It reports that IRC chairman Ken Helm hopes the development will further "promote the unique styles, flavours, and characters of Riesling from individual regions".

Australian, German and New Zealand judges will benchmark wines in regional brackets in the first stage of competition, unaware of the region or maker.

The result will be lots of small classes of approximately five to 15 wines, with only gold medal wines from each region progressing to the judging for best in country and ultimately for best in the world.

The results catalogue will reflect the results from each region, and each country, encouraging the development of unique regional flavour characters and styles.

The idea for the change was spurred by the IRC Committee's acknowledgement that "it is certainly unfair to try and compare a Clare or Eden Valley Riesling with a wine from Great Southern, New Zealand, Tasmania, or Canberra".

"The wines are different stylistically and it is important they are judged separately," it said.

Mr Helm also remarked that if "Eden Valley Rieslings continually win gold, this forces the winemakers in Frankland River, and North Eastern Victoria for example, or any other region in Australia to try to make an Eden Valley style wine, according to that show-winning style".

"If the IRC rewards excellence of regionally distinct styles at the outset, it is a way of encouraging the continuation of that diversity."

* Further details are available at www.rieslingchallenge.com