LOCALLY produced Over the Moon Non Homogenised Jersey Milk is a step closer to being named Australia’s best milk after being shortlisted as a finalist in the prestigious 2014 Australian Grand Dairy Awards.
Now in its 15th year, the Australian Grand Dairy Awards recognise and reward excellence, quality and innovation in Australian dairy produce, paying tribute to the highly-skilled Aussies who develop and make these products.
To be eligible to enter the Australian Grand Dairy Awards, products must be made from Australian milk and have been awarded gold at state qualifying competitions, ensuring that the finalists and selected winners are truly the creme de la creme of Australian dairy produce.
Over the past fortnight, more than 430 products across 19 different classes have been put through their paces in a rigorous and highly technical judging process by a team of 22 expert judges who tasted and tested them, assessing for flavour, aroma, body, texture, colour and appearance.
And this year, our homegrown Over the Moon Non Homogenised Jersey Milk from Wauchope caught the eye – and the tastebuds – of the judges, being named one of the top three contenders in the fiercely contested milk category.
Awards chief judge Neil Willman says the calibre of Australian dairy produce has improved significantly throughout his 15 years on the judging panel.
“I continue to be impressed by the great quality dairy products being created by Australian manufacturers such as Over the Moon,” Mr Willman said.
“Australia’s dairy offering just continues to get better and better. The end result has been a really tantalising crop of finalists. It’s wonderful to see products from Wauchope recognised on a national stage.”
From the finalists, one winner will be named in each class with the winners then going head to head to claim the accolade of Grand Champion Dairy Product and Grand Champion Cheese.
Winners will be revealed at an exclusive awards ceremony to be held in Melbourne on Tuesday 26 November.
Wauchope has another connection with the awards in the form of local and dairy expert Mark Livermore, who is one of the 22 judges.
Mr Livermore’s extensive history in cheese production and 30 years of dairy judging experience make him one of an elite few equipped to put Australian dairy products through a rigorous and highly technical judging process to select the best of the best.
