Bursary boost for Ridgemill Estate winemaker

Awards are nothing new to Ridgemill Estate. But that didn’t take the gloss off Peter McGlashan’s grin when he claimed the Queensland Winemaker Bursary.

Ridgemill Estate winemaker Peter McGlashan has been awarded the 2016 Queensland Winemaker Bursary. Picture: Liana Turner

AWARDS are nothing new to Ridgemill Estate.

But that didn’t take the gloss off Peter McGlashan’s grin when he claimed the prestigious Queensland Winemaker Bursary earlier this month.

The prize includes entry into an Advanced Wine Assessment Course at the Australian Wine Research Institute in Adelaide.

“It’s a pretty amazing prize,” Mr McGlashan said.

Mr McGlashan said the palate-training course would better equip him to identify wine quality and characteristics during the winemaking process.

“It just gives you more of an understanding... so you can assess the quality, or potential quality, in the cellar,” he said.

“It’s a great opportunity for Queensland winemakers, because it’s an expensive course and there’s not too many of us that get the opportunity to do it for nothing.”

He hopes to share the knowledge he gains from the course to help Granite Belt wineries in a broad sense.

“I think our wines are of a high quality already... but it will help to raise the quality of our wines,” he said.

“The only way to improve is to be open and sharing.”

Mr McGlashan said the course was also a pre-requisite for anyone wanting to become a wine judge.

To qualify for the bursary, which was presented on Friday, July 8, during the RNA wine awards, Mr McGlashan put forth three wines he had created, along with a written piece about his visions of Queensland’s wine industry.

Mr McGlashan showcased his diverse cellar skills with the 2014 Chardonnay, 2016 Pinot Gris and 2012 Merlot, which clearly impressed the judges.

“It was just a matter of having a look at the wines and just putting forward the wines that really are the best that we have,” he said.

Ridgemill Estate owner Martin Cooper welcomed the win.

“It’s amazing,” Mr Cooper said. “It’s a fantastic bursary and it just says a lot for the district.”

Mr McGlashan also recently claimed a trophy for the 2015 Chardonnay at the Australian Small Winemakers Show.

Mr Cooper said he was proud to claim the award-winner as part of his Ridgemill Estate team.

“He’s doing really, really well,” Mr Cooper said.