The Winemaker Challenge International Wine Competition, like most every wine competition, provides affirmation for wineries seeking to find out where their wines fit from vintage to vintage. But bragging rights aside, the results are useful for consumers confused by the sheer volume of wines in the marketplace.
Wines that are evaluated in blind tastings during such events as the Winemaker Challenge are singled out for recognition without a hint of bias, which should be reassuring to wary consumers merely looking to find a tasty wine in their price range. Judges know neither the producer nor the price of the wines being evaluated. The medals are awarded strictly on the merits of the wine itself.
In addition to the big winners, V. Sattui (winery of the year) and Castello Banfi (wine of the year), there were other commendable performances worth noting. Space doesn’t not permit the naming of all of the outstanding efforts, but complete results are available at WinemakerChallenge.com. The following wineries, however, were particularly impressive.
Barefoot Cellars & Barefoot Bubbly sell more wine in the U.S. than any other brand. There’s a reason for that. Across the board, the wines are delicious and inexpensive. The Barefoot Bubbly wines retail for a suggested $9.99, and the Barefoot Cellars wines for $6.99. Winemaker Jennifer Wall and her enology team are master blenders who deliver an astonishing level of consistency despite millions of cases being produced each year. At the Winemaker Challenge, the Barefoot wines captured 23 medals. The haul included one platinum medal and 10 golds.
Cakebread Cellars, a family-run winery, has been a Napa Valley powerhouse for more than three decades. Despite all of its success, it still puts its rep on the line and competes in the major wine competitions. It talks the talk and walks the walk, and at the 2017 Winemaker Challenge, it walked away with four medals of four wines entered, including three golds. And it was a successful debut for Cakebread’s new red Bordeaux-style blend, Vaca. The 2013 Vaca ($67) took a gold medal with a score of 93 points.
Cala de Poeti is an Italian brand imported by Wine Insiders. In a stunning performance, it scored three platinum awards — for the 2014 Maremma Toscana DOC ($25), the 2015 Montepulciano d’Abruzzo DOC ($30) and the 2015 Sangiovese, Puglia IGT ($30) — to become one of only three wineries to take three platinum medals. It also won two silver medals.
Domaine Carneros by Taittinger entered two wines and earned platinum for both. The 2012 Carneros Brut ($33) won a score of 95 points, and the 2013 Brut Rose ($39) won 96 points. These are both elegant sparkling wines that compare favorably to fine Champagne. They have an excellent value, and the awards tee them up nicely for Valentine’s Day, a time when bubbly flows freely.
Gloria Ferrer, another Carneros sparkling wine specialist, scored three platinums, including best of show sparkling wine with its 2005 Carneros Cuvee ($75), which received 97 points. If you don’t believe domestic sparkling wine can age as well as Champagne, think again. The other Gloria Ferrer platinum award-winners were the Blanc de Blancs and the Blanc de Noirs, both for $22.
Menage a Trois is a value brand that retails for $10 to $14. It scooped up 11 medals, including two platinums and three golds. But that paled somewhat in comparison to its sister brand, Sutter Home, which won 13 medals, including two platinum and four gold. The Sutter Home wines have a modest price tag of $6.
8