2020 Wine Trophies Announced
This year's top IWSC wines have been announced today, with the highly anticipated winners of our 30 wine trophies revealed.
These wines wowed the judges and have been crowned the best of the best in their respective categories, with sparkling and fortified wines performing very well this year. Impressively, the northern hemisphere scooped some three-quarters of the trophies with France, Germany and Hungary taking home plenty of trophies. well. For the southern hemisphere, Australia and South Africa delivered spectactularly.
See below for details of all the trophies, and click here to read a full report on our consumer title, Club Oenologique.
Hampshire, England
Fresh white fruit on the nose, with the palate showing beautiful mid-palate fruit. Expressive, savoury and citrusy, with a crisp and refreshing finish. Very well balanced and consistent from start to finish. Lovely.
Champagne, France
A classic, impressive Blanc de Blancs style exuding a complex melange of citrus and green fruits, radiant gold colour and elegant, sweet honey. Biscuity notes tease the palate. The minerality is palpable. A masterful, well balanced and concentrated composition.
Waitrose & Partners Special Réserve Brut 2008 
Champagne, France
Elegant, glittering and ostentatious. Brimming with piercing stone and citrus fruit aromas. On the palate, an edgy nuttiness, smooth creaminess and rich marzipan. Balanced acidity reverberates harmoniously. Its youthful mouth-feel and impressive finish deliver great poise and potential.
Lanson Noble Cuvée Brut 2002 
Champagne, France
Persuasive nose with coconut and truffle; all very poised. The palate is rich and creamy showing beautiful evolution and is backed by fresh fruit and savoury notes. Structurally superb with marked mineral acidity and long complex finish.
Denmark, Western Australia
Richly-layered cornucopia of aromatic oral pleasure; ripe yellow plum, exotic blooms, woodsmoke, citrus, lime curd, bacon and pineapple. Elegant, refined, controlled with a mouth-watering acidity and a finely textured palate. A superb citrus scented, stone fruit finish. Longevity and grace.
Bird in Hand TED Edward Andrew Chardonnay 2017 
Adelaide Hills, South Australia
Creamy, seductive, jasmine-scented honeyed beeswax and lemon meringue adorn this dreamily textured, harmonious cornucopia of a wine. Sublimely lengthy, substantial of weight, acidity and fruit; made for food. Classical profile and the potential to live forever.
Weingut Karl Schaefer Ungsteiner Weilberg GG Riesling 2017 
Pfalz, Germany
Intent, confident and perfectly paced, nose shows the way with citrus and tropical notes then palate embraces in lavish, glowing ripe peach and mango richly balanced with Christmas cake and sparklers of acidity. Poised with handsome typicity.
La Cave des Vignerons de Pfaffenheim Cuvée Ancestrum Gewurztraminer 2018 
Alscace, France
Ripe, but balanced, fruit notes of candied passion fruit and dried grape. Palate is deliciously sweet and rich with complexity and spice. Wow, how it evolves in the glass. Quite brilliant.
Alscace, France
Ripe ginger and pink grapefruit are balanced out with a slight tough of petrol on the nose. Complex and slightly honeyed on the palate with ripe peaches and brioche. Touches of perfect stone fruit lead to a clean, long finish.
Nahe, Germany
A supremely elegant nose of white flowers and orange zest with malty characters, focused mineral top notes and scant salinity. Fully realised palate displaying ripe stone fruits, apple, lime juice and delicate spice balanced by fresh acidity and yeasty undertones.
Stellenbosch, South Africa
Delicate and focused nose with black fruits and floral notes. Concentrated and well-balanced palate with ripe tannins and nicely integrated oak. This is a plush yet elegant example which shows complexity and length. Visit the Quoin Rock website
La Rioja Alta S.A. Booths Gran Norte Rioja Reserva 2015 
Rioja, Spain
A step back in time with this traditional style, allowing the American oak to bring out the complex typicity of coconut, toast and mature undergrowth. The harmony between oak, fruit and acidity makes a wine jam-packed with intensity and ripeness.
Sur Andino Argentina Altaluvia Cabernet Franc 2018
Mendoza, Argentina
Like floating on a languid river of vibrant black fruit with heady spicy florals in the air and wet stone gleaming throughout. Tannins have good, restrained bite, oak is polished and acidity glimmers. Balanced, intense and perfect for pairing.
Bartinney Skyfall Cabernet Sauvignon 2015 
Stellenbosch, South Africa
Hawthorn, hedgerow and Heathcliff. It's me, Cathy. Complex, and irresistibly smooth and supple below the (rose) hip. Tease me with cigar, tobacco, and watch me evolve into something delicious. Something divine. A Stellenbosch at its most prime.
Brunello di Montalcino, Tuscany, Italy
Flows from one sense to another, utterly seamless and natural. Giving refined red fruits, chestnut and truffle savoury aromas on the nose with velvet smooth tannins and refreshing bright acidity on the finish. Truly a remarkable wine.
Barolo, Piedmont, Italy
Precise, elegant and really well made. Stony minerality leads to sweet ripe cherries. Excellent complexity on the palate with floral and spicy characteristics. Vanilla notes evolve into firm dry tannins on the finish. Wonderfully composed! Drinking beautifully now and will be showing its best in a coming years.
Barolo, Piedmont, Italy
Opulent, encapsulating and oh-so-fragrant. A procession of ripe fruits with strawberries, raspberries and plums lead the way. Mesmerising graphite minerality with a touch of toasty oak. Distinguished yet delicate, the tannic structure remains tense and dashing. Cellar for 5 years to enjoy it at its best.
Barossa, South Australia
Powerful yet restrained and elegant, the nose displays evidence of evolution from tomato chutney characters to classic ripe berry fruits. The oak influence is beautifully intertwined to create balance and harmony.
Minervois, Languedoc-Rouisillon, France
A complex and ripe start with forest fruit, a hint of blueberry and peppercorn aromas. It is full and creamy on a bold, rich palate with a massive oaked cushion of fruit. There's white peppet and a long, complex finish.
Kamanterena Winery Commandaria Saint Barnabas 2002 
Commandaria, Cyprus
Expressive sweet notes of honey, molasses and fig. With underlying spice the wine is still fresh with notes of bruised red apple and nutty characeristics. Amazing length that lends itself to notes of coffee and chocolate.
Tokaj, Hungary
An excellent example of a Tokaji nose with lovely dried apricot, honey, straw and lime peel notes. The palate is rich and ripe with lovely acidity and freshness. Loads of spice and real finesse. A benchmark for Tokaji.
Jerez, Spain
Wonderfully expressive on the nose, with zesty orange peel and sweet roasted hazelnuts; clean, dry saline notes contrast brilliantly against sweet dried dates, overripe figs and candied walnuts. Altogether, tremendously intense and vital, with a long, persistent finish.
Morris Cellar Reserve Grand Muscat 
Rutherglen, Australia
Scrumptious sultana, burnt caramel and charming coffee. With delightful figs and delectable christmas pudding, it's a palate so rich, so complex. Leaves you begging for more.
Port, Portugal
Sophisticated with a superb nose that radiates the beauty of sumptuous plump raisins and soft figs with the delicate toastiness of tobacco and cedar. An incredible concentration of fruit with a divine buttery finish causes the palate to sing joyfully.
Port, Portugal
A bright nose with intense plum and sweet cherry notes, that unexpectedly step aside to reveal deeper aromas of tobacco, lavender and eucalyptus. Beautiful ripe plum and blueberry flavours on the palate with a deliciously wicked finish. Youthful and expressive.
Sogrape Vinhos Ferreira Quinta Do Porto Vintage 2017 
Port, Portugal
Refined aromatic rustic fruits on the nose. Elegant juicy black fruits on the palate with vibrant spicy wood notes. Full of energy with fine tannins and a beautifully rounded punch at the end. A true knockout with excellent prospects.
Morris Cellar Reserve Grand Tawny NV 
Rutherglen, Australia
Stewed black fruits unfurl in fabulous concentration backed by hot white pepper and mace notes. A very fine rancio character appears alongside divine notes of caramel and butterscotch while the high alcohol is integrated perfectly on a superbly balanced palate.
Sauternes, Bordeaux, France
Beguiling, and utterly delicious, with well-defined aromas of canned pineapple, greengage and bruised apple. A lusciously sweet core is brought beautifully into line by a refreshing stream of acidity. Fantastic concentration throughout; an excellent example of its type.
Bodegas Williams & Humbert Dos Cortados Palo Cortado Aged 20 Years 
Jerez, Spain
An enduring nose highlighting the big aromas of vanilla, dried fruits, roasted hazelnuts and coffee beans. Rich and compelling on the palate with a smorgasbord of cooked exotic fruits all delectably seasoned with a pinch of sea salt. Divinely memorable.
Madeira, Portugal
Glorious, abundant nose of buttery caramel, dried figs and hazelnut nougat. Generous lashings of Seville orange marmalade, dried dates and candied walnuts are cut through by puckering acidity and underpinned by a lusciously full mouthfeel, making for a seriously stylish wine.
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