UK Tops the List of Emerging Countries in World's Biggest Wine Competition

LONDON, May 22, 2012 /PRNewswire/ --

Once upon a time, winemaking in the UK was almost unheard of. However, with the results just in from the 2012 Decanter World Wine Awards, UK wineries have proven just how far they have come in recent years. 89% of all UK wines entered (86 out of a total of 97) received a medal. The only country in the world to do better than this was New Zealand, with 92% of wines entered receiving an award.

     (Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20120522/533066 )

Another lesser known country that did exceptionally well is Greece. Though at the forefront of the news in recent times, one area in which it has been quietly excelling for some time is with its wines, with 72% of all wines this year receiving an award. Gaia Wines swept the board with a total of three Gold Medals; Lyrarakis, Estate Argyros and Domaine Gerovassiliou also won one Gold Medal each.

A number of other unusual winemaking countries fared particularly well this year. Turkey saw 83% of its wines receive an award, Slovenia achieved 77% and Croatia 63%. Christelle Guibert, Tastings Director at the Awards comments: "It's great to see so many rarely-seen wine-producing countries do so well at this year's Awards, often faring much better than more established countries and famous regions. It just goes to show how far the quality of wine has come in countries that, like the UK, were once considered to be on the fringes of wine production."

With a number of English wines to be served at official functions to commemorate the Queen's Diamond Jubilee this year, the celebrations are guaranteed to have a bit of extra sparkle. Gold Medals were awarded to Kentish wineries Hush Heath Estate and Gusbourne Estate, and Cornish producer Camel Valley.

For the first time this year a large selection of award-winning wines will be available to taste at Decanter headquarters, Blue Fin Building (110 Southwark Street, London, SE1 0SU) on 27^th June. Tickets are priced at £18 each and are available to buy from http://www.decanter.com/events.

Notes to Editors:

• The Decanter World Wine Awards is the world's biggest wine competition and is held in London. It has been growing steadily since its inception in 2004.
• The Awards are curated by Decanter magazine (est. 1975) - respected internationally for its prestigious reputation and unrivalled consumer influence.
• It draws on its contacts of top independent wine specialists to make up a panel of over 200 wine merchants, sommeliers, journalists, and authors including 54 Masters of Wine and 11 Master Sommeliers.
• The wines are judged by region and by price, with a special category for best value wines under £10. All the wines are tasted blind.
• Every single wine is discussed by the panel in depth before a verdict is recorded.
• All Silver medals are tasted twice.
• All Gold, Regional Trophy and International Trophy winners are tasted up to four times.
• All unopened bottles are sold and the proceeds are donated to WaterAid. Decanter has raised over £260,000 for WaterAid to date.
• Further information can be found at http://www.decanter.com/dwwa  

C ontact: Chloe Crowther, +44(0)207-471-8730, chloe@clementinecom.com