|
Best chardonnay of the world 2010
The 17th annual Chardonnay du Monde® wine competition was held March 10-13, 2010 at Château des Ravatys, the wine estate of the Pasteur Institute at Saint-Lager in the Burgundy wine (France)
The Chardonnay du Monde® international competition recognises the world’s best Chardonnay wines by awarding them with reliable and representative medals. This competition is based on a single conviction: distinctive marks of quality are the key to real differentiation and therefore enhancing the value of the awarded wines in this highly competitive market where the array of products becomes more vast each day. Award-winning wineries can use this recognition for sales purposes by placing medal stickers on their bottles.
This event is unique in terms of its scope, its method and its ambition:
- International in scope and a seldom reached diversity: 887 wine samples, 37 countries, 300 international expert judges.
- A strict method with the focus on quality: compliance with international competition standards, rigorous selection of expert judges, and the use of scientific criteria for tasting, and secure processing of computer results.
- Optimal tasting conditions: sensory isolation, number of samples limited to 17 per panel, expert judges do not add up their scores allowing them to focus on evaluating the wines, and wines are tasted at an appropriate pace.
As part of these Quality Assurances, all new judges must participate in a one-day training session before being admitted to the tasting panels. For each judge, this session includes sensory profile determination, Chardonnay aromas identification and various exercises to familiarise themselves with methods used in international wine judging competitions.
Chardonnay du Monde® has progressively distinguished itself from other international competitions thanks to quality standards that are much stricter than the norm and by remaining faithful to its founding principles, which have driven its success over the years: diversity, quality and high standards.
After four days of judging, the panels awarded medals to 296 participants. This year, the panel doesn’t award Gold Medals of Excellence.
| Medals distribution |
| Gold medals |
65
|
| Silver medals |
174
|
| Bronze medals |
57
|
|
| Top 10 Best chardonnay du Monde® 2010 |
| Gold medals |
| Country |
Product |
Winery |
Austria |
Chardonnay Morillon Trocken 2008 |
Weingut Johann Schneeberger |
Greece |
Ktima Tselepos Marmarias Chardonnay 2007 |
Ktima Tselepos & Co |
France |
Champagne Premier Cru Blanche de Castille Blanc de Blancs Brut |
Champagne Colin |
France |
Vin de Pays du Val de Loire - Domaine la Morinière 2009 |
Gaec de la Ragotière |
South Africa |
Lourensford Winemaker's Selection Chardonnay 2009 |
Lourensford t/a Cwp Wine Brands |
Spain |
Penedès do Chardonnay Col-leccio 2008 |
Albet i Noya Sat |
France |
Champagne Paul Goerg Premier Cru Blanc de Blancs Brut |
Coop. la Goutte d’Or / Champagne Paul Goerg |
Germany |
Chardonnay Beerenauslese 2008 |
Weinzergenossenschaft Auggen eG |
Canada |
Chardonnay Icewine 2007 |
Kalala Organic Estate Winery |
France |
Vin de Pays d'Oc Domaine de Cibadiès - Cuvée Tradition 2009 |
Scea des Vignobles JM Bonfils |
|
The Top 10 ranking
Seven countries appear in the 2010 Top 10 ranking: France obtains four Gold Medals with two Champagne Premier Cru Blanc de blancs (Champagne Colin and Champagne Paul Goerg). It is also distinguished through a "Vin de pays" of Loire Valley (La Ragotière) and a "Vin de Pays d’Oc" wine (JM Bonfils). Austria (Weingut Johann Schneeberger), Greece (Ktima Tselepos) and Germany (Weinzergenossenschaft Auggen) enter in good place in the Top 10 list. Spain (Albet i Noya Sat), South Africa (Lourensford) and Canada (Kalala Organic Estate Winery) reaffirm their good positioning. The 2010 Top 10 proposes the diversity of the expressions of Chardonnay wines through seven still wines, one wine with residual sugars and two Sparkling wines.
|
| 2010 GENERAL TRENDS |
- An unique geographical diversity: with 37 countries and 887 wines entered, Chardonnay du Monde® is the strongest concentration of chardonnay wine ever realized. It is the most significant and legitimate qualitative competition for the distinction of best Chardonnay of the World.There was also strong participation from Canada, Italy, Spain, central Europe, Switzerland, Chile, Argentina. China came back amoung participating countries.
- The country winning the most medals:
The good place of France is noted: the Languedoc-Roussillon, the South Burgundy (Saone & Loire and Beaujolais), the Chablis region and the Champagne and sparkling wines were rewarded by numerous and beautiful medals.
Within Europe, Switzerland, Italy and Spain stood out for their numerous medalled wines.
Central Europe (Austria, the Czech Republic, Bulgaria, Slovakia and Slovenia) gains in 2010 beautiful medals.
Outside Europe, Canada, Chile, South Africa and Australia confirmed their successes of earlier years.
- There was a high level of diversity in terms of the sensorial qualities of the wines: Each wine distinguished at Chardonnay du Monde® was judged for its individual quality. A favourable view is granted to the wines showing good typicity and intense Chardonnay aromas. Oakiness is considered a plus when it is discreet and harmonious, but this quality was marked down when it masked varietal aromas.
The presence of sugar at a few grams per litre has a tendency to improve scores. This tendency, already noted in previous years, was confirmed this year with a number of successes for off-dry wines. Wines made from partially dried or lateharvested grapes and those made by selective cryo-extraction received particularly good marks.
Dry wines were judged successful when they displayed harmony in the form of elegant acidity, with aromatic complexity.
- Technical Enrichment: The use of a new Professional Tasting Instrument resulting from applied research. In addition to organising a flawless competition is the desire to improving the reliability of measuring instruments. This resulted in the adoption of a professional wine-tasting glass for the tasting of sparkling chardonnay wines. This new tool tested by judges of Effervescents du Monde® (www.effervescnets-du-monde.com) is an INAO-type tasting glass that contains a precise number of nucleation sites. The objective of this new wine-tasting glass "Fleur d’Effervescence®" is to optimise the tasting of sparkling wines, to calibrate their degree of effervescence, to control the formation of bubbles and to enable ideal expression of the foam…
|
|
 |
|
