ASVO Winemaker of the year

Mark O’Callaghan

Mark O’Callaghan is the Winemaker/General Manager at Yarra Yering, in the Yarra Valley based in Healesville, Victoria, was the unanimous choice by judges for Winemaker of the Year.  

Beyond his work at Wine Network Consulting, Mark is an exceptional communicator and educator. He has actively shared his extensive knowledge with industry members by writing articles for the Wine and Viticulture Journal and presenting at seminars and webinars at AWITC and for the AWRI and ASVO.  

David Bicknell

Dave is the chief winemaker at Oakridge Wines in the Yarra Valley. Dave’s long term commitment to Oakridge through multiple ownerships & mentorship to aspiring wine professionals . Dave has contributed to the evolution of Australian cool climate Chardonnay and shown leadership within the Australian wine show circui

Sarah Crowe

Sarah is the winemaker/general manager at Yarra Yering, also in the Yarra Valley. Sarah’s inclusive style of leadership has enthused her team to craft award winning great wines. Sarah’s contribution to industry in the wine show circuit and the next generation of wine show judges via the Len Evans tutorial shows how humble leadership can see significant change for good

John Hughes

John is the Winemaker / Owner of RieslingFreak in the Barossa & Clare Valleys. .
John is such an icon of Riesling, a brave and visionary thinker in an industry that is determined to make winemakers, and wine businesses “Fit the mould”. John has championed the expansion of techniques and education around Riesling.
 John puts a tremendous amount of energy into the community with the Spring Festivals and community work with the charity a commitment above and beyond.

Sam Connew, Stargazer Wine

After two decades of working for mainland wine companies, Sam purchased her own vineyard and label, Stargazer. in the last five years Sam broadened the area of planted vineyard to include viticultural diversity, with a range of numerous clones and varieties and her efforts were recognised in 2019 by being awarded ‘Tasmanian Vineyard or the Year’ and ‘Most Improved Vineyard’ by the Royal Agricultural Society of Tasmania.
Cultural diversity within the wine industry is another passion of Sam’s, she was an inaugural advisory member of the Australian Women in Wine Awards from 2015 to 2017 and continues to pursue these objectives in current industry roles.

“Starting my Tasmanian label, Stargazer in 2012, has enabled me to set the style boundaries of my wines with no winemaking history or tradition to adhere to and in a dynamic, exciting, relatively ‘young’ wine region. Importantly, this is in a winemaking, viticultural and company environment where I am only answerable to myself for my successes and failures,” said Sam

Alex Cassegrain, Cassegrain Wines

Alex has extensively trialled ideas to find the best possible solutions for the widespread smoke taint issue in 2020. The 2020 bush fires had a devastating impact on a significant portion of grape growing regions in Australia which motivated Alex to work in unison with growers, suppliers, research companies and agencies to further the industries organoleptic and chemical understanding of smoke taint, and how it can best be treated during and after ferment, to either mitigate or reduce its effects on the wine.
“I am confident in the coming years through trial and error, innovations and experimentation we will be in a much better position to navigate our way through the challenges associated with smoke taint as a result of bush fires. Sharing this information, knowledge, and techniques I believe will be the most important outcome for what we are hoping to achieve. What could have been a disaster for our industry has turned into a potential internationally recognised innovation,” said Alex.

John Hughes, Rieslingfreak

John is a passionate Riesling advocate and winemaker. John has strived to showcase the versatility of the Riesling variety and bring it to the forefront of the Australian wine consciousness, by embracing a variety of old-world techniques and modern winemaking practices. John initiated a regional initiative known as “Riesling - Eden Valley” to foster a unified, regional approach to Riesling promotion and encourage sharing of ideas and technical skills among producers.
John has also sponsored a scholarship for Barossa teenagers with a disability, providing funds and personal mentoring to guide them into tertiary education and work experience to hopefully see them move into fulfilling careers that benefit themselves, their families, and our community.
“I believe that my singular focus on producing one variety to its very best in every conceivable style is an extremely innovative and unique approach in the Australian Wine Industry; while the ripple effect created by the popularity and critical acclaim enjoyed by Rieslingfreak has undoubtedly inspired other winemakers to explore the many unique and diverse opportunities this noble variety has to offer,” said John

Peter Leske

Leske is the Senior Winemaker and co-proprietor of Revenir Winemaking in the Adelaide Hills where he makes wines from an extraordinarily wide range of grape varieties (Arneis to Viognier and everything in between; the list runs to 55), from several different regions, using many diverse techniques. Peter has demonstrated excellence in winemaking. He undertakes a diverse range of modern, innovative and traditional winemaking techniques, balancing creativity with technical precision and customer and consumer expectations.  He has sought to think outside the box finding innovative ways to deal with challenging vintages.

Peter is an active contributor within the industry, generous with his time and knowledge, his recent work supporting effective response to the impacts from smoke on vineyards and the support for knowledge development relating to bushfires will provide significant benefits to support the sustainability of the sector into the future.

  “I have always appreciated and enjoyed the collaborative nature of our industry, the opportunities it gives to share and learn from others, and to give back when the chance arises.” Peter Leske

Frank van de Loo

Frank van de Loo is the Winemaker and General Manager/Part Owner of Mount Majura Vineyard in the Canberra District, where he has overseen development for more than twenty years. Coming from a background in Plant Science research, his winemaking starts with variety selection and viticulture, and is focussed on making wine that best expresses the character of the vineyard. This has involved many trials ranging from alternative varieties and ecological vineyard approaches to fermentation techniques and unusual wine styles. He is keenly aware of the limits of a small winemaker operating alone and has tried to maximise sharing of information in the local industry and being involved in research and extension more broadly. Frank’s innovative approach to his work does not just stop at winemaking. He has also been actively involved in seeking alternative varieties suited to a changing climate and other sustainability initiatives. He has been actively involved in sharing information with the broader wine community and in supporting industry organisations including ASVO.

“It’s a real honour to be nominated when there are so many winemakers doing interesting work in our industry”. Frank van de Loo

Samantha Connew

A highly experienced and respected winemaker and consultant, Samantha Connew launched her Tasmanian solo project Stargazer in 2013. Prior to establishing this and her consulting company, Compass Wine Consulting she was working in applied research, development and extension for the Australian Wine Research Institute as Manager of the Hunter Valley Node. Samantha was the Winemaker/Manager of boutique Hunter Valley winery, Tower Estate, after working in McLaren Vale for ten years as the Senior Winemaker at Wirra Wirra Vineyards.

Amongst her many achievements, in 2007 she was awarded 'International Red Winemaker of the Year' at the prestigious international Wine Challenge in London, and in 2008 she was a South Australian finalist in the Telstra Business Women’s Awards. Samantha has served on the Boards of several regional associations and was a board member of the Australian Society of Viticulture & Oenology and a founding member for the Australian Women in Wine Awards. She is currently a Director on the Wine Tasmania Board.

Samantha is a highly respected wine show judge and has chaired many regional and capital city wine shows, having completed both the AWRI Advanced Wine Assessment Course and the Len Evans Tutorial where she continues her involvements as a tutor. In 2014 she was appointed Chair of Judges at the Sydney Royal Wine show, the first female and the youngest judge in that position.

In 2016 she acquired a small vineyard and olive grove in Coal River Valley, North East of Hobart, under her stewardship, this vineyard was awarded ‘Tasmanian Vineyard of the Year’ in May 2019.

‘I am beyond delighted to be recognised by both my peers and by the ASVO for my contribution as a winemaker and as a member of the Australian wine community. This is some good news for myself and my little label Stargazer in what has been a challenging year for all of us!’ Samantha Connew

“I have always appreciated and enjoyed the collaborative nature of our industry, the opportunities it gives to share and learn from others, and to give back when the chance arises.”

“It is very humbling to be nominated by my peers and to be in such luminary company as my co-nominees and the previous recipients of this prestigious award.”

Mike Hayes
Symphony Hill Winemaker Mike is steadfast in his belief that the future success of Queensland’s wine industry will be based on the development of alternate varietals, in particular, varieties suited to changing climatic conditions. To this end Mike has promoted the planting of alternate varieties and associated innovative winemaking practices for over a decade both at Symphony Hill Wines and with his many clients. Mike has a mission to expand his own knowledge and to share that with the industry. Mike has initiated alternative variety master classes to educate consumers on food and wine matching with alternative varieties, presented at numerous industry forums and led practical viticulture workshops instructing growers how to graft to new varieties. Mike is also establishing small plot alternative variety vineyards in schools throughout southern Queensland and he is also writing a book on alternative Winegrape varieties.Mike is an Adjunct Professor at the University of Southern Queensland where he is on the Advisory Board for Agriculture, Computational Sciences and Environmental Studies. He is also a director of the Queensland Wine Industry Association.The winners of the ASVO Viticulturist and Winemaker of the year will be announced at an Awards ceremony and dinner on November 14th at Carrick Hill in Adelaide.

Fiona Donald
Senior Winemaker, Seppeltsfield Wines Fiona is part of the team that applies modern technology to a wonderful old building with great bones and thoughtful design - the recently resurrected gravity winery. With a vision to get this great asset to work, Fiona and her team have increased the processing capacity of the Seppeltsfield winery from zero to 4000 tonnes in two years. This has been no mean feat; the greatest challenge being asking people to work to modern standards in an old winery and to achieve a lot from a little. In a few short years the value of the winery has increased and the wine is highly sought after. Fiona takes an inclusive approach in the winery, constantly seeking information from colleagues to achieve great results, and she shares her experience willingly with students, school leavers, vintage sea-changers and through industry forums including the Australian Wine Industry Technical Conference and numerous wine shows. Fiona is a committee member of the Adelaide Wine Show, a member of the tasting panel of the Barossa Grounds project and a Barossa Grape and Wine Association board member

• “Evolution” of Coonawarra viticulture (in an time of climate change)
• Intense scrutiny and, ultimately, quality improvement of the Wynns wines at all prices.
• Making Single vineyard wines which acknowledge terroir within the region
• Embracing new technologies, scientific findings, and historical anecdotes and leading international opinions to inform current winemaking at Wynns.
• Living and working in the small Coonawarra wine community and actively participating in the Australian and indeed world, wine community