Drinks International has named The World’s Most Admired Wine Brands for 2024, with three Australian brands making the top 50.

Spanish wine producer Familia Torres took the top spot on the list after falling to fourth in the rankings last year.

Penfolds came third on the list and also took home The Most Admired Wine Brand in Australasia award.

The list is voted by an academy of sommeliers, buyers, wholesalers, Masters of Wine and writers.

“Each year our Academy pool grows stronger and I firmly believe it’s the most authoritative collection of independent wine experts in the trade,” said Drinks International editor Shay Waterworth.

“What’s particularly important to me is that we rotate a percentile of the Academy each year to guarantee a true and fair representation of the global trade.

“Earning a place on this prestigious list is therefore a serious achievement and I personally congratulate those in our top 50 this year.”

The two other brands to make the most admired list were Henschke at No.20 and Yalumba, which re-entered the list at No.47.

Australia’s top winery of 2024 revealed

One of Australia’s leading authorities in wine, The Real Review, has announced the Top Wineries of Australia, with Yarra Valley producer Yarra Yering crowned this year’s Winery of the Year Australia.

The results mark the fourth consecutive win for Victorian wineries and follow an intensive tasting of over 10,000 wines over the course of a year, reviewed by a panel of Australia’s top critics.

2024 is the seventh year of the highly anticipated Top Wineries of Australia ranking. Yarra Yering has returned to the top spot, having taken the trophy back in 2021. Completing the top five ranking of this year’s list are Henschke (No.2, Eden Valley, SA), Wine by Farr (No.3, Geelong, VIC), Penfolds (No.4, South Australia) and last year’s winner, Oakridge (No.5, Yarra Valley, VIC).

The Real Review’s Principal Wine Writer and leading Australian wine critic Huon Hooke said “Achieving ‘Winery of the Year Australia’ status for the second time is a testament to winemaker Sarah Crowe’s exceptional talent, the hard work of the vineyard team led by Andrew George, and the consistent outstanding calibre of wines that Yarra Yering deliver year after year. In the 2024 ranking, several of Yarra Yering’s wines separated them from the pack, including its Carrodus Cabernet Sauvignon 2021, which achieved a jaw-dropping 99 points, its stellar 2022 Chardonnay and its famous Dry Red Wine No 1 Cabernet Blend.”

“Barossa remains Australia’s wine powerhouse, with ten producers making it into the top 50 alone. Despite having fewer hectares of vines compared to some other regions, Barossa boasts the most wineries on the list, recognition and tourists. Big reds are the order of the day in this region. In this year’s list, excitement comes not only from the established wineries such as Seppeltsfield, Rockford and Torbreck but also relative newcomers like Eisenstone, Hentley Farm and John Duval Wines.” 

Yarra YeringWinemaker and General Manager Sarah Crowe said: “To be named The Real Review’s number one Top Winery for a second time is a tremendous achievement for our small and dedicated team at Yarra Yering. Australia’s top producers are extremely skilled in both viticulture and winemaking and excel at their craft on a global scale. This acknowledgement of quality across our portfolio is reflective of our unwavering commitment to producing wines of exceptional quality and showcasing our distinctive terroir. .” 

As part of the announcement of this year’s Top Wineries of Australia list, wine lovers will have the rare chance to meet with a number of this year’s Top 100 wineries at events in Sydney and Melbourne in June and July. In each city, a major tasting event will take place, with winemakers from across the country in one room showing more than 120 of their top wines for ticket holders to try. Learn more here.

The full list of The Real Review Top Wineries of Australia 2024 can be found at www.therealreview.com. 

Demand for Penfolds to exceed supply globally