‘Best New Act’ 2026 awarded to UA student

From the Young Gun of Wine Awards, posted 9 June:

At the 20th Annual Young Gun of Wine Awards, Best New Act trophy goes to Marcus Torzi of Whispers of Chaos.

The Best New Act is an award to single out the hottest new wine project in Australia – and Marcus Torzi’s label Whispers of Chaos brings a breath of fresh air to one of Australia’s most hallowed wine regions, the Barossa Valley. A region built on powerful, concentrated reds is facing a world that has moved toward freshness, lightness and accessibility – and Torzi’s wines, made with Italian stoneware, unconventional blends and an instinct for restraint that producers twice his age are still reaching for, are just what the doctor ordered.

“The wines which present the best are the ones that feel honest,” he says. “Not overworked or overthought – just true to their place.” He grew up in the Barossa. He knows what it has been. And he has a very clear idea of what it can become. Whispers of Chaos is already making two of the most quietly arresting wines to come out of the Barossa Valley in recent memory – we can’t wait to see what’s next.