustralia.org.au or visit www.cideraustralia.org.au. Follow the Awards via twitter @cideraustralia and the #australianciderawards hashtag.