WineGB Awards celebrate record-breaking achievements and innovation in English Wine Week
The eighth annual WineGB Awards concluded with a showcase of the finest wines from England and Wales, marking the end of English Wine Week with a record number of entries and gold medals. This year’s competition celebrated the diversity and quality of wines produced across 33 counties, with over 350 medals awarded.
A highlight of the event was the distribution of 35 gold medals to sparkling wines and 21 to still wines, more than doubling last year’s gold medal count for the latter. Sparkling wines excelled in categories such as Classic Cuvée Non-Vintage/Multi-Vintage, Classic Cuvée Vintage and Rosé, each securing six gold medals. In the still wine category, red Pinot Noir and Chardonnay led the way with five gold medals each, followed by Bacchus with four.
Oz Clarke OBE, co-chair of the WineGB Awards judging panel, praised the entries: “Every single category was at its best level this year. There were more wines than ever, and there were some truly fascinating expressions of grape varieties, both well-known and more obscure. Ambition and innovation were triumphantly in step with each other.”
Clarke highlighted the significant achievements in still wines: “Until this year, the sparkling categories have always ruled the roost. This was the first year when we could luxuriate in a fabulous array of Chardonnays and Pinots and know that we had a worthy clutch of top medals in both. And it is worth noting that the Pinot category was bolstered by some outstanding examples of Pinot Précoce.”
The awards recognised wines made from ten different grape varieties, including the first-ever gold medal for a wine made from Solaris and an orange wine Vermouth crafted from Reichensteiner, Solaris and Bacchus.
Wines from 33 counties – 28 in England and five in Wales – earned medals, with gold medals spread across 18 counties from Cornwall, Dorset and Suffolk to East Sussex, Berkshire and North Yorkshire. Kent and Hampshire led the gold medal count with nine each, followed by West Sussex with six, Dorset with five and East Sussex with four.
Peter Richards MW, fellow co-chair, emphasised the importance of this year's awards: “This year was an important one for the WineGB Awards on many levels. Firstly, this was the most wines ever entered in the awards. Perhaps even more significantly, more producers than ever took part. Finally, both the quality and diversity of the wines were notable – we judges commented regularly on just how high the standard is nowadays in English and Welsh wine, and how exciting it is to taste the wines.”
Rebecca Palmer, associate director and buyer at Corney & Barrow, echoed this sentiment: “Entries were up again this year, a trend we are seeing year on year, no doubt as more producers emerge onto the scene. At the same time, I do feel, year on year, that the general level of quality increases – there is a sense of confidence in the winemaking; greater clarity of style, a greater mastery of style and the interplay between the elements of the wine.”
In total medals, Kent emerged as the frontrunner with 71, followed by East Sussex with 47, West Sussex with 41, Hampshire with 33 and Devon with 15.
This year’s WineGB Awards saw winemakers employ a variety of techniques, including multi-vintage still wines, oak usage in different formats, low & no dosage sparkling wines, skin contact still wines and solera system blending. Medals were awarded across all methods of sparkling wine production, from traditional method and charmat to Col Fondos, pét-nats and carbonated wines.
The WineGB Awards not only celebrated the achievements of the winemakers but also underscored the evolving nature of the English and Welsh wine industry. As English Wine Week comes to a close, the accolades and innovations of the WineGB Awards continue to set the standard for the future of winemaking in the region.
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