Vision to be Australia's Best Tourism Winery Realised

The best in quality, service and customer satisfaction has taken Sandalford Wines to the pinnacle of the Australian tourism industry with the Swan Valley winery winning Gold in the category of Tourism Wineries, Distilleries & Breweries at the 2017 Australian Tourism Awards.

Chief executive officer Grant Brinklow said the accolade was all the sweeter as the milestone achievement had long been coveted.

“To all of us, it represents the realisation of Peter, Debra and Garry Prendiville’s vision that Sandalford would become the very best at what we do. While we have been a Gold winner in this category at state level on ten occasions previously, this was the first time we have been awarded the national prize. We are feeling ecstatic; having won Bronze and Silver at these awards the past two years to now be taking the Gold trophy back to our winery is simply fantastic.”

Mr Brinklow said the company loved being a part of Australia’s tourism industry and were very proud of Sandalford’s history and heritage.

“There is an outstanding team at Sandalford who strive every day to deliver truly world class wine and wine tourism experiences to more than 160,000 visitors a year from around the globe. The Swan Valley gives visitors a connection to wine in a memorable way which I feel is unique in the world, and we are delighted that our regional partner, Swan Valley Visitor Centre, was also recognised with Gold status at these awards.”

Sandalford Wines were a sponsor of the national awards, presenting their premium dessert wine, Sandalera, to the 750 guests who attended the Australian Tourism Awards at Optus Stadium.

Sandalera, the product of sun ripened Swan Valley grapes harvested at optimum maturity, is highly sought after by the 32,000 Chinese-speaking tourists who visit Sandalford each year. The Cellar Door is presently decorated for Lunar New Year, and the company’s Chinese business is the best it has ever been.

Cellar door manager Ms Jessie Jiang said receiving the Gold award had special significance to Chinese customers.

“Chinese people always want to experience the very best there is, and I feel incredibly proud to work at Australia’s best tourism winery! We value Chinese speaking people as very important customers and we cater specially to both international Chinese visitors and Chinese residing in Australia,” she said. “We have worked to tailor our product to meet their expectations since becoming the first winery in WA to be China Ready & Accredited® in 2014. We have four Chinese speaking staff in our Cellar Door and three in our restaurant/catering division and this award recognises the major contribution they make to our business.”

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