The London Wine Competition does things differently from the majority of its competitors. It does not just award medals to wines and producers based purely on the quality of the wine – usually only tasted blind. It bases its medal winners using the same criteria as wine buyers and sommeliers do when choosing which wines to list. By quality and what it tastes like, its price point and whether it offers value for money, and what it looks like and whether its packaging and design matches the quality and value of the wine. Here are the results and winners of the 2021 London Wine Competition.
This year’s London Wine Competition saw wines entered from nearly 40 countries, covering 135 different grape varietals. But which ones came out top? Here are the highlights from this year’s competition.
“Out of all the competitions I judge for, the LWC is unique in assessing wines in the context of both the liquid in isolation as well as in the context of how a shopper would see it.” Anne Jones, category manager for drinks at Waitrose, speaks for many of the judges who take part in the London Wine Competition, as this is a competition that is fast becoming one of the most important in the wine industry as it judges wines in the same way that consumers do.
Winning a medal in the London Wine Competition means as a winery, producer or winemaker, you know you are making wines that are in tune with what wine drinkers are looking for. A competition that puts every wine through three different stages of judges. A blind tasting to assess quality, then the judges are told how much the wine costs and they are shown the bottle so they can assess its packaging and design.
The same criteria professional wine buyers use to determine which wines go on their own lists in their restaurants, bars or supermarket and retail shelves.
2021 Results
The results of the 2021 London Wine Competition are out and reflect the best wines being made in the world. In all there were wines from 36 countries to judge, with the most entries coming from Australia, Italy, Spain, France, Portugal, United States and Moldova. The biggest increase in wines came from Moldova and interestingly the three most popular grape varieties entered were, Shiraz, Cabernet Sauvignon and Chardonnay.
But the overall winning wine came from Australia with 96 points awarded to the 2015 Anubis Cabernet Sauvignon made by Lévrier Wines.
Sid Patel, founder of the London Wine Competition, and chief executive of the Beverage Trade Network that runs the event, says: “We are delighted to see how far the London Wine Competition has come in the last 12 months, particularly considering the difficult conditions we have all been faced with, which also meant judging and hosting the event was more complicated than normal.
“But thankfully the wine itself is not disturbed by the pandemic and it has been great to see the quality, diversity and level of wine being entered from all over the world. Our thanks, go to all the producers that entered, but, in particular, to the hard work and professionalism of our judges whose calibre and expertise are so important in the overall success of the London Wine Competition.”
Top winners in the 2021 London Wine Competition
- Wine Of The Year – Lévrier by Jo Irvine 2015 Anubis Cabernet Sauvignon, Levrier Wines Australia.
- Winery Of The Year – Bodegas Habla (Bodegas BH S.L.), Spain
- Best Wine By Quality – Levrier by Jo Irvine 2015 Anubis Cabernet Sauvignon, Levrier Wines, Australia
- Best Wine By Value – Habla Nº22, Spain, Bodegas Habla
- Best Wine By Packaging – Silverado Vineyards Estate Grown Cabernet Sauvignon, United States.
Best Wines by Country awards
Australia: Levrier by Jo Irvine 2015 Anubis Cabernet Sauvignon
United States: Silverado Vineyards Estate Grown Cabernet Sauvignon
France: Champagne Philippe Glavier – Folie d’Cramant, Deux Six Wines
Italy: 924 Prosecco 2019, Carpenè Malvolti S.p.a.
Portugal: Quinta do Gradil 1492, Parras Wines
Spain: Habla Nº22 2016, Bodegas Habla
New Zealand: Yealands Reserve Sauvignon Blanc
Greece: Venetsanos Nykteri 2018, Nykteri
Austria: Hafner Kashmir, 2016, Hafner Family Estate
South Africa: Du Toitskloof Old Vine Sauvignon Blanc, 2020, Du Toitskloof Wines
Moldova: Republic of- Rose De Purcari Sapiens, 2019 Vinaria Purcari SRL
Georgia: Château Mukhrani Qvevri 2017, Château Mukhrani
Best wines by varietal:
Cabernet Sauvignon: Lévrier by Jo Irvine 2015 Anubis Cabernet Sauvignon, Lévrier Wines, Australia
Shiraz: Mr Riggs 2014 The Chap, Mr Riggs Wine Co, Australia
Tempranillo: Habla Nº22 2016, Bodegas Habla (Bodegas BH S.L.) Spain
Pinot Noir: Clyde Park 2020 Single Block F College Pinot Noir 2020, Clyde Park Vineyard, Australia
Zinfandel: Twisted Cedar Zinfandel 2017, CBC BevCo, United States
Sauvignon Blanc: Yealands Reserve Sauvignon Blanc 2020, New Zealand
Riesling: 2018er Dürkheimer Michelsberg GG Riesling Trocken, Weingut Karl Schaefer GmbH & Co.KG
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