More than 400 medals have been awarded at the 2023 Marlborough Wine Show.
A panel of 17 judges tasted more than 550 entries last week, awarding 46 gold medals to wines of all varieties, from right across Marlborough’s subregions.
Guest judge Emma Jenkins MW says she was impressed by the ability of winemakers to produce quality wines across the board, particularly following a few tricky vintages from 2021-2023.
“What I really liked about some of the wines from those vintages was that winemakers had been really sensitive in the way they handled the fruit,” she says.
“I tasted some stunning aromatic wines… as well as the usual suspects like Pinot, Sauvignon [Blanc] and Chardonnay.”
Fellow guest judge Stephen Wong MW says Chardonnay was a ‘super standout’ of the show, with Pinot Noir entries also piquing his palate.
“There’s just something about the kind of Chardonnays that Marlborough is making, which is right on point with where the world’s palates are converging. It’s a great opportunity if we can make the most of that,” he says.
“There’s that combination of freshness, vibrancy, very, very careful winemaking, everything is very sensitively handled. It feels like the winemakers in Marlborough have their finger on the pulse of what people want to drink with Chardonnay right now.”
Out of the 46 gold medal-winning wines, 37 are also eligible for a subregional trophy.
Eighty-four wines, making up 28 entries in the NZ Wine Centre Legacy Award category of the show are yet to be tasted.
The Legacy Trophy is designed to celebrate wines with pedigree and is awarded to the wine producer with the highest scores from three vintages within a 10-year period and a minimum gap of two years between each vintage.
Guest judge Oz Clarke will be joining Stu Marfell and Ben Glover to assess the category entries on November 6.
Trophy winners for all categories will be announced at the Marlborough Wine Show Celebration Evening, which is also a celebration of 50 years of Marlborough wine, taking place on November 17, 2023.
For the full list of medal results, click here.
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