The top wine lists in each State / Territory are Cirrus (NSW), Gimlet at Cavendish House (VIC), Peppina (TAS), Italian & Sons (ACT), Restaurant Botanic (SA), The Shorehouse (WA) and Agnes (QLD).
Il Lido - Cottesloe WA
Best Wine Lists State or Territory 2023
Best Wine List Western Australia
The Shorehouse, Swanbourne
Best Wine List Western Australia 2023
Cuisine: Modern Australian
Sommelier: Nina Throsby, Aaron Commins & Alexander King
Number of Wines: 750
Wines by the Glass: 36
Wine Price by the Glass: $
It's not just the addition of about 150 wines to the list in the past year but the care with which Nina Throsby's team at Shorehouse have placed those wines, refining the list in the process. It's tough at the top in the Western Australian restaurant market but Shorehouse's creativity and freshness in delivering a list that places the West first on the list, yet fixes it clearly in a world context, which enables it to stand apart. It engages with the diner offering a list which appears personal and hand-picked. Special features abound, adding to rather than detracting from the experience.
Gimlet boasts a sophisticated European-style setting and cuisine. The wine list follows suit starting with a selection of cocktails that range from a novel hazelnut martini through to grand celebratory drinks such as the $120 Lotus Club Sazerac. A drink at the bar off the bar list offers the perfect introduction to the 500+ wine list that follows. Australian producers go toe to toe with the Europeans as the list delves into new style skin contact and oxidative whites and low intervention reds among a wide range of tastes. Wines by the glass is divided into wines of provenance against a more general and eclectic wine listing. This philosophy rings true throughout. A sweet wine or a fortified by the glass offers the perfect ending to
One of Tasmania's finest lists, Peppina's split focus between Tasmania and Italy delivers a wonderful sense of identity, with a smorgasbord of Barolo and a feast of Tamar Pinot included for the ultimate diversity. Extremely strong by the glass (with carafe and the offer of half glasses. Great!) with a huge swathe of pricepoints covered, this versatile selection is incredibly impressive.
This in an exemplary winelist perfectly pitched to the Botanic's freshly foraged food. The wine pairings show Elle Foster's vinous talents - and her non-alcoholic sensibilities. South Australian wines from the core with the rest of of Australia succinctly covered. The Champagne list is outstanding with Burgundy treated with due respect. A tight selection from across the wide world of wine completes this enticing winelist. A masterpiece achieved in less than 200 wines.
Adelaide Botanic Gardens, Plane Tree Drive Adelaide SA 5000
Sommelier: Lilly Heenan, Rani Parish & Luke Willis
Number of Wines: 412
Wines by the Glass: 31
Wine Price by the Glass: $
A benchmark wine list that should be the envy of sommeliers and wine selectors nationally. Stupendous in its breadth, succinct enough without being a weighty tome, but delivering a who's who of wine producers, wine styles and vintages that will delight everyone from wine geek to aspirational drinker. It shows off some of the world's most sought after cult producers while presenting the familiar, a place where Cotat and Ganevat can rub shoulders with Grosset and Tyrrell's. Burgundy, Jura, Champagne and Piedmont are brilliant collections, while a feature page of near 20 Ganevat cuvees is ridiculously special. Mature wines, fancy wines and prestigious local wineries abound. It's a list to repeat offend in, heavily. Bravo.
The late, great Tina Turner once belted out ‘you’re simply the best’ for the rugby league all those years ago yet it could be an anthem for Cirrus. This is a spectacular, innovative and thrilling list showcasing 1200 special bottles with 50 by the glass. Plenty of joy and difference on each page – and who else could offer an extensive mix of French chenin blanc or 17 aligoté with each desirable and perfect for this top seafood restaurant. Bravo.
Top notch list, a destination anywhere in New South Wales for Italian fare and a flair for diversity of the offering. It gives drinkers a strong Italianate feel for where imported wine is at in Australia, but despite the theme a good offering from local Canberra producers and other recognised fare. That being said, guests should lean into the Italian theme of the list, with outstanding, boutique producers from that place a significant feature, many of which are represented in a bandwidth of judicious maturity for ultimate drinking. Foradori, COS and Olek Bondonio are irresistible, but there's stalwarts in the mix like G.D.Vajra, Produttori dei Barbaresco and Ornellaia to entice the uninitiated. A run of Antinori Tignanello is impressive, so to a deep listing of Clonakilla, a delight at every turn. This is such a wonderful list to pore over, with a strong theme and vigorous and righteous Italian accent on hand. Clever stuff, done so well.
The Hall of Fame is a prestigious list of establishments who have achieved leading status either by winning the Main Award or the same State/Territory or Category award three times. Each year, new successful establishments are added to Australia’s Wine List of the Year Awards Hall of Fame. To maintain a current listing however, they must enter and maintain their glass rating each year, which is no easy feat!
Glass Ratings 2023
The key objective of the awards is to recognise and reward exceptional sommeliers, their wine lists an the owners who have invested in them. Each entering venue is awarded 3, 2, or 1 glasses based on their wine list submission. Judges submit their scores based on the guiding principles of appraisal. AWLOTYA allocates glasses with the utmost integrity, albeit in acknowledgement that all reviews are subjective.
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