Trophies & Best in Class

 

Only Gold medal wines compete for Best in Class and Trophies.

Wines are automatically categorised by the competition administrators (entrants are unable to choose their own category) into the most appropriate class or, where applicable, more than one appropriate class.

If there are no golds in any category, no further awards are possible.
 

Best in Class

If there are golds in a category, they proceed to two taste-offs: one for golds that are vintaged, and one for golds that are not. The winner of each becomes Best in Class in its own right, but to ease the number of wines going forward for Trophies by Style, the two Best in Class wines are pitted against each other, and only the winner moves forward. The winner is not always the vintage, but it is always the best. At all times, wines are judged blind by code numbers, but for these and all other taste-offs, the identity of the wines is further obscured by code letters, so that no judge has the opportunity to refer to the code number in his or her own notes, not that any of us would.
 

Style Classes

We define the use of “Classic” below as the traditional grape variety or varietal blend for the region in question, with the exception of Classic Blanc de Blancs & Classic Blanc de Noirs, which are restricted to the grapes indicated.

  • Classic Brut Nature Blend (vintage or NV/MV, non-aromatic grapes, 0-3g RS)
  • Classic Brut Blend (vintage or NV/MV, non-aromatic grapes, 0-12g RS)

    Note: We taste all Brut wines (0-12g/l residual sugar) randomly mixed. If any Brut Nature submissions are of sufficient quality, the judges will be told that wines in that category have won golds and there will be a taste-off for Brut Nature Best in Class. Before that juncture the judges have no idea if and where a Brut nature exists in the various Brut flights. This removes any possibility of quality compromise over the lack of dosage and the Brut Nature wines that come through this strict process in direct blind competition against Extra Brut and Brut are truly exceptional.

  • Classic Blanc de Blancs (pure Chardonnay or Chardonnay-dominated, 0-12g RS)
  • Classic Blanc de Noirs (pure Pinot or Meunier or Pinot- or Meunier-dominated, 0-12g RS)
  • Classic Brut Rosé (non-aromatic grapes, 0-12g RS)
  • Classic Off-Dry (non-aromatic, any style, 12-32g RS)
  • Classic Demi-Sec (non-aromatic grapes, any style, 32-50g RS)
  • Classic Sweet (non-aromatic grapes, any style, 50+g RS)
  • Aromatic Brut (aromatic grapes, any style, 0-12g RS)
  • Aromatic Off-Dry (aromatic grapes, any style, 12-32g RS)
  • Aromatic Demi-Sec (aromatic grapes, any style, 32-50g RS)
  • Aromatic Sweet (aromatic grapes, any style, 50+g RS)
  • Red Dry (0-12g RS)
  • Red Off-Dry (12-32g RS)
  • Red Demi-Sec (32-50g RS)
  • Red Sweet (50+g RS)

Special classes (All)

  • Library Vintage (any grapes, any style, minimum age: 20 years)
  • Future Release* (for a wine not yet available but due to be released before June of the following year, must be vintaged, unless it is a brand new non-vintage or multi-vintage cuvée – please note that commercial disgorgements of any wine due to be released by November of the year of the competition should be entered as a normal entry, NOT a Future Release)
  • Newcomer (for an exceptional quality wine from a relatively new producer)
  • Classic Brut Style from non-traditional grapes**
  • Value (post-judging decision for any exceptional quality wine at an unexpectedly inexpensive price)
  • Organic
  • Biodynamic

*With just one exception, a Future Release will not eligible for any other Best in Class or Trophy because it might not be the final commercial disgorgement or dosage. The exception is the trophy for a Classic Brut Style from non-traditional grapes because it has already demonstrated its potential whatever might or might not happen during the disgorgement.
**In this instance, Classic refers to a classic non-aromatic Brut style. It must be brut (including Brut Nature and Extra Brut) and pure varietal, but can be any classic style (i.e., Blanc de Blancs, Blanc de Noirs or Rosé). Non-classic grapes consist of varieties not traditionally associated with a recognised brut style sparkling wine, such as Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Meunier, traditionally associated with Champagne and in common use around the world; Parellada, Macabeo and Xarel-lo, which are traditionally associated with Cava, Glera for Prosecco etc.

Special classes (Champagne)

  • Single Vineyard (Any style. For the purposes of this competition, we define Single Vineyard as a Special Champagne, not a Deluxe Champagne, even if the wine in question is widely recognised as a Deluxe Champagne)
  • Best Grower Champagne (Won twice, can be done!)

Deluxe Champagne Best in Class

Deluxe Champagnes have their own classes because only one Deluxe Champagne (Best Deluxe Champagne) is allowed to progress in the competition and that progression is itself restricted Best Deluxe Champagne, Best French Sparkling Wine, Library Vintage, and Supreme World Champion. Gold medal winners

  • NV Blend
  • Vintage Blend
  • Blanc de Blancs
  • Rosé
  • Library Vintage (must be at least 20 years of age)
  • Best Deluxe Champagne

1. There is no distinction between Multi-vintage and Vintage for any of these classes, with the exception of NV Blend, Vintage Blend and Library Vintage.
2. At the medal stage, all deluxe Champagne cuvées are tasted blind and randomly dispersed amongst non-deluxe cuvees, so that the judges are not tipped-off to expect something special. However, all deluxe cuvees SHOULD be something special and most carry a very “special” price tag, so they should be Gold medal standard. If they are not, they do not win any medal and are culled. Having established the “crème de la crème”, Gold medal deluxe Champagne cuvées are, for the first and only time, tasted together for Deluxe Champagne Best in Class awards.
3. No deluxe Champagne cuvée is allowed to compete for the regular Champagne Best in Class awards and thus cannot move forward to World Champion Trophies by Style. This is to prevent super-expensive deluxe Champagnes from dominating World Champion Trophy winners. The only Trophy exceptions are Best Deluxe Champagne, Best Champagne, Best French Sparkling Wine, Library Vintage, and Supreme World Champion Sparkling Wine.
4. For clarification, there is no difference in the CSWWC’s definition of a deluxe cuvée and a prestige cuvée, the terms are completely interchangeable. However, the difference between a producer’s deluxe cuvée and its other special cuvées is not always straightforward and can be debateable, in which case the CSWWC reserves the right to declare what is and is not a deluxe cuvée in the context of its own awards. Any such decision should not be taken to infer anything other than a technical excuse to ensure the smooth running of the competition!

Regional Champions

The Best in Class winners from each regional appellation will be re-tasted to determine the overall Regional Champion, such as (but not restricted to):

  • Best Alto Adige
  • Best Cava
  • Best Corpinnat
  • Best Champagne
  • Best Franciacorta
  • Best Lambrusco
  • Best Loire
  • Best Prosecco
  • Best Sicilian
  • Best Trentodoc

The above list is not necessarily exhaustive. Because of the possibility of this list expanding in the future, Regional Champions do not receive a trophy as such, although they are regarded as the ultimate award for their respective regions.

National Champions

World Champion Trophies (by style)

  • Classic NV Brut* Blend
  • Classic Vintage Brut* Blend
  • Classic Blanc de Blancs Brut* (vintage or non-vintage)
  • Classic Blanc de Noirs Brut* (vintage or non-vintage)
  • Classic Rosé Brut* (vintage or non-vintage)
  • Library Vintage**
  • Red Sparkling Wine (any sweetness, vintage or non-vintage)
  • Aromatic Sparkling Wine (any sweetness, vintage or non-vintage)
  • Classic Brut Style from non-traditional grapes***

*Brut includes any wine labelled or technically qualifying as Brut Nature, Extra Brut or Brut.
**Library Champagne has its own class culminating in a World Champion Trophy because the judges do not want to be put in the invidious position of choosing the greatest readily available sparkling wine and a fabulous mature vintage of limited availability for the Supreme World Champion Trophy.
***In this instance it can be any pure varietal classic style (i.e., Blanc de Blancs, Blanc de Noirs or Rosé) and Brut includes any wine labelled or technically qualifying as Brut Nature, Extra Brut or Brut. Non-classic grapes consist of varieties not traditionally associated with a recognised brut style sparkling wine, such as Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Meunier for Champagne; Parellada, Macabeo and Xarel-lo for Cava, Glera for Prosecco etc.

Special Trophies

  • Chairman’s Trophy
  • The Tony Jordan Rising Star Trophy
  • Sparkling Wine Producer of the Year
  • Supreme World Champion