Wine winners | Justin Corrans leads gold medal haul at Ningxia Winemakers Challenge

I helped organize a ten-member panel, led by China Agricultural University professor Ma Huiqin and Master of Wine Andrew Caillard, that judged the 48 wines yesterday in Beijing (see judge biographies below).

The panel awarded gold medals to Australian Tony Kalleske (Kalleske Wines) who paired with Ningxia winery Legacy Peak, American Brent Trela (Alert Aesthetics) who paired with Miqin, and to winemaking consultants Slavina Stefanova from Sweden and Sarah Williams from the UK, who paired with Yunmo and Hezun respectively.

Justin Corrans, a consultant at Separator who has also worked at wine producer The Bergkelder, was paired with Lanxuan and emerged as the judges’ overall pick. Each gold medalist won RMB100,000 / USD15,000.

The NWC was organized by the International Federation of Vine and Wine of Helan Mountain’s East Foothill, led by Hao Linhai, with support from the Bureau of Grape Industry Development, led by Cao Kailong. Ningxia wines have won over 150 medals in international contests, received kudos from critics like Jancis Robinson and Karen MacNeil, and attracted a steady flow of investors, winemakers, academics and writers. The 48 winemakers have helped fill knowledge gaps in fast-developing Ningxia and brought much-needed diversity to a region where many have a fixation with Bordeaux.

To read more online, click here.