WineGB Awards mark record-breaking year with over 350 medals given to best wines
25th June 2024
The eighth edition of the WineGB Awards saw a record number of wines entered and medals awarded for wines made in 33 counties across England and Wales.
Over 350 medals were awarded this year, including 177 for sparkling wines and 174 for still wines across 20 different classes.
35 gold medals were given to sparkling wines and 21 to still wines, more than double the figure achieved in 2023.
The standout categories for sparkling wines were the Classic Cuvée Non-Vintage/Multi-Vintage, Classic Cuvée Vintage and Rosé classes, each achieving six gold medals.
For the stills, the red Pinot Noir and Chardonnay classes came out on top, each with five golds, closely followed by Bacchus with four.
Big winners
Wines made from 10 different grape varieties were awarded gold medals, with the first gold ever given to a wine made from Solaris and an orange wine Vermouth made using Reichensteiner, Solaris, and Bacchus.
This year saw a wide regional spread, with wines produced in 33 different counties awarded medals (28 counties in England, five in Wales). The gold medals were spread across 18 counties from Cornwall, Dorset, and Suffolk to East Sussex, Berkshire and North Yorkshire.
In the gold medal tally, Kent and Hampshire claimed the top spot with nine, with West Sussex awarded six, Dorset five, and East Sussex four.
In terms of total medals, Kent was once again victorious with 71, followed by East Sussex with 47, West Sussex with 41, Hampshire with 33, and Devon with 15 medals.
Innovation and experimentation
The organiser said that innovation and experimentation were the key themes at this year’s WineGB Awards, with a range of winemaking techniques on display.
This included a multi-vintage still wine, use of oak in various formats, low- and no-dosage sparkling wines, skin contact still wines, and solera system blending.
Wines using all methods of sparkling wine production gained medals from Traditional Method and Charmat, to Col Fondos, Pét-Nats, and carbonated wines.
The medal results can be read in full here via pdf or here online.
The WineGB trophy results will be revealed at the WineGB Awards lunch and celebration on 19th July at the Drapers’ Hall in London.
This includes the announcement of the regional trophy winners along with the unveiling of the category trophies, concluding with the top award: The Supreme Champion 2024.
Wealth of grape varieties and wine styles
Oz Clarke OBE, co-chair of the WineGB Awards judging panel, said that every category of this year’s awards was “at its best level”.
“There were more wines than ever, and there were some truly fascinating expressions of grape varieties, both well-known and more obscure. Ambition and innovation were triumphantly in step with each other.
“Until this year, the sparkling categories have always ruled the roost. This was the first year when we could luxuriate in a fabulous array of Chardonnays and Pinots and know that we had a worthy clutch of top medals in both. And it is worth noting that the Pinot category was bolstered by some outstanding examples of Pinot Précoce.
“England and Wales have a wealth of different grape varieties and wine styles that intrigue and challenge the producers and which amazed and excited us as we judged the results. Who knew grape varieties like Ortega could be suited to so many styles,” he added.
Find more information and tickets here.
