Had sommelier William Wilson been creating a wine list for Sydney's new International Convention Centre just 10 years ago, he says he would not have been able to rely on wines produced in this state.
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But this week a panel led by Mr Wilson is blind tasting more than 800 wines over four days, which it will narrow down to around 70 different products – 80 per cent of which will have been produced in NSW.
"There's more and more young winemakers out there doing some incredible stuff," said Mr Wilson on Monday.
"[They are] making some really interesting and unique wines, not just going by the book."
The remainder of the list, to be served at the new convention centre when it opens in December, will be largely made up of Australian wines, with a few varietals unfavourable to Australian conditions to be sourced internationally.
The ICC is expected to serve more than 200,000 bottles annually. Mr Wilson, who is qualified through the Court of Master Sommeliers, noted the opportunity for regions such as the Hunter Valley, Orange and the Southern Highlands to have an impact on the world stage.
"We're going to have tens of thousands of international delegates coming through every year and we can really showcase what the local guys can do," he said.
