Well this week I was at the Decanter World Wine Awards in London.

I wasn’t judging wine but I was one of the red shirt runner, pouring wines and supporting the judges in their roles in judging just under 17,000 wines over 5 days! Before you think I know what wines won gold, secrecy was high on the agenda, all the wines had privacy sleeves.

Most evenings the golds and some silver medal winners, still with sleeves on were brought down to the main reception area for the runners to sample. I tried rich opulent ice wines from Canada with sweet flavours of orange and pear, full bodied Shiraz with high alcohol and flavours of plum, black fruits and spice and delicate Rieslings with high acidity, flowery aromas, flavours of green apple and hints of honey and peach.

Listening to the judges deliberate on their scores was fascinating. There would be different views on what wine should be issued with a particular medal but I never felt that a judge rushed their decision and differences were discussed, some at great length and passion.

In the past there have been criticism in some press circles that medals are handed out too easily. Well if a wine is well made, its well made and why shouldn’t get a gold. The big issue is the public not understanding why a wine gets gold. It’s not that its the best of the completion but it’s got to a gold standard. I for one think these competitions are a great way for the general public to be helped in finding excellent examples of particular wines. Which Rieslings or Chenin Blancs are best examples. Which wines are to be looked out for in a particular shop. The award magazine published in the summer will have the wines listed and at the back will list some of the wines available at retailers like Tesco or Morrisons that have received medals.

Listening to the judges deliberate on their scores was fascinating. There would different views on what wine should be issued with a particular medal but I never felt that a judge rushed their decision and differences were discussed, some at great length and passion.

I hope I’ll get the chance to work at the awards next year.

Gold and silver medalist can be tried after judging each evening, you don’t know the producer but you can tell the quality