A Coonawarra cabernet sauvignon has been named the world’s best

A Coonawarra cabernet sauvignon has been named the best in the world, and you can – soon – pick it up for less than $40.

Winemakers Tim Heath and Matthew Reimann from Riddoch. Picture: Supplied

A Coonawarra cabernet sauvignon named for the founder of the famed wine region – John Riddoch – has been declared the best in the world at the prestigious International Wine Challenge.

Paragon Wine Estates’ Riddoch The Pastoralist from the 2021 vintage topped wines from 20 other countries to take out the highest honour for that varietal, which has not been won by an Australian wine for more than a decade.

Australia had a strong showing overall at the IWC with 62 gold medals, 250 silvers and 199 bronzes, placing second only to France, which picked up 70 gold medals.

Australia’s fortified wines were well-awarded also, garnering 24 medals including 13 golds, six of which went to Victoria’s Morris Wines for its muscat, topague and tawny varietals.

“Australia has a long and distinguished history of making fortified wines, but production declined in the ‘60s,’’ IWC co-chair Sam Caporn said.

“It is great to see winemakers responding to the growing global demand for fortified wines and drawing on their winemaking heritage to produce some outstanding wines in this category.”

Riddoch, The Pastoralist, 2021. Picture: Supplied

Riddoch Coonawarra chief winemaker Tim Heath said The Pastoralist was an homage to John Riddoch, the pastoralist and parliamentarian who founded the Coonawarra Fruit Colony.

“John Riddoch started making wine in the Coonawarra in 1890, and in doing so established one of Australia’s greatest wine regions. Today, we’re proud to continue his legacy of crafting expressive wines that are a great representation of the region,” Heath said.

“Back in 2020, Matt and I set ourselves some fairly ambitious targets for the quality of wines we wanted to produce under the Riddoch Coonawarra name.

“Winemaking is about long-term effort and persistence, and if we’re completely honest, we thought it would take much longer than this to receive these kinds of accolades.

“We were quietly confident about the wines we’d bottled for the 2021 vintage, but it is incredibly special to receive this validation for all the hard work that has happened in the background over the last three years.’’

The 2021 The Pastoralist will be available from June 29 through Dan Murphy’s and BWS, and retails for $39.99.

The 2019 vintage is described as a “generous wine with a supple palate of smooth, silky and balanced tannins’’.

Paragon Wine Estates is owned by Endeavour Group, which also owns Dan Murphy’s and BWS.

The International Wine Challenge is considered among the world’s most rigorous and prestigious wine competitions, with thousands of wines from more than 50 countries judged.

Portugal, Spain and New Zealand rounded out the top five in terms of country standings at the competition, while Egypt won its first ever medal picking up a bronze.

Burgundy topped the regions of France with 152 medals including 27 golds.