Aspiring NSW winemaker Tom Colman has been named as the inaugural recipient of the Sydney Royal Wine Assessment scholarship.

The scholarship is the result of a partnership between the Sydney Royal Wine Committee and the Royal Agricultural Society of NSW Foundation, RASF. The aim of the scholarship is to encourage and support young professionals passionate about wine and committed to forging a career in the Australian wine industry.

Growing up at Blackheath in the Blue Mountains gave now 26 year old Tom a passion for the outdoors.

Despite this being a distance from the established winemaking regions, Tom's passion for agriculture and viticulture spurred him towards a degree in winemaking and viticulture to which he graduated with honours.

During his degree he spent his free time working for various winemakers in the Basket Range in the Adelaide Hills, such as James Erskine at Jauma and Alex Schulkin at The Other Right.

Since then he has worked for a variety of wineries within America, Spain and north-eastern France.

Tom says he is particularly excited by the opportunity to witness and contribute to changing wine styles and consumer education about the Australian wine industry.

This has led him to start a small wine project with his father called Frankly Wines which uses fruit fermented in the family garage.

"I’ve always dedicated my time and energy into bettering others and helping others achieve their goals," Tom Colman said.

"It means a lot to me that this has been seen and that I can take a step back for a minute and focus on improving myself.

"I hope to use all this knowledge to make myself a better taster and improve my knowledge on the world of wine.

"I hope to do some associate judging in the future or some broader commentary on wine,” Tom said.

The Sydney Royal Wine Assessment Scholarship, valued at $6000, will see Tom Colman take up a fully paid position at the Australian Wine Research Institute’s Advanced Wine Assessment Course next month in Adelaide.

For further information please contact:

Roger White

Manager, Public Relations

Royal Agricultural Society of NSW (RAS)

P: 02 9704 1453 | E: rwhite@rasnsw.com.au