Orange Wines
Our judges thought they were going to find weird, funky, slightly grubby oddballs in this category, but instead were presented with a flight of beautiful, characterful, interesting wines.
All our judges could see a use for these wines, and none had a problem with hand-selling them or highlighting them on a menu. The quality was good enough that customers would love them – and the food-match options were intriguing, too.
From The Tasting Teams
‘This flight was a saving grace. Orange wine can be a bit yeasty, but these were showing very well. They’re extremely food-friendly.’ Olivier Gasselin, OenoTrade
‘This was a nice surprise. I would definitely want these on a list. It’s a trend, and people are looking for them, but you want attractive examples that don’t go too far. You want people to understand the style and enjoy it.’ Laurent Richet MS, team leader
‘They’re really food-friendly, and prices weren’t too high. Because the style isn’t so popular, the prices aren’t as high as they perhaps deserve.’ Lucie Hammerschmiedova, Portland Restaurant
‘These were fantastic. Light, refreshing, clean and crisp with no cloudiness and no imperfections. Just well-made, interesting, flavourful, summer-drinking lusciousness. Some really good examples.’ Antóin UáRuairc, UK Midland Sommelier
‘I expect these to be funky and weird, but instead they were exciting. I liked all of them.’ Lucie Hammerschmiedova, Portland Restaurant