This week marks the second and third stages of judging at Decanter World Wine Awards (DWWA) to determine the best wines entered in the global competition.
The rare Gold medal wines (95-96 points), awarded to an average of 3.6% of all wines entered in the competition, were decided last week within regional contexts by hundreds of leading wine experts.
The decision about whether a wine merits a Platinum or Best in Show (97-100 points, and averaging 0.85% or 0.27% respectively) is being determined now by the competition’s Regional and Co-Chairs.
DWWA 2024 Co-Chairs at the Decanter Tasting Suite. From left to right: Michael Hill Smith AM MW, Sarah Jane Evans MW, Andrew Jefford, Beth Willard, Ronan Sayburn MS. Credit: Ellen Richardson
‘At this stage the quality is great,’ said Regional Chair Michelle Cherutti-Kowal MW.
‘We’re not tasting anything of poor quality, so it’s a matter of really assessing which are the top, top wines that need to go on and really confirm what the judges thought last week.’
One of five panels during judging for Platinum. Clockwise: Stefan Neumann MS, Shivani Tomar (Awards Manager), Beth Willard, Michelle Cherutti-Kowal MW. Credit: Ellen Richardson
Naming Burgundy and Australian Pinot Noir among his highlights of the day, Regional Chair Stefan Neumann MS said: ‘The overall quality of these wines is just outstanding. It was such a joy to judge; we were running out of superlatives of what to call them, so really, really good.
‘Overall, the judging experience is fantastic. It’s great to see as a Platinum judge so many fantastic wines lined up, so it it makes our job fantastically enjoyable, but in particular very hard to distinguish between the very, very good, fantastic and absolutely exceptional.’
Regional Chairs James Tidwell MS (left) and Pedro Ballesteros Torres MW. Credit: Ellen Richardson
‘We’re looking for the jewels – the Platinums’ addressed Co-Chair Michael Hill Smith MW to the room of Platinum judges. Those wines really do need to be spectacular.
‘People say to me, how can you possibly get results that mean anything with 18,000 entries. And the reality is, because of the way we run the competition, the way we do it; but also, it’s this second week where we really do finetune results. The next three days is where the whole competition really doubles down on its integrity.’
Regional Chairs Andy Howard MW and Sarah Ahmed during Platinum judging week. Credit: Ellen Richardson
Best in Show judging is up next, with Platinum-awarded wines re-tasted once again by the competition’s five Co-Chairs to select a Top 50.
Results will be announced Wednesday 19 June on Decanter.com. With top-awarded wines selling out quickly, follow @decanterawards on social media to be the first to know when they are ready to view.
Platinum and Best in Show Platinum judging is held at Decanter’s offices in London. Credit: Ellen Richardson