DWWA 2026: Platinum and Best in Show judging enters final stage
As Gold medal-winning wines return to the tasting table, DWWA’s head judges begin the final blind tastings that will determine the competition’s Platinum and Best in Show winners.
Nearly 17,000 wines from 57 countries were assessed during the first week of judging at Decanter World Wine Awards (DWWA) 2026. This week, the competition enters its final stages, as every Gold medal-winning wine is reassessed by a selection of DWWA’s senior judging panels to determine Platinum and Best in Show.
While the first stage of DWWA is defined by scale, Platinum week is defined by calibration. Wines awarded Gold medals during regional judging return to the tasting table for blind assessment by cross-regional panels made up of Co-Chairs and Regional Chairs.
Some wines will be elevated to Platinum. Others may be downgraded following further scrutiny and discussion – a process that judges say is central to the competition’s credibility and consistency.
It allows us to tighten up the judging and there are some wines which are downgraded from Gold, and in a way it’s why the competition works, because it tightens up the results and gives the results more credibility.
Michael Hill Smith AM MW
Each panel during Platinum week includes a Co-Chair and two Regional Chairs. Pictured: Andrew Jefford (left) and Justin Knock MW (right)
How Platinum week works
The Platinum judging process forms a key part of DWWA’s multi-stage assessments, designed to ensure consistency and rigour throughout the competition.
After initial regional blind tastings determine Bronze, Silver and Gold medal winners (or no award), all Gold medals are retasted during Platinum week by mixed panels of lead judges drawn from different regions and specialisms. The aim is not simply to reward power or style, but to identify wines showing the strongest sense of balance, typicity, precision and overall quality within a global context.
Ronan Sayburn MS said: ‘There’s still a process of sorting, there’s still a process of looking for the very very best, and that is elevating from Gold to Platinum. Some wines we feel don’t actually reach Gold, so maybe move down a little – but we’re doing up to Platinum and then to Best in Show.’
From there, Platinum medal winners progress to Best in Show deliberations, where DWWA’s Co-Chairs select the top 50 wines of the competition through repeated blind tastings and collective discussion.
The judging methodology remains central to DWWA’s global reputation, combining blind tasting, regional expertise and collaborative panel debate to evaluate wines across style, origin and price point.
Platinum and Best in Show judging is held at Decanter's Tasting Suite in London.
Cross-regional scrutiny
This year’s Platinum and Best in Show judging brings together an internationally recognised group of tasters, including Co-Chairs Andrew Jefford, Beth Willard, Michael Hill Smith AM MW, Ronan Sayburn MS and Caro Maurer MW, who joined DWWA this year as Resident Co-Chair.
They are joined by Regional Chairs including Amanda Barnes MW, James Tidwell MS, Andy Howard MW, Justin Howard-Sneyd MW, Matthew Stubbs MW, Justin Knock MW, Dr Caroline Gilby MW, Stefan Neumann MS, Michaela Morris, Paz Levinson and Dominique Vrigneau.
For Beth Willard, the structure of Platinum week is what makes it particularly compelling.
The wines are all of an extraordinary quality because the regional panels have already done so much work and picked out the best of each category. Here what we’re doing is trying to pick out the wines that really stand apart.
Beth Willard
Co-Chair Beth Willard assessing a flight of wines.
Emerging trends and standout flights
One of the defining features of Platinum week is the opportunity for judges to taste across regions and categories, offering insight into both global benchmarks and emerging stylistic trends.
James Tidwell MS noted the breadth of wines already performing strongly during this year’s judging. ‘We have such a broad overview of the entire competition, and we get to see, really, what happened in the entire competition.’
Early highlights have included Chardonnay flights spanning both Old and New World regions, with Amanda Barnes MW pointing to standout wines from Japan, Serbia and England alongside more established growing areas.
‘It is really nice to see diverse regions producing beautiful quality Chardonnays as well,’ she said.
Paz Levinson also highlighted strong performances from Alto Adige whites, Bordeaux Left Bank wines and Rioja, noting both quality and value across several categories.
‘We had easily three Platinum and Best in Show [candidates] in this category,’ she said of Rioja. ‘The quality was there.’
For Dr Caroline Gilby MW, Platinum week offers judges the opportunity to focus exclusively on wines already identified as exceptional. ‘We’re tasting what should all be good, and just making sure that we pick the highlights that really shine,’ she said. ‘They’re genuinely exciting wines.’
Narrowing the field
Following Platinum judging, the competition’s Co-Chairs undertake the final Best in Show deliberations – a process that narrows around roughly 200 Platinum medal winners down to just 50 wines.
The final selection remains one of the most debated and rigorous stages of DWWA, requiring consensus across styles, regions and price points, and often involving repeated tastings before the Best in Show wines are confirmed.
This is also when the Co-Chairs re-taste all Value Golds to confirm a top selection, last year encompassing 30 Top Value Golds, all under £15 a bottle.
For Caro Maurer MW, the week captures both the challenge and enjoyment of judging at the highest level. ‘With the best tasters on the table, such a unanimous decision – I really enjoy it.’
You are tasting only the best wines of the competition and then it’s a hard decision to make – which one is the best of the best.
Caro Maurer MW
Regional Chairs Paz Levinson and Matthew Stubbs MW.
Results on the horizon
DWWA 2026 results, including Platinum and Best in Show winners, will be announced on 17 June on Decanter.com.
Readers can subscribe to the DWWA newsletter to receive the results, regional highlights and expert analysis as soon as they are published.
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