London
The outcomes of the world’s largest wine awards have been introduced, and there are many surprises among the many international locations and areas which have triumphed.
“There’s never been a better time to be a wine drinker,” stated Pierre Mansour, a choose and regional chair of the Decanter World Wine Awards, at a preview tasting of the highest wines for 2026. “We are in a golden era. It’s extraordinary.”
More than 17,000 wines from 58 international locations have been entered into the awards, earlier than being supped and quaffed by 245 judges in a rigorous two-week course of held in London. Several international locations recorded their strongest-ever performances within the awards’ 23-year historical past and quite a few areas earned medals for the primary time.
Medals awarded at the Decanter World Wine Awards vary from Best in Show — representing the highest 0.3% of wines tasted, then Platinum, Gold, Silver and Bronze.
France was the strongest performer total, securing 254 top-tier awards and the nation’s greatest outcomes because the competitors started 23 years in the past. Burgundy, in east-central France, was the standout globally for Best in Show medals, notching up greater than some other wine area on the earth.
Italy ranked second total, securing 144 top-tier medals, with Best in Shows going to wines from Tuscany, Piedmont, Sicily and Lombardy.
However, within the evolving wine panorama of 2026, grape cognoscenti are as prone to be planning their subsequent winery journey to Texas or Essex as to Bordeaux or Veneto.
“What the results demonstrate is that you’ve got great wines coming from pretty much every corner of the world,” stated Mansour.
Spain secured its greatest-ever haul of top-tier medals, Germany practically doubled its tally, and Austria had an ideal yr with two Best in Show, eight Platinum and 15 Gold medals.
The United States had its best-ever efficiency at the awards, with two Best in Show, 5 Platinum and 32 gold medals.
The Best in Shows have been Yettalil, Stags Leap District, California 2023, from producer Clos du Val, and Oregon’s Domaine Serene, Aspect, Dundee Hills 2023.
California, Oregon and Washington continued to dominate, however Texas had a landmark yr with its first-ever Gold medals. Texan winners included three wines from Texas Hill Country: AB Astris, Souzao 2022; Turtle Creek, Tannat 2023; and Adega Vinho, Estate Tempranillo 2021. The remaining Gold was awarded to Spicewood Vineyards, Las Montañas 2022.
“No Texas wine is bought exterior of Texas, so it’s sort of an unique factor, “ explains Zoe Ward, an account government at MDSG representing Travel Texas. Fredericksburg in Hill Country is Texas’ reply to Napa Valley, with some 75 wineries for guests to discover.
Virginia gained 5 Gold medals, with winners together with Chestnut Oak Vineyard, Chestnut One, Monticello 2023; and Early Mountain Vineyards, Quaker Run Cabernet Franc 2022. Pennsylvania additionally bagged a gold medal for Benigna’s Creek, Chambourcin 2024.
Exciting occasions might lie forward for the US wine trade, Mansour predicted. “Although it is the fastest-growing wine market in the world, it’s still a relatively newish wine market, and so there’s just so much opportunity.”
It was a record-breaking yr for British wines total, with the nation main the world in medals for magnums of glowing wine. The UK achieved a complete of 217 medals, together with a Best in Show for Balfour, Blanc de Blancs, Kent 2018, described by Mansour as “a wonderful sparkling wine.”
Essex gained 5 medals, together with Silver medals for Lyme Bay Winery’s Pinot Noir and Bacchus. Vagabond additionally acquired a Bronze medal for its orange wine, Night Tripper 2024. Pinot Noir is grown world wide, largely in cooler climates, however Mansour reckons the southern English county may very well be the subsequent star producer: “I think the next big thing is Essex Pinot Noir.”
There have been record-breaking years additionally in South America. Argentina took house
Its greatest-ever haul of top-tier medals with a complete of 61 top-scoring wines. Mendoza, on the japanese facet of the Andes, secured all eight of the nation’s Platinum medals in addition to its solely Best in Show.
Brazil took house its highest-ever variety of Gold and Silver medals — 4 and 88, respectively — in addition to 133 Bronze medals.
Japan gained 5 Gold medals, together with a first-ever Gold winner from Hiroshima, Chugoku. China gained two Platinum, 11 Gold, 100 Silver and 101 Bronze medals. Inner Mongolia recorded its first ever Gold medal, for the Tian Ge Winery, Coviyn Desert Gift Golden Sand Blend, Inner Mongolia, China (Mainland) 2023 – Marselan purple mix.
South Africa recorded one Best in Show, eight Platinum and 36 Golds, with Stellenbosch its best-performing area total.