I never dreamed when I set out to round up judges for the first Winemaker Challenge International Wine Competition that I would end up with such an accomplished group.
For one thing, I knew the dates in late January might pose a schedule conflict for many of the winemakers I wanted. It’s at that time of the year, just after the holidays and while the vineyards are dormant, that winemakers hit the road for all-important visits to far-flung markets.
I missed out on Eileen Crane of Domaine Carneros and Christian Roguenant of Baileyana for just that reason. Still, I persevered, and last week just about put the finishing touches on the cast of winemakers for Winemaker Challenge, a wine competition in which all of the judges are winemakers.
To the stellar group already assembled we added Janet Myers and Michael Beaulac, two of the brightest stars in the Napa Valley. Janet makes the wines at Mount Veeder Vineyards and Franciscan, and Michael only last April took the reins at Pine Ridge following stints at St. Supery, Markham and Murphy-Goode.
More winemakers could be added as the competition nears, but for now I feel very good about the number of judges and the extraordinary level of winemaking talent we’ve assembled. Click here to view the complete list of winemakers for the 2010 Winemaker Challenge.
My goal with the Challenge series of wine competitions, and this includes the Critics Challenge and Sommelier Challenge, is to provide impeccable wine evaluations from credible professionals — and thus, wine judgings that are second to none.
I firmly believe we’re almost there!
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