The public wine tasting held every year as part of the South Coast Wine Show will be held in the Milton Showground pavilion between 6pm and 8pm on Saturday night.

The cost will be $15 per person with plenty of wine on offer as well as brie from the local cheese producer, Unicorn, as well as a wonderful selection of finger foods provided by the Milton Show Society Auxiliary.

The public wine tasting is a very popular event and was last year attended by more than 200 people - many of them visitors here for the Australia Day long weekend.

This Friday judges David Morris, David Lowe and Mandy Jones will work their way through more than 140 entries at the CWA hall in Milton.

This year's show has attracted entries from across the South Coast Zone, which includes the Southern Highlands and Shoalhaven Coast wine regions.

As has been the case in previous years, the most hotly contested classes are expected to be the Shiraz and Chambourcin classes in the reds and Chardonnay in the whites.

Exhibitors will have a chance to talk to the judges between 4pm and 6pm, prior to the public tasting, and are encouraged to make the most of the opportunity to receive expert advice on how to improve their winemaking techniques.

Last year judges awarded a total of 71 medals - nine Gold, 17 Silver and 45 Bronze - with the main trophy (Best Wine of Show) going to Coolangatta Estate, Nowra, for its 2004 Verdelho.

Locally, Bawley Vale Estate picked up a silver medal for its 2006 Cabernet Sauvignon and bronze medals for its 2006 Shiraz and 'No Toes Red' Shiraz/Cab Sav/Chambourcin.

Fern Gully Winery picked up bronze medals for its 2007 Vintage Port and 2001 Vintage Port.

This year's medal winners will be announced at a presentation dinner to be held at the Vineyard Kitchen, Cupitt's Winery, on February 6.

Speaking to the Times at last year's public tasting, judge David Lowe said the South Coast was maturing as a wine region and described the local product as "an antidote to the large scale mediocrity" sold cheaply without labels (cleanskins).

More information is available over the internet at www.southcoastwineshow.blogspot.c om