Royal Easter Show Wine Awards 2018 – Gold Medal Winners

The medal results of the 2018 Royal Easter Show Wine Awards were released yesterday. From 1003 wines judged, there were 71 (7.1%) gold medals. 221 (22.0%) silvers and 389 (38.8%) bronzes awarded, with a total of 681 (67.9%) winning a medal. The classes with the most gold medals were Chardonnay and Pinot Noir, both with 12 each, followed by Sauvignon Blanc with 10 gold medals. Riesling was also a very strong performer with 7 golds awarded.

Proportionally, considering the number of entries submitted in each class, Riesling was the most highly awarded with over 16.5% winning a gold. Syrah won a high percentage of golds, the 4 awarded equating to 9.7%. and likewise for the Sparkling Wines, the 4 golds from 44 wines judged giving over 9% gold rate. The 2 golds for Gewurztraminer from 24 entries gave over 8% gold success. Chardonnay and the Bordeaux varieties also did well at nearly 8% of them entered winning gold. Performing less than average, 6.5% of the Pinot Noirs judged took gold. With Sauvignon Blanc and Pinot Gris, only 5.4% of the entries took gold. The Rosé category was also a poor performer, the 3 golds equating to under 5% of the entries.

So it appears Chardonnay and Syrah continue their winning way, and this year the aromatic varieties of Riesling and Gewurztraminer did well. The specialist Sparkling category shows skilled winemaking, and the Bordeaux varieties are very steady. Pinot Noir performed a little below average, which seems unusual for me. The lower performance for Sauvignon Blanc can be attributed to the poor 2017 growing season. Pinot Gris has had a variable performance, and maybe this is due to to difficult growing season as well. I have found many good rosé wines from the cooler 2017 season, in my tastings, but this was not endorsed here.

As can be expected, Marlborough wines dominated the gold medal winners, accounting for >55%, followed by Hawke’s Bay with a creditable proportion of >20%. Central Otaga was third with <5% of the golds.

As has been the case for many years, the Villa Maria group dominated the gold medal results, with Villa Maria labelled wines taking 14 golds, with one each to Vidal Estate and Te Awa. These accounted for 22.5% of the gold medal winners. The Foley Family Wines Group, Isabel, Rapaura Springs, Saint Clair and West Brook each took 3 gold medals.

This year’s judging was conducted over 13-15 February at the Auckland Showgrounds, with Kate Radburnd as Chair of Judges and Mike de Garis as Deputy Chair. The panel leaders were Jane Cooper, Rod Easthope, Barry Riwai and James Rowan. The other senior judges were Michael Bann, Rebecca Deed, Jo Gear, John Hancock, Oliver Masters, Matt Murphy, Jen Parr and Dave Roper. The associate judges were Hannah Burns, Paul Harre, James Hillard, Jordan Hogg, Vanessa Robson, Chloe Somerset, Lauren Swift and Richard Tollenaar. The Competition Director was Shona White and Mark Compton was the Chief Steward. It is good to see a younger set of personnel involved, especially with new panel leaders.

The trophy results will be announced at an awards dinner on Saturday 3 March, at The Pullman. I will post the winners when released.

Here are the 71 gold medal winners. They are listed by variety (or general class category) and alphabetically. The full set of gold, silver and bronze medals can be seen at www.wineshow.co.nz

Sauvignon Blanc
Babydoll Sauvignon Blanc 2017
Giesen The Fuder Single Vineyard Matthews Lane Sauvignon Blanc 2014
Rapaura Springs Reserve Wairau Classic Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2017
Tinpot Hut Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2017
Vavasour Sauvignon Blanc 2017
Villa Maria Single Vineyard Taylors Pass Sauvignon Blanc 2017
Waimea Sauvignon Blanc 2017
Wairau River Sauvignon Blanc 2017
Whitehaven Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2017
Yealands Estate Single Block S1 Sauvignon Blanc 2017

Riesling
Allan Scott Family Winemakers Marlborough Riesling 2017
Ceres Bannockburn Black Rabbit Riesling 2017
Growers Mark Gale Force Riesling 2016
Riverby Estate Eliza Riesling 2014
Villa Maria Private Bin Marlborough Riesling 2017
West Brook Marlborough Riesling 2017
West Brook Marlborough Riesling 2015

Allan Scott Family Winemakers Marlborough Pinot Gris 2017
Bladen Marlborough Pinot Gris 2016
Giesen Estate Pinot Gris 2017
Mission Estate Pinot Gris 2017
Mud House Marlborough Pinot Gris 2017
Rapaura Springs Reserve Marlborough Pinot Gris 2017

Gewurztraminer
Spy Valley Single Estate Gewurztraminer 2016
Villa Maria Single Vineyard Ihumatao Gewurztraminer 2017

Chardonnay
Delta Hatter’s Hill Chardonnay 2016
Isabel Marlborough Chardonnay 2016
Isabel Marlborough Wild Barrique Chardonnay 2016
Saint Clair Omaka Reserve Chardonnay 2016
Selaks Founders Chardonnay 2016
Te Awa Single Estate Hawkes Bay Chardonnay 2016
Villa Maria Reserve Marlborough Chardonnay 2016
Villa Maria Single Vineyard Keltern Chardonnay 2016
Villa Maria Single Vineyard Taylors Pass Chardonnay 2016
Wairau River Reserve Chardonnay 2017
West Brook Waimauku Chardonnay 2016
Whitehaven Marlborough Chardonnay 2016

Summerhouse Marlborough Verdelho 2016
Villa Maria Private Bin Gisborne Viognier 2016

Riverby Estate Noble Riesling 2015

Sparkling
Hawkesbridge Marlborough Méthode Traditionnelle 2014
Hunter’s MiruMiru™ NV
Te Hana Reserve Cuvee NV
Vic Williams’ Selection Marlborough Methode Traditionnelle 2014

Rosé or Blush
Bushmere Estate Rosé 2017
Isabel Marlborough Rosé 2017
The Ned Pinot Rosé 2017

Akarua Pinot Noir 2016
Aronui Nelson Single Vineyard PInot Noir 2015
Domain Road Pinot Noir 2014
Framingham Marlborough Pinot Noir 2015
Grove Mill Pinot Noir 2016
Russian Jack Pinot Noir 2016
Saint Clair Marlborough Premium Pinot Noir 2016
Seventeen Valley Pinot Noir 2016
Two Degrees Pinot Noir 2016
Villa Maria Single Vineyard Seddon Pinot Noir 2014
Villa Maria Single Vineyard Southern Clays Pinot Noir 2015
Villa Maria Single Vineyard Taylors Pass Pinot Noir 2015

Merlot and Merlot Predominant Blends
Babich Hawke’s Bay Merlot Cabernet 2016
Pukeora Ruahine Range The Benches 2013
Saint Clair Pioneer Block 17 Plateau Merlot 2016
Villa Maria Cellar Selection Hawkes Bay Merlot Cabernet Sauvignon 2016

Clearview Estate Old Olive Block 2016
Mills Reef Reserve Cabernet Merlot 2016
Villa Maria Reserve Gimblett Gravels Hawkes Bay Cabernet Sauvignon Merlot 2015

Syrah
Mission Jewelstone Syrah 2015
Tohu Hawkes Bay Syrah 2015
Vidal Legacy Gimblett Gravels Hawkes Bay Syrah 2014
Villa Maria Reserve Gimblett Gravels Hawkes Bay Syrah 2016

Other Red Varieties
Villa Maria Reserve Gimblett Gravels Hawkes Bay Malbec 2015