Wine judges uncork best of Geographe

Somn of the region's top drops are being judged at the Geographe Wine Show in Bunbury.

Two days of judging will conclude when the winners of nearly 20 categories will be announced at the Bunbury Regional Entertainment Centre tonight.

Geographe Wine Show committee president Pippa Nielson said 144 wines were entered in this year's competition.

"There is an increased focus on alternative wine varieties this year with 37 of the entries being alternative varieties," she said.

"We have three wine classes open this year to entrants from across WA for alternative varieties like tempranillo, nebbiolo and vermentino."

Ms Nielson said the committee aimed to have high quality judges and the chief judge this year would be wine writer Jane Faulkner.

"We often look for people from interstate and Jane is someone who has a lot of experience with writing about wine and she will be supported by judges Peter Bradbeer and Glenn Goodall, who have a lot of winemaking and judging experience."

Ms Nielson said one of the purposes of the event was to improve the wine being made in the region through feedback from the judges.

"The winemakers are able to talk with the judges about their scores and this benefits their wine and the Geographe Wine Region."

Ms Nielson said the event's focus on alternative wines meant that a tempranillo master class would be held today for the public.

"The master class includes wines from the Geographe Wine Region, Australia and Spain and gives the public a chance to taste the wines," she said.