REFLECTIONS
Tom Hogan AS. Reserve Judge in Residence
2013 Sydney International Wine Competition

Think of your favourite pairings, Bacon and eggs, Ginger Rogers and Fred Astaire, dogs and bones, Batman and Robin, Warne and Healy leap to mind. However, in my mind, all pale in comparison to the intrinsic, cultural and eternal marriage of food and wine. Food is enhanced by its proximity to wine. Wine discovers new heights when appropriately matched with food. Throughout history, for a great many cultures, wine has been food's constant companion.

This is a fact that seems to have been forgotten, ignored or overlooked by all of the world's major wine shows. That is, apart from the Sydney International Wine Competition. The SIWC pays respect to the wine and the role it plays at table, going to great lengths to judge the best of the best with appropriate food. I was fortunate to be offered the role of Reserve Judge in Residence for the 2013 Competition judging.

What an experience it was. The SIWC succeeds in bringing together a crack team of internationally regarded wine judges - MW's, iconic wine makers, respected buyers and all round industry influencers - to discover the TOP 1OO wines, as judged with food, from an original super high quality capped entry of 2000.

The week kicked off with a rendezvous in Sydney. Old hands welcomed fresh faces from around the globe, leading to a calming sense of camaraderie on the coach trip to the Blue Mountains, specifically, to Birdland - the home of the SIWC. The Judge's welcoming and introduction lunch set the tone for the week: Wine is King and Food is his Queen. Palates were calibrated over the ubiquitous but by no means compulsory wine options games and any personal nerves were settled. The Panel was geared and ready for judging to commence.

I was fortunate to be partnered with the good doctor, Ken Dobler, and UK based wine marketing guru, Adrian Atkinson. I thank them immensely for their guidance and patience (particularly patience). And so it was, our trio undertook the role of selecting the crème de la crème of our presented brackets to return for re-evaluation in the presence of appropriate food. Consensus was achieved frequently amongst our trio; however, importantly where consensus was not achieved, thoughtful, intelligent and passionate debate was entered into. These debates are essential in developing and critiquing one's palate and discovering or highlighting wines that may have previously been missed. Thus, with great faith, I believe that the process of identifying the best of the best was achieved and highly accurate.

The second phase of judging is where the SIWC really defines and identifies itself amongst other high calibre shows. Wines are grouped into palate weight for the most part - aromatic whites and Pinot Noirs excepted, sitting solely amongst their peers in their own Varietal Categories.

Appropriate dishes as devised and prepared by Tony Bilson were presented for each bracket post initial evaluation and scoring. Interestingly, my scores tended not to change dramatically from the pre-arrival of the food as compared with those re-evaluated with the food. Perhaps, my professional role as Sommelier has provided me with a predisposition to selecting wines destined and designed for consumption at table - as opposed to wines that could be described as wines of contemplation, that is, isolated consumption. Having said that, anecdotally, many of the principal Judges’ scores varied significantly from pre-arrival of food to accompaniment with food. Surely, this was a vindication and testimony to the importance of judging wine with food.

Many casual wine drinkers have never experienced sitting down to a meal accompanied by complementary wines. The SIWC plays an important role in highlighting how potentially rewarding, respecting the sanctimony of the marriage between wine and food can be.

Unashamedly, the SIWC is an idiosyncratic and unique show. However, arguably, more than any other show on the international circuit, it is the most thoughtful and respectful to its entrants - a reason why it is so loved by consumers, producers, the industry at large - and judges alike.

The Sydney International Wine Competition was my introduction into the world of international wine judging; and the experience, due in no small part to my fellow judges and the Competition’s administrators (Warren Mason in particular), was incredibly enjoyable, rewarding and educational.

The coming together of high quality wine, restaurant grade cuisine as provided by industry icon Tony Bilson and immensely talented wine people in a majestic setting is a unique and defining feature of the Sydney International Wine Competition - it's these individual components that attracted me to the industry originally.

I wish to thank Warren Mason for his foresight in creating the competition and for his generous offer to me to attend. Similarly, thank you to the entrants who provided me with such joy during the judging. And finally, my fellow judges for being so encouraging and supportive. I hope to see you all again in the years to come.