The Association of Wine Educators just published their 2024 edition of 100 AWEsome Wines. Here is how the wines made the list:
Each member of the AWE nominated and rated wines to be part of this list. The wine could be a great example of a classic style, a new discovery, or simply a wine that they really enjoyed. Value for money is the bedrock of the wines on the list.
The 100 AWEsome Wines List: https://www.100awesomewines.com
Radici del Sud 2023
I was part of the International Jury – Group 1, which was chaired by Luca Matarazzo (20italie.com), and includes Anais Cancino (Wineteller, Mexico), Liz Palmer (wine journalist, author and influencer, Canada), Torge Thies (TRCT MEDIEN GmbH, Germany), and Anthony Rose (Decanter, freelance wine journalist and author, UK).
Our group just finished two intense days of blind tasting sparkling, rose, white and red wines of southern Italy at the beautiful medieval castle Sannicandro di Bari. I’m happy to report that there were a lot of exciting wines this year.
Radici Del Sud is a two-day multi-event dedicated to wines in southern Italy which includes the wine competition, and B2B meetings between buyers and international importers [10-11 June].
Part II to follow
Photos from the 1st day of Judging Michelangelo International Wine + Spirits Competition, South Africa
#Lourensford #LoveLourensford #wine #winelovers #winetasting #winejudge #winecompetition #winejudging #internationalwinejudges#winelover #travelling #winetravel #womeninwine #wineexperience #winetravels #vineyards #wineinfluencer #wineadventures #traveldiary #traveling #winesofSouthafrica #southafricawines #WSA
Now in its 12th year, The World’s Most Admired Wine Brands is a list of the 50 most admired wine producers from around the globe.
Drinks International polled wine professionals, journalists, educators and MWs in 48 different countries and asked them to make three votes from the list of previous winners or to put forward their own suggestions if the name is not on the list.
Some of the factors included:
The wine is of consistent or improving quality;
The wine reflects its region or country of origin;
The wine responds to the needs and tastes of its target audience;
The wine is well marketed and packaged; and
The wine has a strong appeal to a wide demographic.
Here is the list of the “Top Ten” 2021 Most Admired Wine Brands:
RANK/WINE BRAND/COUNTRY
1 Familia Torres – Spain
2 Bodega Cateña – Argentina
3 Vega Sicilia – Spain
4 Henschke – Australia
5 Concha y Toro – Chile
6 Penfolds – Australia
7 Domaine de la Romanée Conti – France
8 CVNE – Spain
9 Antinori – Italy
10 Chateau Musar – Lebanon
Drinks International editor Shay Waterworth states: “The World’s Most Admired Wine Brands 2022 showcases the most iconic, innovative and respected producers in the world.”
For further details: http://surl.li/brjhd
#wine #winenews #wineawards #drinks #FamiliaTorres #BodegaCateña #Henschke #VegaSicilia #ConchayToro #Penfolds #RomanéeConti #CVNE #Antinori #chateaumusar #winebrands #winesofspain #winesofargentina #winesofaustralia #winesofchile #winesoffrance #winesoflebanon #winelovers #winetasting
Valladolid, Spain hosted the recent Rosé Wine Session of the 2022 Concours Mondial de Bruxelles. The competition took place March 11 – 13 at the Patio Herreriano.
Along with sixty international judges, also in attendance was the Mayor of Valladolid, Óscar Puente; the Town Councillor, Ana Redondo; the Chairman of the Concours Mondial de Bruxelles, Baudouin Havaux; and Vice-Chairman of the Valladolid Provincial Council, Víctor Alonso.
Valladolid Wine Region
Valladolid is the only province on the Iberian Peninsula that boasts five appellations: Cigales, Rueda, Ribera del Duero, Toro and León. There are over 27,000 hectares planted with over twenty different grape varieties. It is also home to four wine routes: Cigales, Rueda, Toro and Ribera del Duero.
Rosé Market
Between 2002 and 2018, the global consumption of rosé wine rose from 18.3 million hectolitres to over 26 million, representing a surge of almost 40%. Western Europe and the United States are the world’s largest consumers of rosé.
Rosé Trends: Interview with Nathalie Pouzalgues, for Concours Mondial de Bruxelles
Nathalie Pouzalgues, winemaker, and project manager with the Centre for Rosé Research in Vidauban, Var.
I joined the team at the Rosé Wine Centre in 2011, but before that I worked at the Côtes de Provence producers’ organization. The Rosé Wine Centre was established in 1999, on the initiative of the Provence wine industry (CIVP and Var Chamber of Agriculture) and the French Vine & Wine Institute. It is a one-of-a-kind resource in France and worldwide for applied research into rosé wines. Our aim is to improve the quality of rosé wines by conducting experiments that range from the vine itself through to the bottled wine. My role within the team is to run experiments focusing on rosé wine and I specialise in applied research on sensory wine analysis.
Research programmes involving either viticulture, oenology or sensory analysis are regularly submitted at different levels. Depending on the research topic, we do agronomy monitoring, small-batch winemaking (100 litres) and/or tastings. The research findings are processed using a range of statistical tools and then passed on to industry members through scientific and technical journals, video-conferences, symposiums, etc.
The quality of rosé wines has improved. From a technical perspective, temperature control from harvesting the grapes through to storing the wine in bottles was one of the first noteworthy advances. The second breakthrough stems from oxygen management, controlling oxidation and now planning vineyard management designed for rosé wine. You don’t manage a vineyard in the same way if you aim to make rosé or red wine.
The quality of French rosé is indisputable. Some regions, such as Provence, are iconic. It is also important to realise how attached the French are to the way rosé is drunk – it is relaxed, unconventional and sociable.
The motivation for making drier, paler rosé wines is definitely a bid to replicate the Provence rosé model of delicate, light, fruity wines. There is no way of knowing whether this trend will continue, but we do know that it is not just a passing fad. Rosé wines from Provence have always been in this category. They have a very light colour and are aromatic with floral, fruity and mineral notes. On the palate, they are rounded yet dry, with very fruity, refreshing notes that often recall citrus and tropical fruit.
As far as I know, this is a widespread phenomenon and affects various French regions and different countries. Areas with a Mediterranean climate and grape varieties are certainly better equipped to produce the light, fruity, rounded yet dry wines that consumers currently favour.
The trend may lead to some confusion but conversely, it strengthens Provence’s status as a benchmark. If the colours are similar, this creates a whole new ballgame, shifting emphasis to aromas and flavours. And here too, we are ahead of the curve. The vineyards of Provence are genuine rosé terroirs.
Grape varieties with less colour that deliver fruitiness seem to be better suited to producing pale, dry rosé wines because their fruitiness creates an impression of sweetness when actually the wines are dry.
Yes, for a significant part. High-tech methods and expertise do not rule out the use of ancient techniques (concrete, terracotta or wooden vessels, a curb on sulphites, etc.) and traditional grape varieties (Rosé du Var).
Source: Concours Mondial
