The Old Vine Hero Awards 2024: The Shortlists
We've been inspired by all the entries to the second Old Vine Hero Awards! Both quantity and quality has made reaching the shortlists extremely tough. Now its your turn to help, we need your votes!
The judges have distilled 105 entries from 17 different countries down to 5 shortlists consisting of 16 nominees in total. Each shortlist is made up of the individuals and organisations that the judges considered to be making the greatest contribution towards the old vine movement within the category they have been nominated within.
The Old Vine Hero Awards 2024 fall into 5 award categories:
Viticulture
Winemaking
Research
Communication
Commercial Impact
Read through the profiles of each of the nominees below to help you to decide who to vote for in each category.
Voting will close on Thursday 21st March at 21.00 GMT. Votes will be counted and the winners of each category will be announced at a virtual awards webinar on Monday 25th March. Register to attend the results webinar
Reached your decision? VOTE NOW
The shortlisted nominees for The Old Vine Hero Award 2024 for VITICULTURE are:
1. Jesus Jimenez & Alejandro Vicente Castro, Bodega Numanthia, Toro, Spain
The goal of the winery is to preserve the patrimony of their old vines, using organic viticulture to protect the agricultural heritage, as well as raise the economic and socio-cultural value and significance of old vines. Numanthia makes wines from a blend of 100 plots with bush-trained and ungrafted vines up to 200 years old.
For the past 2 years, Numanthia has been working with ITACYL to identify and preserve the unique clones and genetic diversity that exists amongst its old vines. They have selected 120 biotypes free of virus to plant a new 8 ha vineyard, ensuring the preservation of the DNA. The aim is to discover the best plant material that can adapt to the changing climatic conditions to ensure the long-term viability of vineyards in the Toro region.
numanthia.com
@bodeganumanthia
2. Dr. Dylan Grigg, Australia and Spain
Dr Dylan Grigg has been involved in viticulture for more than 20 years, he is an old vine researcher, viticulturist and winemaker - born and bred in Barossa, Australia. Grigg completed his PhD on old vines in 2016, his doctoral thesis was on the influence of grapevine age on vine growth and wine quality. Dylan’s findings challenge the convention that old vines equal uneconomically low yields. His findings on epigenetics suggest that old vines are a vital source of genetic robustness for the future of wine.
Grigg shares the findings of his research - and knowledge and love of old wines - with viticultural organisations all over the world. He consults with old vine custodians in regions such as Rioja, Emporda, Malta, Australia, South Africa and the UK.
vinyavella.com/pages/dylan-grigg
@gdylla
3. Derek Mossman - Knapp, Garage Wine Co, Chile
Derek Mossman-Knapp is devoted to the native varieties and old vines of Chile. He has created a network of experienced winegrowers and farmers, convincing them to preserve agricultural heritage, reviving the communities around that agricultural activity.
Over two decades, Derek has elevated the importance of the historical viticultural value of Chile helping to revive viticultural heritage, foster a proper economy for old vines and raise the profile of lesser valued varieties like Carignan and Semillon. His leadership in precision dry-farmed wines made from neglected vineyards without water has been inspiring, influencing other producers in his region to do the same.
www.garagewine.company
@garagewineco
4. Carlo Petrussi, Friuli Venezia Giulia, Italy
Professor Carlo Petrussi, one of the world’s foremost experts on indigenous grape varieties, has been in charge of a monumental project to document all the historic and autochthonous vineyards of Colli Orientali del Friuli since 2006. Carlo has dedicated a lifetime to cataloging different vine biotypes and collaborates with wineries for their conservation. He has also authored several books and articles on the subject, including extensive work cataloguing dozens of ancient varieties that were in danger of disappearing.
Petrussi has spent years discovering, saving and promoting old vineyards in Italy and Slovenia. His goal is to preserve viticultural heritage and promote sustainable practices.
The shortlisted nominees for The Old Vine Hero Award 2024 for WINEMAKING are:
1. Maria Jose Granier, Jardin Oculto, Bolivia
Jardin Oculto produces wines from arboreal vineyards of the Cinti Valley in Bolivia, with up to 200 year old criolla variety vines. These vineyards are not only unique, but in grave danger of disappearing due to the demographic changes and economic complexities of this type of viticulture. Maria Jose comes from a 4th generation winemaking family. Despite the fact that her great grandfather brought the trellis system to Bolivia, she champions the preservation of arboreal viticulture in the Cinti Valley, hoping to preserve these ancient pre-phyloxera vineyards.
Jardin Oculto currently releases wines from 4 vineyards that still have these types of old vines. The focus is to make wines from different sites that still champion this type of viticulture.
jardinoculto.com
@jardinocultowines
2. Viviana Malafarina, Basilisco, Basilicata, Italy
Viviana Malafarina trained as a translator and linguist before accepting a short-term role at Feudi di San Gregorio. She was captivated by viticulture - “the vineyard land and landscape, our role in the landscape, and in the ambience of life”, as she says. Within 3 months, she was promoted to viticulturist at Basilisco in Basilicata and became head of the winery the next year.
Viviana’s first act upon assuming leadership of Basilisco in 2012 was to persuade the owners of Basilisco to bottle the ancient 2-hectare vineyard, “Storico”, as a single cuvée Aglianico. She was supported by Pierpaolo Sirch, who describes the mountainous plot of ancient ungrafted vines as “an open air museum”. It is a 2.2-hectare ungrafted Aglianico vineyard with pre-phylloxera vines that are 80+ years old. Viviana Malafarina is the “face and the soul” of Basilisco: she manages all the aspects of the winery and a total of 26 hectares of organic vineyards on volcanic soils of Mt. Vulture.
Following Viviana’s example, several wineries in the area stopped uprooting old unproductive vines and started micro-vinification instead of blending different plots. Winemakers who were no longer motivated to pursue the management of difficult and unproductive vineyards were able to sell their grapes at a higher price. Viviana has helped other wineries switch mindset and turned them into advocates for maintaining old vines.
basiliscovini.it
@viviana_malafarina
3. Derek Mossman- Knapp, Garage Wine Co. & VIGNO, Chile
Derek has pushed old vine winemaking on two fronts - first simply by bottling old vine wines and proclaiming their virtues as such, and second by being a founding member of VIGNO, a group specifically dedicated to rehabilitating and celebrating the old vine Carignan that is found in his beloved Maule region.
VIGNO has gained significant traction in the Chilean fine wine arena, and resulted in many larger wineries investing in the area, as well as coming together to tell the story of this region’s unique viticultural heritage. All the vineyards that Derek and his Garage Wine Company work with are older vines, some of them ancient. The region in which he works has the highest concentration of old vines anywhere in Chile. The creation of a line of wines at Garage Wine Co which demonstrate the potential for success and influence of oenology and viticulture in Chile, led to increased economic value of these wine areas and this type of vineyard.
@garagewineco
@vignadores_de_carignan/
The shortlisted nominees for The Old Vine Hero Award 2024 for RESEARCH are:
1. Feudi di San Gregorio, Campania, Italy
The protection of indigenous varietals and old vines has been an objective for Feudi di San Gregorio since 2009. Feudi di San Gregorio farms over 300 hectares of vineyard, including 50ha of small vineyard plots growing Aglianico vines over 150 years old. The vineyards have undergone meticulous mapping and cataloguing and research has been carried out to study their evolution through the vegetative and productive cycle. Chief Agronomist Pierpaolo Sirch says the region is an immense genetic database which absolutely deserves to be preserved.
Feudi di San Gregorio seeks to protect diversity for the future of wine. Aglianico specimens from Taurasi are among the most exciting vineyards in all of Irpinia; pre-phylloxera and ungrafted plants, over 2.5 metres tall with criss-crossing shoots that reach a length of 4 to 5 metres. Feudi has preserved, catalogued and studied their potential, together with Prof. Attilio Scienza and the University of Milan, in a research project dedicated to centenary plants known as “The Patriarchs”. The most interesting vines have been codified and reproduced, and live on in the new “Dal Re” Aglianico vineyard in Taurasi. Their indepth old vine research will be published in an e-book in 2024.
feudi.it
feudi_di_san_gregorio
2. Plaimont Producteurs, Gascony, France
Plaimont is known for innovative pioneering research into grape varieties and their origins. Founded in 1979, the co-op now has more than 800 growers and 5,300 hectares, with a reputation as a respected independent research centre on ampelography, reviving forgotten pre-phylloxera varieties that may counter global warming and renew focus on old vines and ancient varieties. They focus on biodiversity, preserving and propagating forgotten ancient local grapes, including Tardif, Manseng Noir, Gros and Petit Manseng, Arrufiac, Petit Courbu.
Today, the varieties and viticultural approach championed by Plaimont have become an example of how to face the challenges of climate change and market saturation through the prism of history and nature – while building a sustainable business that supports the livelihoods of a large community of growers and collaborators. In 2002 Plaimont opened the first private Ampelographic conservatory in France and is now the guardian of over 120 varieties. In 2014 Plaimont created the first Ampelographic conference in France, fostering international collaboration.
plaimont.com
@plaimont_vignerons
3. PORVID (Portuguese Association for the Conservation of Grapevine Diversity), Portugal
Beginning in 1989, PORVID sought to identify all clones of every known and unknown grape variety in Portugal, including virused plants. Plants were then conserved in 5 different conservatories in different climates/terroirs. The clonal, DNA identification and varietal conservation program they began created the template for all other EU wine countries since.
Driven by the pioneering work of geneticist Professor Antero Martins, PORVID became an organisation of academic researchers, government agencies, and private wine companies intent on identifying and preserving every Portuguese grape variety, and at least 50 clones of each. The 39-year-old project has been an outstanding success, creating a snapshot of Portugal’s biodiversity before any further decline and officially listing 343 wine grapes authorized for planting, including 243 autochthonous grapes from Portugal. On a practical level, these clones provide precise values that will help growers adapt to future needs, such as altering productivity, reducing sugar levels and increasing acidity.
The shortlisted nominees for The Old Vine Hero Award 2024 for COMMUNICATION are:
1. Randy Caparoso, Journalist/Photographer, California, USA
Author of Lodi! The Definitive Guide and History of America's Largest Winegrowing Region, Randy has created extensive written and photographic documentation of old vines in California since 2010. He conceived and led the Lodi Native project involving native yeast/minimal intervention production of heritage vineyard Zinfandels as a way of demonstrating individual terroirs and bringing old vines to the attention of the media, trade and consumers in order to highlight their value to the world.
Randy has led numerous on-site studies of old vines for trade and media, spoken on old vines at events such as SommCon and San Francisco Wine School as well as podcasts, including a recent webinar for Circle of Wine Writers. He is the Editor-at-Large and Bottom Line columnist for The SOMM Journal, and currently blogs and does social media for Lodi Winegrape Commission's lodiwine.com. He also contributes editorial content to The Tasting Panel magazine.
randycaparosophotography.com
@randycaparoso.wineauthor
2. Katie Jones, Domaine Jones, France
Katie Jones is a British winemaker in the South of France. Her mission is to make small batch wine from very old vines. She is passionate, engaging and educating consumers and trade on the importance of old vines. She uses creative, fun and modern engagement through social media and live events. She names each old vine, puts them up for adoption and takes her community on daily virtual old vine visits on InstagramLive.
Katie has shown her followers what old vines mean for winemakers, the community and in terms of quality and taste. Weekly live tastings featuring guest wine personalities including Helen McGinn, Jamie Goode, Joanna Simon, Brad Horne, Natalie Earl and Tim Atkin MW engage her followers with the vines. She has generated significant press coverage across high-calibre consumer and trade publications. She also takes part in the Naked Wines Tours and has delivered in-person tastings and customer events to merchants and retailers including: Loki Wines, Fareham Wine Cellars, Inverariety, and The Wine Society. Old vines are always the focus of her presentations and her discussions. Katie not only engages consumers but provides retailers with inspiration and material with which to sell wines and tell old vine stories directly.
domainejones.com
@domainejones
3. Robert Hill-Smith, Yalumba, Australia
Yalumba has been owned by the Hill-Smith family for 175 years. Their leadership and commitment to the preservation of its treasured old vines is traceable to the devastating plague of phylloxera between 1860 to the 1920s. Barossa avoided phylloxera and now Yalumba is a dedicated caretaker and protector of some of the world’s most ancient vines, preserving varietal and clonal variation in the wine world. Robert Hill-Smith took over as CEO in 1985 and he remains as Chairman to this day. In 2007 Yalumba created an Old Vine Charter to protect and promote their heritage vines. The fruits of their labour championed in their rare and fine wines, including The Octavius Old Vine Shiraz (sourced from vineyards planted in 1854 and between 1901-1951 on ungrafted roots), The Steeple Shiraz and The Tri-Centenary Grenache. This leadership inspired the Barossa wine community to endorse this classification and create a regional Barossa Old Vine chronology as a reference point for all winemakers and grape growers, recognised today as Barossa Australia’s Old Vine Charter. In 2009 Robert established Australia’s First Families of Wine to share the commitment to collaboration, the environment and education for the next generation, protecting and promoting Australia’s premium wines.
yalumba.com/old-vine-charter
@yalumbawine
The shortlisted nominees for The Old Vine Hero Award 2024 for COMMERCIAL IMPACT are:
1. Giles Cooke MW, Co-Owner and Co-Founder of Thistledown Wine, South Australia
Thistledown Wine began in 2010 when old vine Grenache had no value in Australia. The growers needed to be incentivised to keep the vines in the ground. Giles created a network of the very best growers in McLaren Vale and has been a leader of the movement that changed old vine grenache to command prices in excess of $4,000 per ton. Thistledown has established sales in 24 countries around the world and is one of the most significant buyers of old vine fruit. Giles was instrumental in recognising the value of the older vines in the Riverland and proved it is also commercially relevant. He helped create significant markets for old vine Riverland Grenache in both the UK and the U.S. The guiding principle of this journey has been to save the old vineyards, look after the growers, change the style of wines to make them more commercially relevant and provide a sustainable future for the old vines and their growers.
thistledownwines.com
@thistledownwines
2. Joel Peterson, Once and Future Wines, USA
Joel Peterson has devoted his wine industry career to creating highly successful wine brands from a wide geographical range of California's oldest vineyards, primarily Zinfandel and field blends. Joel was the Co-Founder and winemaker of Ravenswood Winery and is currently proprietor of Once and Future Wines founded 2014. He is a founding board member, past President and spokesperson/educator for Zinfandel Advocates and Producers (ZAP), and the owner/proprietor of the Bedrock Vineyard replanted after phylloxera in 1888 by Senator George Hearst.
By crafting hundreds of critically-acclaimed, vineyard-designated wines and competitively-priced blends from California's oldest vineyards, Joel has gained international respect for Californian old vines. He has served to elevate, protect and preserve many old California vineyards. His support of the ZAP and UC Davis long range Zinfandel clonal research project was essential to raise the funds to identify and propagate heritage selections of Zinfandel.
onceandfuturewine.com
@onceandfuturewine
3. André Morgenthal, South Africa
André has been one of the greatest advocates for old vines, documenting them in South Africa and demonstrating the commercial value and increase in consumer perception, resulting in an increased RRP of the wines they produce. His work at The Old Vine Project included the commission of research that identified 3,800ha of heritage vineyards and persuaded authorities to certify them, quantifying the retail price advantage per bottle and doubling the fruit price, with the potential to increase grape prices by 400%.
Andre’s work at the OVP contributed towards the creation of a Certified Heritage Vineyard seal for wine bottles, identifying the planting date and ensuring the commercial value of these wines. He also helped to grow the OVP membership 130+ and has influenced not only the preservation of old vines but also the culture of caring for younger vines so they can look forward to a healthy and productive old age, focusing winegrowers, winemakers, and all wine drinkers on the benefits that come from wine made from old vines.
oldvineproject.co.za
@oldvineproject
NOW IT’S TIME TO CAST YOUR VOTE:
Reached your decision? VOTE NOW
Watch the awards being announced live: Register to attend the results webinar