28 Golds, 53 Silvers, 10 Special Awards and… Great Value Wine Merchant of the Year!

The Competition

The Sommelier Wine Awards is the only competition aimed solely at the on-trade. Each year 150 of the UK’s best Sommeliers and on-trade palates are tasked with identifying and rewarding the best wines available to bars, restaurants, and hotels.

Judges this year included Hakkasan’s Olivier Gasselin, Matthieu Longuère MS of Le Cordon Bleu and Annette Scarfe MW.

The Winners

Our Gold medal haul features own production gems such as Domaine de Vedilhan, Serica Viognier 2016 and Boutinot, Les Coteaux, Côtes du Rhône-Villages 2014 alongside multiple Golds awarded to many of our outstanding partners, including Ontañon, San Felice and Gladstone Vineyards.

All Gold medallists were then assessed for further Extra Awards:

Fernando de Castilla, Antique, Palo Cortado and Henners Reserve 2010 were both selected for ‘Critics’ Choice’, a 12-case of wines that simply made the tasters go ‘wow’!

Moko Black, Sauvignon Blanc 2017 and Catalina Sounds, Pinot Noir 2016 both achieved the ‘Food Match’ trophy. This round sees any sub £12.50 winners tasted again against an array of classic and contemporary restaurant dishes in order to find the most food-friendly and versatile amongst them.

Uggiano Fagiano Chianti Riserva 2013 won both the ‘Critics’ Choice’ and ‘Food Match’ awards!

Great Value Wine Merchant of the Year!

Once the wines are judged and awarded their trophies, the judging panel then looks at each merchant’s haul.

Head of Judging Christine Parkinson deemed us worthy of the Great Value Wine Merchant accolade due to the breadth, quality, and consistency of our wins in the under £10 price bracket.

Congratulations to all the winning producers and winemakers – we will be featuring some more winning wines via the blog and social media throughout 2018!