MEDIA RELEASE: 2026 WINE INDUSTRY IMPACT AWARDS FINALISTS ANNOUNCED

The Wine Industry Suppliers Association (WISA) has announced the finalists across six categories in the 2026 Wine Industry Impact Awards (WIIA). The finalists come from organisations whose products, services and partnerships are changing how Australian and New Zealand wine is grown, made, packaged and sold.

Winners will be revealed at the Wine Industry Impact Awards Gala Dinner on Thursday 19 November 2026 at The Playford Adelaide.

“This year’s finalists show that even in one of the toughest periods our industry has faced, innovative solutions to shared problems continue to thrive,” said Liz Schoen, Executive Chair, WISA. “Suppliers haven’t stepped back because business is hard. They’ve kept investing in the growers and wineries they work with, and this year’s entrants are a testament to that resilience. From AI-driven business tools to on-vine yield sensors and sustainable packaging, every entry is solving a real problem for growers, winemakers and wine businesses."

A big congratulations to the 2026 finalists

The 'Wine Australia' Technology & Digital Innovation Award

• BevSage — purpose-built AI combined with human expertise, giving wineries affordable access to commercial capability and market intelligence.
• InnoVint (co-nominated with Hill Smith Family Estates) — a fast, low-disruption path off end-of-life production software, purpose-built for wineries.

The 'SIG' Winemaking & Oenology Award

• Fermentis — the E2U™ yeast range, pitched directly into must without rehydration for safer, simpler fermentations.
• Vason Group — X-PLANT® inactivated-yeast products supporting climate-resilient viticulture and winemaking.

The 'Southern Premium Vineyards' Viticulture & Grapegrowing Award

• Ripen Tech — an on-vine system that measures grape bunch weight hourly for real-time yield monitoring.
• Vason Group — X-PLANT® vineyard applications that help vines cope with heat and drought stress.
• Affinity Labs — a Grapevine Clonal ID service that confirms clone identity before planting material reaches the vineyard.

The 'MGA Insurance' Sustainability Award

• DeCam — affordable three-phase power for Southern Light Vineyards' Long Gully Winery, ending its reliance on round-the-clock diesel generation.
• Biogone — landfill-biodegradable packing tape, stretch wrap and shipping materials for moving wine.
• Visy — major investment in glass beneficiation to lift recycled content in wine bottles.

The 'Manheim Australia' Packaging & Design Award

• Australian Vintage — Poco Vino™, a format-first brand in stylish 187ml single-serve bottles.
• Amorim — Spark One Xpür®, the microplastic-free solution for sparkling wine

The Engineering & Equipment Award

• Vinarchy (co-nominated with AWRI ) — autonomous GoTrack technology retrofitted to a conventional vineyard tractor, trialled at commercial scale.
• Parsec by Enartis — EVO2FERM, predictive and adaptive yeast nutrition driven by real-time fermentation data.

Thank you 

WISA thanks the following industry leaders for volunteering their time and expertise as judges. No judge assessed a category in which their organisation was nominated, and all conflicts of interest were declared before judging began. 

• Robin Shaw, Wine Tourism Australia
• Athena Stamoulos, Finlaysons
• Shirley Fraser, Wine Australia
• Simon Nordestgaard, AWRI
• Sam Wigan, Hill Smith Family Estates
• Sid Pachare, Watkins Wines
• Dan Eggelton, Vinous Consulting
• Fiona McDonald, Seppeltsfield
• Sandrine Gimon, Wine Rage Consulting
• Nick Dry, Foundation Viticulture
• Matt Alexander, Southern Premium Vineyards
• Marcos Bonada, Treasury Wine Estates
• Steve Faulkner, Oakridge Wines
• Amy Richards, Nuveen
• Laura Herrero Chorques, Green Industries SA
• Siobhan Wigan, Sustainable Winegrowing Australia
• Marty Longbottom, AWRI
• Jesse Auricht, Hill Smith Family Vineyards
• Shauna Herbst, Brown Family Wine Group
• Lin Lin Low, Treasury Wine Estates
• Matt Deller, Wirra Wirra
• Carmen Housten, SIG
• Gavin Wong, Visy
• Gavin Dempsey, Manheim Australia

The WIIA awards would not be possible without our category sponsors: Wine Australia, SIG, Southern Premium Vineyards, MGA Insurance Group and Manheim Australia. Their support brings this awards program to life and makes the gala dinner a special event for the industry.

WISA also thanks its committee members and every organisation that submitted a nomination.

Gala dinner

The Wine Industry Impact Awards Gala Dinner brings together growers, winemakers, winery owners, marketers, sales and distribution teams, suppliers and researchers to celebrate the finalists and announce the 2026 winners.

• Date: Thursday 19 November 2026
• Venue: The Playford Adelaide
• Tickets: $225 standard; WISA Member and Industry member discounts apply. Codes sent directly to the members of each association accordingly. Book here.
• Tables of 10 available for $1950.

About WISA

The Wine Industry Suppliers Association (WISA) is a not-for-profit association representing the suppliers of goods and services to the Australian and New Zealand wine industry. WISA works to improve the wine industry's competitiveness and profitability by championing innovation, partnerships, and the exchange of practical knowledge across the value chain.

ENDS

Media contact

Liz Schoen, Executive Chair, WISA 0467 709 315 · executivechair@wisa.org.au