Sydney's yet-to-open International Convention Centre has launched its wine collection, and NSW winemakers say it's a potential game-changer for their industry.
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The ICC on Wednesday showcased its 93-strong collection, of which 80 per cent are from NSW wineries.
With 200,000 bottles expected to be poured out each year at major events, such as the International Bar Association conference and the World Chamber Congress in 2017, NSW winemakers have been given a significant opportunity to promote their drops on the world stage.
"There was a target for 80 per cent of the wines to be from NSW and I was concerned because no venue like this has done that kind of thing before, it's more than what restaurants would do," said William Wilson, who is responsible for the ICC's beverages and cellar.
"But we hit 80 per cent with no problem at all. Each wine earned its place."
Mr Wilson, a sommelier, led a team of four that tasted 150 wines a day for one week. The final list features certified bio-dynamic and organic wines.
Wines from the Hunter Valley feature strongly, followed by drops from Orange, Riverina and New England. Some of the wines are only available at cellar doors.
The NSW wine industry has long struggled with a public that isn't as enthused about homegrown wines, compared with Victorians or South Australians.
Tom Ward of Swinging Bridge Wines in Orange and president of the NSW Wine Industry Association said they were excited by the new opportunities the ICC wine list presented.
"Look, domestic demand is growing at a lower amount and we've only got a certain amount of domestic demand, but in terms of export, we've got the whole world out there," he said.
Some of the wineries on the list are considerably small, meaning the impact on their business could be huge.
"This is a big venue, so we have to make sure the guys are efficient and able to deliver on the expectations," he said.
Chris Carpenter of Lark Hill in Canberra, which produces 4000 cases, said he was ready to increase production when required.
"The list here at 200,000 bottles is five times our annual production already," he said with a laugh.
"We're certified organic so we can't spot-buy fruit from other areas, we have to rely on what we produce, so it's about seeing how the list goes and making a decision on where fruit for next year goes and whether to shift production to focus more on the list."
The ICC's chief executive Geoff Donaghy said the venue, slated to be opened in December, has already booked 340 major events.
He said one of their aims was to have an economic impact.
"So we will be actually measuring the economic impact at each of the regions both of our food procurement strategies and our wine procurement strategies," he said.
"So for the first one or two years we will be measuring that formally both in terms of the dollar impact and jobs, for each of those areas."
Stuart Ayres, the NSW Minister for Trade, Tourism and Major Events, said the ICC was "the most apt to be NSW's cellar door to the world".
NSW has nearly 500 wine producers and 329 cellar doors.
