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Winner Details

 NEW WORLD: Sauvignon Blanc, Chile

2019 Gold 4    Silver 5            Bronze 3          Commended 11
2018 Gold 2    Silver 3            Bronze 7          Commended 7

In a wine style that, not to put too fine a point on it, all but crashed and burned this year, Chile was the one bright spot. The country secured the same number of medals for Sauvignon Blanc as last year, and the most Golds since the competition started.

It did it, moreover, at the kind of prices that sommeliers think they ought to be paying for a young, unoaked wine. Only one of our medal winners was over £10, with many of them well below that level.

There’s an ongoing battle in Chile between Casablanca, the great white hope of 20 years ago, and Leyda, the contender for the past decade. The former (perhaps surprisingly) has tended to shade things in the Sommelier Wine Awards, but this year Leyda totally outperformed its rival valley. Sea breezes and a kind of herbal, minty freshness was enough for three out of the four Golds to come from here, with the other an exceptionally well-priced effort from the Central Valley.

If you’re looking for sub-£30 Sauvignon for your list, this is probably the section for you.

FROM THE TASTING TEAMS

 

‘In previous years we’ve had some watery, weak wines here, but today we had some good examples, in a diverse array of styles, including a delicate light style, more concentrated wines, some more vegetal and herbaceous, and one in a more oaked style – and all at a good price. There’s a little more value and quality here now.’ Andres Ituarte, team leader

‘I especially like the lighter style of these, and the freshness. Particularly by the glass, they’re very easy to drink, and also easy to sell. I liked the unoaked, citrusy examples, with elegance and nice acidity.’ Corina Stanila, La Dame de Pic at Ten Trinity Square

‘There’s a new coastal style in the last couple years that has a slightly minty, pea characteristic. It gives freshness and gives them identity.’ Michael Fiducia, The Royal Automobile Club

‘You can feel there’s a lot of winemaking going on. It’s moving towards that commercial side, rather than being led by the fruit. Though all pretty good value.’ Sunaina Sethi, JKS Restaurants

‘Great consistency, the wines showed well: crisp, light, fresh, we were impressed with the lower end. A couple are trying to do a Loire Valley style, but at those prices you’d be better off drinking Sancerre.’ Emanuel Pesqueira, consultant

‘[The Casablanca flight] were perfectly OK Chilean Sauvignon, though without anything to get excited about.’ Sarah Jane Evans MW, team leader

 

Award winners

Found 23 wines

New World: Sauvignon Blanc, Chile

Luis Felipe Edwards, Gran Reserva, Sauvignon Blanc 2018, Leyda Valley, Chile

Gold medal winner

For team leader Lionel Periner, this Gold Lister was simply ‘a classic Sauvignon’. Le Gavroche’s Rémi Cousin was not about to disagree; suggesting a match of tuna and scallop tartare, he praised the ‘superb aromas of clean fresh fruit, the hint of minerality and the refreshing palate’. Summing up, he said: ‘It’s clean, juicy and zesty, and simply calls for a second glass.’

£8.55 Matthew Clark

Sutil, Chono, Single Vineyard, Sauvignon Blanc 2018, Leyda Valley, Chile

Gold medal winner

Awarding a Gold medal, team leader Martin Lam praised the wine’s ‘savoury, herbal nose’ and ‘good, bright palate of green herbs and cut grass’. For fellow team leader Lionel Periner, it called for a plate of ‘asparagus egg meurette’ to celebrate the ‘fresh, floral elegant aromas; the equally elegant citrussy palate and well-balanced long finish’.

£8.95 Ellis of Richmond

Felix Solis, Casa Vista, Sauvignon Blanc 2018, Central Valley, Chile

Gold medal winner

Offering more than just great value for money, this Gold Lister was praised by Chiara Sieni of Bottles Group for its ‘ample nose of gooseberry and citrus and its rich lemon and herb finish’. Corina Stanila of La Dame de Pic at Ten Trinity Square, meanwhile, admired its ‘simplicity and elegance’, praising its ‘beautiful exotic notes and crisp acidity’.

£6.16 Matthew Clark

Santa Rita, Floresta, Sauvignon Blanc 2015, Leyda Valley, Chile

Gold medal winner

Not hesitating to award a Gold medal, team leader Lionel Periner praised ‘a palate full of flavour, with crisp green apple and ripe green olive’, while for Le Gavroche’s Rémi Cousin, the wine’s appeal was in its ‘round, soft and refreshing texture’. Immacolata Cannavo of Hakkasan Mayfair noted enticing aromas of ‘asparagus and gooseberry’ and ‘well-integrated acidity’, and thought it was ‘great value for money’.

£7.67 Bibendum

Chocalan, Reserva, Sauvignon Blanc 2018, Maipo Valley, Chile

Silver medal winner

Team leader Lionel Periner scored this wine highly for its ‘fine, elegant nose of fresh grapefruit with a hint of minerality’. He described the palate as ‘dry, with balanced acidity and a medium to long finish’.

£17.93 Viña Chocalán

Emiliana, Novas, Gran Reserva, Sauvignon Blanc 2018, San Antonio Valley, Chile

Silver medal winner

Team leader Lionel Periner was attracted to the ‘primary aromas of lemon, vegetal notes and herbaceousness’ of this Silver medal-winning Sauvignon. He found the palate ‘dry and elegant’ and thought it had a ‘distinctly – yet pleasant – chalky finish’.

£7.70 Boutinot

Caliterra, Reserva, Sauvignon Blanc 2018, Casablanca Valley, Chile

Silver medal winner

Team leader Lionel Periner described this wine as ‘a nice glass of Sauvignon!’, which he found to be ‘typically refreshing, elegant and light’.

£6.59 Hatch Mansfield

Casas del Toqui, Sauvignon Blanc 2018, Colchagua Valley, Chile

Silver medal winner

Chiara Sieni of Bottles Group detected ‘smoky notes’ in this wine and a ‘red apple and almonds palate’, followed by a ‘refreshing long finish’.

£8.99 Frederic Robinson

Viña Requingua, Toro de Piedra, Sauvignon Blanc 2017, Maule Valley, Chile

Silver medal winner

Chiara Sieni of Bottles Group thought this wine had ‘delicate notes of fresh bakery, thyme and floral aromas’ and described it as ‘rich’ and ‘yeasty’, with ‘a fresh creamy texture’.

£9.85 Survalles

Errazuriz, 1870, Sauvignon Blanc 2018, Casablanca Valley, Chile

Bronze medal winner

Chiara Sieni of Bottles Group described a ‘nose of herbs and flowers that’s well-integrated with the citrus palate, possibly balanced by the saline character, with a reminder of fresh-cut grass and fresh asparagus’.

£8.13 Hatch Mansfield, Matthew Clark

Haras de Pirque, Albaclara, Sauvignon Blanc 2017, Maipo Valley, Chile

Bronze medal winner

For Rémi Cousin of Le Gavroche this had ‘a lot of vegetal characters’. He considered it a ‘pleasant wine with high acidity and plenty of time to develop full maturity’.

£8.80 Berkmann Wine Cellars

Chocalan, Origen, Gran Reserva, Sauvignon Blanc 2018, San Antonio Valley, Chile

Bronze medal winner

‘Classic Sauvignon aromas of lime and asparagus, with a light mouthwatering, lingering palate,’ said Rémi Cousin of Le Gavroche of this worthy Bronze medal winner.

£9.10 D&V Wines

Alma de Chile, Reserva, Sauvignon Blanc 2017, Central Valley, Chile

Commended medal winner

Boutinot, La Leyenda de Las Cruces, Sauvignon Blanc 2017, Leyda Valley, Chile

Commended medal winner

£6.95 Boutinot

Luis Felipe Edwards, Marea, Sauvignon Blanc 2018, Leyda Valley, Chile

Commended medal winner

£13.08 Matthew Clark

Santa Rita, Gran Hacienda, Sauvignon Blanc 2018, Casablanca Valley, Chile

Commended medal winner

£7.76 Bibendum

Outer Limits by Montes, Zapallar Coast, Sauvignon Blanc 2018, Aconcagua Valley, Chile

Commended medal winner

£11.82 Liberty Wines

Valdivieso, Single Vineyard, Wild Ferment, Sauvignon Blanc 2015, Leyda Valley, Chile

Commended medal winner

£12.52 Bibendum

Siegel, Gran Reserva, Sauvignon Blanc 2018, Leyda Valley, Chile

Commended medal winner

£9.44 Carson Wines

Pérez Cruz, Doña Mariana, Reserva, Sauvignon Blanc 2017, Casablanca Valley, Chile

Commended medal winner

Via Wines, Oveja Negra, Reserva, Sauvignon Blanc/Carmenère 2018, Maule Valley, Chile

Commended medal winner

Veramonte, Sauvignon Blanc 2018, Casablanca Valley, Chile

Commended medal winner

£8.61 Matthew Clark

Caliterra, Tributo, Single Vineyard, Sauvignon Blanc 2018, Leyda Valley, Chile

Commended medal winner