Off the Vine and On the Hunt for Australia’s Next Young Gun of Wine

The UNCUT event will present more than 60 wines from over 30 cutting-edge Australian winemakers to its grinning, sipping attendees in the search for the industry’s best new talent.

Nestling into a yet un-announced CBD warehouse, UNCUT will be comprised of a three-hour wine tasting where those dozens of wines will be sipped at, savoured and dissected by attendees. Following this vinous exploration, Adelaide’s own The Henry Austin’s similarly original modern Australian yum cha dishes will be available for purchase, and a rollicking party will commence.

Just like the competition it accompanies, Young Gun of Wine UNCUT seeks to take the pretensions out of wine. Speaking with The Adelaide Review, Young Gun of Wine founder Rory Kent says he started it all “as an antidote to the ‘old worldly’ stereotypes to show that wine can be approachable and fun, and that it’s the young faces of the industry that are make such delicious product. We wanted to connect young winemakers with young wine drinkers.”

This character is reflected in the awards given each year. Aside from the eponymous Young Gun of Wine award, the People’s Choice and and Winemaker’s Choice awards add variety and more democracy to how the wine is selected.

“We had the People’s Choice award as a deliberate way to communicate to consumers that they’re the best judge of their own palate and to give them confidence to try and decide and say what they like best.”

Since starting up in 2007, Kent says the Young Gun of Wine has grown from receiving 30 to 40 entrants in its first year to around 200 in 2016. “It’s getting better and better every year,” he says “It’s getting more dynamic, more diverse, more creative, more joyful.”

While this is the first time Adelaide will host an UNCUT event, Young Gun of Wine is no stranger to South Australian wines, with the lion’s share of its winners coming from SA, including Taras Ochota in 2013 and Fraser McKinley in 2014.

“South Australia is kicking ass!,” says Kent. “SA is really leading the charge. Today, the most number of nominations in Young Gun of Wine come from South Australia. Super exciting to see the new things from the hot spot of Adelaide Hills, or the reimagining of Barossa, or people playing with quality alternative varieties from Riverland, to name a just a few places.”

Young Gun of Wine UNCUT
Saturday November 19, 7pm
CBD Warehouse (to be announced)
Tickets available via eventbrite.com
younggunofwine.com