Noir Zealand: NZ Pinot Noirs Win Gold at International Wine Challenge

New Zealand winemakers demonstrated their excellence at the 30th International Wine Challenge winning 38 Gold medals in a record year of success.

Thirteen of the much-coveted Gold medals were awarded to wines of the Pinot Noir variety.  The talent of New Zealand’s winemakers to cultivate and transform this notoriously difficult grape into high quality wine demonstrates their mastery of the craft.

• Gold medal Pinot Noir winners include Tarras Vineyards The Canyon 2010, B2 Pinot Noir (2011) from Brennan Wines and a 2010 John Forrest Collection Brancott Pinot Noir from Forrest Wines
• Winemakers Vidal produced a Gold medal White Label Series Sauvignon Blanc (2012) as did Villa Maria with their Single Vineyard Southern Clays 2012.  Both wines retail for less than ten pounds showing you can find high quality New Zealand wine even on a modest budget
• Yealand Estates picked up Gold with their Grüner Veltliner 2012 which is typically found in Austria, while Stanley Estates produced a Gold medal winning Albarino (2012) which stems from Spain and Portugal.
• The 30th International Wine Challenge awarded 514 Gold medals this year, making it a record for quality with wines
• Entries were received from all over the world including Peru, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Lebanon and Thailand

The full press release and high resolution images can be downloaded below. To see the full results, please go to //www.internationalwinechallenge.com/

Quotation

Charles Metcalfe, Co-Chairman of the IWC, says:

“The New Zealand Gold medal wines at this year’s International Wine Challenge have been stunning.  We’ve come to expect excellent Pinot Noir and Sauvignon Blanc from them, and as usual they have delivered, but their ability to cultivate foreign grapes shows their mastery of their craft.  These wines have been tasted against thousands of contenders so it is a tremendous achievement that will catapult their product to an international audience.”

About International Wine Challenge

• In its 30th year, the International Wine Challenge is accepted as the world’s finest and most meticulously judged competition. The IWC assesses every wine ‘blind’ and judges each for its faithfulness to style, region and vintage.  Each medal winning wine is tasted on at least three separate occasions by a minimum of 10 different judges.  Awards include medals (Gold, Silver, Bronze) and Commended awards.  The IWC is committed to helping consumers discover great wine, and the medals are displayed on winning bottles offer a trusted guarantee of  quality.

Visit the IWC website for the full list of winners www.internationalwinechallenge.com