While lauding the AWMB, Sascha Speicher, deputy Editor-in-Chief of Weinwirtschaft said, "It is remarkably impressive to note the extent of dedication and intuition for trends that the Austrian Wine Marketing Board have successfully employed, to raise the recognition and reputation of Austrian wine, as well as increasing the market share of the wines in export markets. Austrian wines are very highly regarded in Germany, particularly amongst wine professionals, from wine trade retailers, sommeliers and journalists. This is largely due to the remarkable work undertaken by the AWMB."

Said Editor-in-Chief of Weinwelt, Ilka Lindemann, during the annual Meininger Awards ceremony, "Vienna, Schnitzel and Kaiserschmarren are not the only things that have made Austria famous; its wine has as well. This is largely thanks to the hard work of the Austrian Wine Marketing Board over the past 25 years." The accolades for the AWMB continued with Christoph Meininger, Publisher of the highly respected Meininger Verlag, saying, "The Austrian Wine Marketing Board has succeeded in introducing Austrian wine to wine enthusiasts across the globe."

In its eighth year now, the awards recognise outstanding personalities, institutions and wine estates from a selection of categories. The ceremony is held annually on the Saturday evening prior to the ProWein trade fair. Previous award winners include Jancis Robinson (journalist and author), Steffen Christmann (VDP, Germany) and Paula Bosch (Sommelière in Restaurant Tantris, Munich).

Willi Klinger accepted the award on behalf of the AWMB at the gala dinner. He thanked both his team and the Austrian wine producers and praised the role of the Austrian viticulture policies in getting Austrian wine its place in the world market.

"In just 25 years, Austrian wine has clearly succeeded in repositioning itself at a premium level, and this has been achieved by the support of AWMB, combined with open-minded and forward-thinking viticulture policies. We are grateful that our work has been internationally acknowledged, and that our success is now also reflected in increased wine export figures," he said.

Josef Pleil, President of the Austrian Winegrowers' Association, added, "The AWMB's perseverance and dedication over the past 25 years is now bearing fruit, and awards like this one show us, that the wine industry's investment in the AWMB is wise and beneficial. Germany is the largest wine importing country worldwide, and the import figures of Austrian wine are still comparatively very small. We are therefore all the more proud that we, the quaint and fine wine country, have been acknowledged by a publisher of such market significance and respect."

Meininger Verlag is the leading wine and beverage trade magazine publisher in Germany, and its journals include Weinwirtschaft, Sommelier Magazine, Weinwelt, Meininger's Wine Business International, Getränke Zeitung, Fizzz, Der deutsche Weinbau, along with specialised books and restaurant guides.