Applications for the bursary program are sought from those with expertise in one or more of the following areas of interest:
- Tourism
- Sustainability
- Research and academia
- Winemaking
- Viticulture.
Bursary recipients will be given the opportunity to travel to one or more of the other 11 Great Wine Capitals to exchange ideas and expand their networks.
During their travels, bursary recipients will meet with key industry, regional and education stakeholders to share their experience, expertise, and energy as well as learn about practices and operations in their chosen field.
When they return, participants will share their experience and learnings at regional and industry events in Adelaide, South Australia, helping to build capability within their area of interest and maximising the benefit to our wine industry.
Eight bursaries were awarded last year:
- Viticulturalist, Tony Hoare of McLaren Vale’s Beach Road Wines travelled to San Francisco/Napa Valley to investigate their water conservation methods with Ashley Ratcliff, from the Riverland’s Ricca Terra Wines, also travelling to Napa Valley with interest in their technology used for sustainability during drought and extreme heat.
- Marcell Kustos went to both Portugal and South Africa for a new and old-world perspective on cellar door experiences and destination involvement.
- Charles Matheson travelled to Cape Town and the Swartland wine region as well as Napa Valley.
- Syuzanna Mosikyan visited Bordeaux, Mainz and Verona to investigate acceptance of gene-edited grape varieties for a rapidly changing environment.
- Adelaide University PhD candidate, Yanina Giordano went to Rioja in Spain to present at the International Congress on Grapevine and Wine Science before travelling to Verona University as part of ongoing collaborations between that institution, Adelaide University and the Australian Wine Research Institute.
- Thomas Bartholomaeus from the Barossa’s Torbreck Vintners went to Verona to learn more about soft pruning old vines while Shirley Fraser, also from the Barossa Valley went to Portugal’s Women in Wine Expo held in early May this year.
Past bursary recipient Yanina Giordano says, “During my PhD journey at the University of Adelaide, I’ve been dedicated to finding new alternatives to control Brettanomyces spoilage in wine. This incredible opportunity took me to La Rioja and Verona, where I presented my research, gained invaluable feedback, and explored innovative winemaking practices.”
Yanina and others in her 2023 cohort shared their experience and learnings with their industry colleagues at the National Wine Centre of Australia in Adelaide, South Australia in May. Each of the 8 recipients presented a 3 minute highlights reel of their ideas for growth and innovation in the local wine industry, sparked by their insights from other Great Wine Capitals. Their key takeaways and insights are available in a Youtube playlist.
Applications close on Friday 23 August 2024 at 5 pm (ACST). More information about the application process is available on the Adelaide Great Wine Capital website.
Photo, supplied: 2023 bursary recipient Syuzanna Mosikyan in France.