EVENTS
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Andrew Calabria of Calabria Family Wines introduces guests to Kings of Prohibition
1. KINGS OF PROHIBITION LANDS IN AUSTRALIA A craft-designed wine called Kings of Prohibition was unveiled at Sydney steakhouse The Cut Bar & Grill on 30 May. Designed by Calabria Family Wines, the wine is made with a Barossa Valley Shiraz and Hilltops Tempranillo, and tells the story of the Prohibition era in the United States, which Andrew Calabria, Sales Director at Calabria Family Wines, believes changed the face of wine. “It changed the wine industry and opened the door for innovation, essentially wine was reborn, and it created great wine brands which are still impacting the industry. Without Prohibition, winemakers would not have explored styles such as Fume Blanc or White Zinfandel. From the great era of the roaring twenties, Prohibition gave rise to the notorious ‘Kings of Prohibition’,” he said. The packaging drew attention at the event – it is shaped more like a gin bottle than a wine bottle.
1 2. ANGOVE TAKES THE MEDHYK SHIRAZ ON THE ROAD Angove celebrated the release of the 2016 The Medhyk old vine, basket-pressed Shiraz with a national roadshow hosting key trade around the country. Vintage House Managing Director Timothy Boydell, Angove Joint Managing Director Victoria Angove, and Chief Winemaker Tony Ingle hosted key trade for dinner and a casual wine tasting at the Officers’ Mess, The Kittyhawk, in Sydney on 21 May. Angove has a strong family tradition of winemaking going back five generations and The Medhyk is its flagship wine coming out of McLaren Vale. Boydell and Angove wrapped up the Medhyk events with a dinner in Hobart on 5 June following successful events in Perth, Adelaide, Brisbane, Gold Coast, Newcastle and Melbourne plus the consumer launch in the first week of May at the Angove McLaren Vale Cellar Door in the historic Warboys Vineyard.
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Pouring a glass of Kings of Prohibition Shiraz Barossa
3. CAPE GRIM 666 VODKA UNVEILS NEW BRANDING Cape Grim 666 Vodka launched new branding, products and positioning at a masterclass held at Duclie’s in Sydney’s Kings Cross on 22 May. The distiller unveiled new packaging at the event, which was hosted by vodka guru Ben Davidson. Davidson has been working closely with Dean Lucas, Owner and Founder of Cape Grim, to develop new flavoured vodkas for the brand, and is the man behind the two new flavours – Lemon Myrtle Honey and Wattleseed Coffee Vodka. Davidson conducted the masterclass, explaining precisely how they go about creating the Australian-inspired, all-natural flavoured vodkas. “We collaborate with a number of local Tasmanian and mainland producers to supply our ingredients, especially awesome are the indigenous-owned Something Wild business, who supply us with ethically sourced bush botanicals for our flavoured vodkas,” said Davidson. Other masterclass relaunch events were held at Bad Frankie’s in Melbourne, Rude Boy in Hobart and Blackbird in Brisbane.
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(l-r) Timothy Boydell, Victoria Angove and Tony Ingle
48 | JULY 2019 NATIONAL LIQUOR NEWS
The new branding on a bottle of Cape Grim 666 Vodka