Cate Looney of the Brown Family Wine Group has won Winemaker of the Year at the 2020 Australian Women in Wine Awards.
The online-only event was broadcast live from the Langton’s TV studios in Sydney to the Australian Women in Wine Facebook page, where it was watched by the wine industry across the country, and around the world.
It was a truly national event with watching parties in winemaking regions including Tasmania, Margaret River, Canberra, the Barossa and North East Victoria.
Founder Jane Thomson said that while it had been a tough year for all, the calibre of the winners demonstrates an incredible breadth and depth of female talent in the industry.
She said: “I’m so overjoyed that were able to keep the awards going this year, and that we could deliver an online event that brought the industry together in celebration. These awards continue to each year uncover even more amazing stories of achievement – and resilience – by women in the Australian wine industry. Congratulations to each and every one of them!”
Looney has worked at Brown Brothers for fifteen years and in a recent interview with Australian Wine, she said:
“Working at Brown Brothers, we get to work with family members, which is really lovely, and you get treated like a large family,” says Cate. “We’ve got a lot of history and tradition here, but we also have the innovation side, which has been going for as long as they have been making wine.
“We get to experiment with so many different varieties, and new and different things all the time. If we make mistakes, it’s not the world’s biggest disaster. We learn and move on.
“In Australia, we aren’t stuck to a set of rules. There’s an openness to trying different things and using different techniques. It’s unique.”
Other winners announced this evening are:
- Woman of Inspiration Award: Gill Gordon-Smith
- Champion of Diversity & Equality: Helen Strachan, Pernod Ricard Winemakers, SA
- Marketer of the Year: Trish Barry, Mastermind Consulting, NSW
- Cellar Door Person of the Year: Jess Greatwich, Krondorf Creek Farm, SA
- Viticulturist of the Year: Catherine Kidman, Wynns Coonawarra, SA
- Owner / Operator of the Year: Melissa Brown, Gemtree Wines, SA
Co-hosted by comedian, TV and radio personality and Grapes of Mirth founder Merrick Watts, and AWIWA Founder and Chair, Jane Thomson, the event was conducted in partnership with Langton’s TV.
A live stream broadcast is not new for the AWIWA, as the awards have been streamed live every year since its inception in 2015, even when a real-life awards ceremony took place. Broadcasting the awards forms part of an ongoing commitment by the AWIWA board to engage and involve the entire Australian wine community.
The Australian Women in Wine Awards – which are owned and operated by The Fabulous Ladies’ Wine Society – celebrate and reward the work of women in the Australian wine community, and community leaders who champion equality and fairness for all genders in the workplace. They are the only awards program for women in wine in the world.
