Wolf Blass

Wolf Blass is a winery and a vineyard in South Australia.

History

Wolfgang Blass was born in 1934 in Germany. After training as a winemaker at the Bavarian State Institute in Veitshoechheim and subsequent work as a winemaker in Germany, London and Bristol, he received an offer in Australia or Venezuela as an expert on sparkling wine to be active. Then he emigrated in 1961 to Australia, where he settled in Nuriootpa in the Barossa Valley. He had hoped " to make a contribution " to the Australian wine production. His first job in Australia was a position as head of the sparkling wine production in the winery Emperor chair.

Bilyara

In 1966 Blass eventually founded his own winery, Wolf Blass Wines, and thus the first independent winery in Australia. He chose the name Bilyara, the name of the Aborigines for the wedge-tailed eagle, which he chose as a corporate symbol. The eagle was a reference to the heraldic animal of his native Germany which was to him always a source of inspiration and pride.

From 1969 to 1973 Wolfgang Blass worked as a director and winemaker of the winery Tolley 's. It managed to take first influences on the local wine production, by developing further the styles of red wines. He was recognized as one of the leaders of a new generation of wine makers and developed individual wines of different styles under its own brand.

Wolf Blass

In 1973, Wolfgang Blass has once again made independently and founded the winery Wolf Blass. He began a collaboration with the legendary winemaker John Glaetzer, which quickly led to successes. In the years 1974, 1975 and 1976, he was the Jimmy Watson Trophy win. In 1992 he was awarded by the International Wine and Spirit Competition as " International Winemaker of the Year".

The Winery Wolf Blass was later acquired by the Australian beverage company Foster's Group. This created its wine division in May 2011 in the Treasury Wine Estates Ltd.. from. Wolf Blass is the largest wine producer in the Barossa Valley. The wines of Wolf Blass are exported to a large extent to the UK.

Varieties

In 1975, Wolf Blass published the first vintage of Riesling, which became the best-selling Riesling in Australia. By the end of 1990 Wolf Blass won over 2575 national and international awards for themselves.

Among them were:

Under the leadership of winemaker Chris Hatcher and the constant direction of John Glaetzer the number of awards is another consequence risen to over 3000, among them four Jimmy Watson Trophies for the Black Label.