The results from the English & Welsh Wine of the Year Competition 2007 have just been released. There is a wider base of winners this year, showing a growing spread of top quality producers in the industry.
The judging panel – all Masters of Wine – was headed by Patricia Stefanowicz MW in her first of a three year tenure as Chairman of Judges. Other judges included David Wrigley MW, Maggie McNie MW, Anthony Foster MW, Sarah Jane Evans MW and Julian Brind MW.
This year saw a record number of entries from a large number of vineyards, of which 142 gained an award (8 gold, 13 silver, 61 bronze and 60 highly commended), equating to 68% of the entries. The line up of award winners included some of the best known commercial producers to new vineyards with their first vintage. Trophies to individual category winners were awarded to a diverse number of producers, reflecting the increasing developments and quality in all sectors of the industry.
The top accolade, the Gore-Browne Trophy for the ‘Wine of the Year’, was awarded to Camel Valley Vineyard for their sparkling rosé, ‘Cornwall’ Pinot Noir Rosé 2004, which also gained the Vintners’ Trophy for Best Sparkling Wine. (£22.95 available on line)
The McAlpine Winemaker of the Year award was this year won by Sam Lindo of Camel Valley Vineyard, who receives this award for the first time. Sam, son of Camel Valley’s founder Bob Lindo, has been working in the family business of a number of years, and has had training and experience in New Zealand.
Chapel Down won two trophies for their Bacchus Reserve 2005 – Wine Guild Trophy for Best Wine of Other Year’s Vintage and The Tom Day Trophy for Best Single Varietal Wine.
Although fewer wines from the 2006 vintage featured in the line up of medals, there were some that earned notable awards. The trophy winner in this category – the Jack Ward Memorial Trophy – was won by Astley Vineyard for their Severn Vale 2006.
The Bernard Theobald Trophy for Best Red Wine was awarded to a single varietal 2004 Pinot Noir from Sandhurst Vineyard. A red wine also won The English Wine Producers Dudley Quirk Trophy Best Wine Produced in Commercial Quantites, awarded to Denbies Redlands 2004. (available online for £8.99)
The accolade for the Best Rosé – The Waitrose Rosé Trophy – was awarded to a new vineyard entering its wines for the first time this year: Polgoon Vineyard near Penzance. Another first time trophy winner this year is Ickworth Vineyard in Suffolk, with their Walled Garden White 2005 winning the President’s Trophy for Best Small Production.
The judges noted that the oaked section was particularly impressive. Consequently, all the oaked wines entered in to the competition won an award. The McNie Trophy for Best Oaked White was won by Wickham Vineyard for their Special Release Fumé 2006. The competition’s newest trophy, The Berwick Trophy for Best Unchaptalised Wine was won by Wroxeter Roman Vineyard for their Madeleine Angevine 2005.
Pebblebed Vineyards from Devon, with their distinctive labels bearing a black and white photo, took The Montagu Trophy for Best Presentation for their Rosé 2006.
Commenting on the competition, Patricia Stefanowicz MW remarked: ” It has been a fascinating competition. We agreed unanimously that the main stars of the show were rosés – both still and sparkling – and sparkling whites. Infact, the top winner this year is a sparkling rosé. This style clearly works well in England. Two areas to note in the still wine section are both single varietals: the most outstanding single varietal was Bacchus, whilst Pinot Noir stood out as the best of the reds.“ Pinot Noir for the first time this year was judged as a single flight.
Earlier vintage wines overall showed better than the 2006 vintage – partly due to a more difficult year last year, compared with earlier vintages. The 2005 vintage wines showed particularly well.
The competition takes place each year in one of the six UK vineyard association regions, which take it in turn to host the event. This year’s competition was run by the Mercian Vineyards Association, representing the vineyards of the Midlands and North, who arranged an admirable event in Shrewsbury, despite torrential downpours and floods.
A full list of the awards is available in the competitions section of the EWP website www.englishwineproducers.com.
