The Decanter World Wine Awards - the most influential wine competition in the world - attracted more entries this year than ever before. In total 9219 wines were entered, more than double the amount entered than when the competition launched just five years ago.
Decanter's reputation for its unique judging process has often caused the competition to be called 'the ultimate terroir competition'. This year the judges, over 50 of whom flew in from overseas, were as rigorous as ever. Despite the large number of entries, the consistency in terms of medals awarded, was remarkable. On a similar scale to previous years only 64% of wines were awarded a medal, and of those just 2.84% won a gold medal or a trophy. 12.4% won a silver medal.
Decanter World Wine Awards Chairman Steven Spurrier said 'winning a silver medal in the Decanter World Wine Awards is the equivalent of winning a gold from other competitions. Our prestige goes before us.'
While terroir is celebrated, the consumer is paramount. Wines were judged this year in two price brackets again – under £10 and over £10.
As the world's biggest and most respected wine media brand, Decanter manages to reach over 5 million consumers.
'Today's wine consumer has a genuine need for advice and guidance in choosing wine from the vast range on offer from all over the world,' said Michael Hill Smith MW, Regional Chair for Australia. 'Consumers trust Decanter, and it is this trust that underpins the continued success of the Decanter World Wine Awards'.
Decanter's reputation for its unique judging process has often caused the competition to be called 'the ultimate terroir competition'. This year the judges, over 50 of whom flew in from overseas, were as rigorous as ever. Despite the large number of entries, the consistency in terms of medals awarded, was remarkable. On a similar scale to previous years only 64% of wines were awarded a medal, and of those just 2.84% won a gold medal or a trophy. 12.4% won a silver medal.
