I had a blast judging at the 2006 International Chardonnay Challenge last month in Gisborne, New Zealand, despite the fact that most of the more than 500 entries were from either New Zealand or Australia.
Quality was very high and the team of judges very professional, but I was struck — or maybe I should say dumbfounded — when we started the first day of judging and all of my colleagues made their evaluations standing up.
At the three major wine competitions I run here in the United States — the Critics Challenge, San Diego International and Monterey International — we expect judges to take their seats!
Same for the other competitions I’ve judged here and in Europe. You would think that after standing for more than eight hours on a cold concrete slab (the competition is held at the Gisborne Show Grounds) you’d be dead on your feet and lose your concentration, but I found the wines so interesting and the other judges’ comments so compelling I hardly noticed.
Most of the winners wouldn’t mean much to American consumers, except for the winning “international” entry, which was the 2004 Beringer Private Reserve Chardonnay from the Napa Valley.
Judges pictured in the photo are winemaker Jeff Clarke of Pernod-Ricard New Zealand (Montana Wines) in the foreground and winemaker Kim Crawford of Kim Crawford Wines in the background. A complete list of winners can be found at www.internationalchardonnaychallenge.com.
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