Over the past month, members of Australia’s RD&E community have been recognised by our sector for their outstanding contributions to the Australian grape and wine sector.
Congratulations to the award winners below, and to other recent award winners and finalists.
Bob Dambergs
Dr Bob Dambergs was announced as an Australian Society of Viticulture and Oenology (ASVO) Fellow at the recent ASVO Awards 2018.
Bob has been, and continues to be, an exemplary role model for researchers in balancing novel scientific findings with applied outcomes for the sector. His contributions to the grape and wine community have been countless, but they all derive from his unique combination of deep understanding of our sector’s needs, rigorous scientific planning and scientific knowledge, and critically, consideration of how to practically apply science to create impactful outcomes. He continues to be active in research and is currently working on Wine Australia funded projects developing rapid methods to assess rot and MOG at the weighbridge and non-destructive methods to determine bud fruitfulness.
The ASVO has recognised Bob’s breadth of his sector and research skills, both oenology and viticulture, his ASVO and other broader contributions to the grape and wine sector, and importantly as a pioneer of spectroscopy research in Australia. Most of all, the ASVO recognised his numerous mentoring roles contributing to the next generation through selfless sharing of his knowledge with others, an endearing characteristic of a Fellow of the Society.
Catherine Clarke and the team at Agriculture Victoria
Dr Catherine Clarke led the team that was awarded the Australian Society of Viticulture and Oenology (ASVO) Viticulture Paper of the Year 2018. Catherine is a Research Scientist at Agriculture Victoria (Rutherglen), specialising in entomology and has a background in biological control and pest management.
The paper of the year, Effectiveness of sodium hypochlorite as a disinfestation treatment against genetically diverse strains of grape phylloxera Daktulosphaira vitifoliae Fitch (Hemiptera: Phylloxeridae) (Clarke, C., Wigg, F., Norng, S. and Powell, K. (2017) Australian Journal of Grape and Wine Research, 23: 432-440. doi:10.1111/ajgw.12288) was selected by the ASVO committee because it has great implications for the national interests of biosecurity and for the National Phylloxera Management Protocols, a set of quarantine standards which will be updated to reflect the recommendations in the paper. The project was funded by Wine Australia and is part of a large body of work on the best practice management of Phylloxera in Australian vineyards.
Jacqui McRae
Dr Jacqui McRae was announced as the Australian Women in Wine Awards Researcher of the Year 2018. Jacqui is a Senior Research Scientist at the Australian Wine Research Institute in the Wine Texture Team. She joined the AWRI in 2009 as a postdoctoral scientist and worked on projects relating to wine tannins and how their structure relates to astringency. Now a senior research scientist, Jacqui coordinates several different projects associated with wine macromolecules. Her key areas of research include the matrix effects of white wine haze formation, better ways of predicting protein haze and the molecular drivers of wine texture.
Kerry Wilkinson
Assoc Prof Kerry Wilkinson was awarded the Wine Communicators of Australia Best Wine Educator 2018. Kerry is a University of Adelaide researcher and educator, who helps to develop the expertise of future generations of professionals in our wine sector. Kerry integrates research and the sector into teaching to provide context and authenticity, and to emphasise the connection between wine science and grape and wine production.
Paul Boss and the team at CSIRO Agriculture and Food
Dr Paul Boss led the team that was awarded the Australian Society of Viticulture and Oenology (ASVO) Winemaking Paper of the Year 2018. Paul is a Team Leader at CSIRO Agriculture and Food where his current research activities bring together the disciplines of analytical chemistry, molecular biology and genetics to understand the impact of environment, management and genotype on grape secondary metabolism.
The paper of the year Fermentation of grapes throughout development identifies stages critical to the development of wine volatile composition (Boss, P., Kalua, C., Nicholson, E., Maffei, S., Böttcher, C. and Davies, C. , 2018. Australian Journal of Grape and Wine Research, 24: 24-37) was selected by the ASVO committee because it brings into question current beliefs regarding grape flavour development and picking times, through detailed chemical analysis of Cabernet Sauvignon and Riesling over the course of berry development. The project was funded by Wine Australia and the information has a direct application for winemakers who can tailor their wine style from the vineyard.
Richard Smart
Dr Richard Smart was announced as an Australian Society of Viticulture and Oenology (ASVO) Fellow at the recent ASVO Awards 2018.
Richard has been a great advocate for the Australian wine sector, with an outstanding career in education, research and service to the Australian grape and wine community. One of his more recent research activities was on a Wine Australia funded project aiming to improve colour extraction. A grape and must treatment device developed from this project has been commercialised by Della Toffola.
The ASVO recognised Richard’s efforts to challenge, motivate and mentor many current and past members of the Australian wine community through his various teaching and sector roles. Richard has contributed substantially to the ASVO through seminars, workshops, publications, and to the Australian Journal of Grape and Wine Research.
Rob Bramley
Dr Rob Bramley was awarded the inaugural Dr Peter May Award at the Australian Society of Viticulture and Oenology (ASVO) Awards 2018. Rob is a Senior Principal Research Scientist – Precision Agriculture at CSIRO Agriculture and Food where he is currently working on Wine Australia funded projects researching within-vineyard yield-quality interactions, opportunities for on-the-go sensing of winegrape quality at harvest and improved understanding of 'terroir'.
The Dr Peter May Award is presented to the most cited original research paper published in the Australian Journal of Grape and Wine Research over the previous five years.
Rob’s paper Within‐vineyard variation in the ‘pepper’ compound rotundone is spatially structured and related to variation in the land underlying the vineyard (Scarlett, N., Bramley, R. and Siebert, T., 2014, Australian Journal of Grape and Wine Research, 20: 214-222.) reflects significant work that was the first ever demonstration of spatial variation at the within-vineyard scale of a grape-derived wine flavour and aroma compound.