Chardonnay Masters 2017: the results in full
By
Patrick Schmitt
THE WORLD’S GREATEST
Such a picture was reinforced by the results between £30-£50, and again over £50, where Australia and the US dominated the top medals. When the wines were revealed, it wasn’t hard to see why: among the samples were several of the world’s great Chardonnay makers, from Jackson Family Wines to Howard Park, Jacob’s Creek, Tapanappa, Uva Mira, and a perennial high performer, Bird in Hand.
In short, even among our judges, both self-professed Chardonnay lovers and highly experienced tasters, there was an element of surprise at the high quality of the wines in this year’s competition – even they weren’t aware that complex, balanced and generous examples were coming from such a wide range of sources. And, debate over the influence of sulphide-sourced characters aside, everyone agreed that Chardonnay is rightly the world’s most-loved white grape – even if Riesling tends to vie for the trade’s greatest affections.
Over the following pages are the medallists from this year’s Chardonnay Masters, along with comments from the judges (who are pictured below).
The judges: Back row (l-r): Jonathan Pedley MW, Roberto della Pietra, Alistair Cooper MW, Michelle Cherutti-Kowal MW, Tobias Gorn, Anthony Foster MW Front row (l-r): Patrick Schmitt MW, Beverley Blanning MW, Philip Harden MW, Patricia Stefanowicz MW