Nominations for the 26th annual Wine Enthusiast Wine Star Award have been announced and Ultimate Winery Experiences Australia member House of Arras has secured two nominations: New World Winery of the Year and Winemaker of the Year for its visionary Chief Winemaker Ed Carr.

Wine Enthusiast is a leading multi-channel business that serves both wine lovers and the wine industry, boasting the most traffic of any wine media website globally, and the largest first-party database in the beverage media landscape.

Now in its 26th year, the Wine Enthusiast Wine Star Awards celebrates the innovation of the individuals and companies that have significantly contributed to the success of the wine and alcohol beverage sector.

Based in Northern Tasmania, House of Arras is nominated among this list of the most influential and impactful producers and businesses across the globe.

Renowned for its premium sparkling wine, House of Arras offers several behind-the-scenes experiences for guests visiting the winery, from a Sparkling Scholar masterclass to a Wine, Wildlife and Vineyard tour. Guests can also take a deep dive into 40 Years of Tirage; a rare and privileged opportunity to taste a selection of the producer's most prized sparkling wines – including museum releases - under the guidance of a private host.

Ultimate Winery Experiences Australia Executive Officer Sarah Myers said that the nominations couldn't come at a better time, as House of Arras celebrates its 30th anniversary in 2025.

“To be nominated at this level is testament to the quality of Australian sparkling wine,” said Myers. “House of Arras is going from strength to strength; Ed Carr was recognised as Sparkling Winemaker of the Year at the International Wine Challenge last year, as the only Australian winemaker - and historically the second winemaker outside of Champagne in France - to receive the award,” she said.

If Carr wins the Winemaker of the Year Award, he will become the second Australian winemaker to receive the award since Peter Gago from Penfolds won in 2005.

According to Carr, the recognition is an honour. “I have such high regard for those who have won this award in the past, so to be considered amongst my peers at this level is a terrific recognition for me and the work of the team at House of Arras,” said Carr.

“Since 1995, we have been unwavering in our mission to craft a sparkling wine that would set a new benchmark for the category across the globe, and it's brilliant to have our work celebrated on the global stage,” he said.

In the New World Winery of the Year category, House of Arras joins several prestigious Australian wineries that have been nominated and won the Wine Star Award in the past, including other Ultimate Wineries - Vasse Felix in Margaret River, Penfolds in the Adelaide Hills, and Yalumba in the Barossa Valley.

The full list of the Wine Enthusiast Wine Star Award nominees is listed here. The winners of this year's Wine Star Award will be announced at a special ceremony in January and feature in Wine Enthusiast's Best of Year issue.

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About Ultimate Winery Experiences Australia:

Ultimate Winery Experiences Australia is a hand-selected collection of premium award-winning wineries offering experiences that invite visitors to go 'beyond the cellar door'. Located in Australia's most renowned wine regions, we offer a diverse range of behind-the-scenes, culinary, and hands-on experiences delivered with warmth and knowledge and epitomise the unique characteristics of a winery and its surrounding region. 

Discover more at www.ultimatewineryexperiences.com.au