Just when the holidays are over and the doldrums start to set in, we have another reason to clink glasses and celebrate.
Last week, the annual San Francisco Chronicle Wine Competition (SFCWC) announced America’s best wines for 2014.
Thirteen of our local wineries from Morgan Hill, San Martin, Gilroy and Hollister won a whopping 81 medals (for a complete list, see the PDF attached with this story).
Not only is the SFCWC the largest competition in the world for American wines – it is arguably the most prestigious. Any wine bottled within the United States may be entered into the competition, but wineries that do enter their wines must agree to have a minimum of 50, 12-bottle cases of each wine available for sale to the public, either at the winery or through distribution channels.
Winemakers can enter six different divisions: Sparkling, White, Pink, Red, Dessert/Specialty Beverages and Wine Label. Within these divisions (excluding Wine Label) are many different varietals. For example, the Red division includes numerous red varietals such as Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Syrah, Pinot Noir, Petite Sirah, Syrah, Zinfandel, blends and other reds. And each Red varietal is judged within its price category. Cabernet Sauvignon has nine different price categories, starting with “Up to $14.99” and ending with “$60.00 and over.”
It’s pricey to enter the competition – costs include $65.00 for each wine entered plus a $25.00 administrative fee. Winemakers need to pay shipping costs to submit six bottles of each wine for the judges to taste. And, if the wine earns a Gold medal or better, the winery agrees to send a 12-bottle case (more shipping costs) to the public tasting that is held in February.
This year, over a four-day period, a panel of 60 judges tasted 5,825 entries from more than 1,500 wineries that came from 25 states.
The competition consists of “blind” tastings – meaning the bottles are placed inside a bag so that their labels are covered. This way, each wine is judged solely on its taste without the bias of the wine’s reputation.
The judges place each wine in one of the following six categories of medals (in order of highest to lowest): Sweepstake Winner, Best of Class, Double Gold, Gold, Silver and Bronze. Sweepstakes Winners are the result of a unanimous vote by all the judges. Best of Class signifies the top winner in the Double Gold category. And Double Gold is a unanimous gold voted by a five-member judging panel.
Although every winemaker is always glad to receive these medals, there is the realization that wine tasting competitions such as the SFCWC can be arbitrary and subjective. There are just too many wines to be tasted and throughout the day a judge’s taste buds can become weary. One popular story is about a judge who, without realizing it, rated the same wine once in the morning as a Silver and later on in the same afternoon as a Gold.
Matt Oetinger, owner/winemaker at Fernwood Cellars Winery, whose 2010 Estate Cabernet Sauvignon won a Gold, says, “Competitions are over-rated. If you like a wine; you like it, regardless of its medals…but it is nice to get some!”
According to Bob and Scott Fraser, directors of the SFCWC, “A gold medal winner from a winery within a certain price point signifies they are within the top 10 percent of quality wines in the country. We believe that this competition is a true barometer that consumers can use to educate themselves and measure premium wines.”
Winning wineries not only receive the validation that their wines are top quality, they also receive year-long media and social networking exposure – reaching millions of people nation-wide.
Everyone’s palette is different – so not everyone is going to like the same wines. Whether the competition is sometimes subjective, the fact remains that our local wines are affordable luxuries. Most all of our local wines that won the top medals are between $25.00 – $30.00, and many are under $20.00.
Congratulations to the grape growers, winemakers and winery owners who made these award-winning wines possible. We consumers are grateful to you all.
