The ultimate goal for a wine brand is to find a deserving spot in the on-premise spectrum. The Sommeliers Choice Awards gives on-premise buyers and sommeliers a valuable benchmark for understanding which wines would make a compelling addition to their wine lists.

2021 marks the third year of the competition and at this time, the Sommeliers Choice Awards has already made a mark in the industry. The event took place on May 16 in San Francisco, where industry professionals gathered to taste and judge some of the best wines from across the globe. 

With a unique judging process and a strong panel of judges, the Sommeliers Choice Awards has become the go-to for wine brands to get a second opinion of their bottles. 

The Judging Process

The main aim behind the Sommeliers Choice Awards judging process is to help wine brands and wineries gauge where they stand in the market, if consumers will enjoy the wine, and create a segue for brands to step into the on-premise sector. 

The judging process is one that breaks the tradition and takes a step forward. Like most competitions, the emphasis is on the quality of the wine but the Sommeliers Choice Awards also judges wines on the basis of food pairing ability, typicity, quality, and value. 

Here food pairing ability accounts for how well the wine pairs with different cuisines, dishes, and how versatile it is. The typicity of a wine measures how well it resonates with its origins and style. The quality of the wine is determined by its taste, body, and mouthfeel. The value is awarded based on the price of the wine, and if the quality does justice to its price tag. Lastly, the judges look at the packaging, keeping in mind that a consumers’ first interaction with a bottle is its packaging and label. 

Medals are awarded to those wines that meet the judging criteria, with a goal of identifying wines that should become additions to restaurant wine lists. A wine that excels in all areas is deemed as an outstanding wine, likely to score between 96-100 points, with a Double Gold Medal win. Wines that are ranked between 90-95 receive a Gold Medal, while those scored within 80-89 are given a Silver. Those that are placed within the numbers of 70-79 are awarded a Bronze. 

The Sommeliers Choice Awards also recognizes wines for a variety of different characteristics they portray. Wines that excel in all areas earn ‘special category awards’ like ‘Wine of the Year’, ‘Winery of the Year’, ‘White Wine of the Year by Glass’, ‘Best Package of the Year’ and many more. 

Who are the judges?

The Sommeliers Choice Awards judging panel is highly acclaimed with the topmost tier of sommeliers,  Master Sommeliers, Masters of Wine, wine buyers, and other wine experts coming from some of the best establishments across the country. These judges know the wines that are of great quality, and trade prices of each wine as they are judging each flight. The number one question that they attempt to answer as they judge wines is: “Would we stock this?”

The 2021 judging panel included judges from preeminent establishments like Heavy Restaurant Group, The Four Seasons, The Village Pub, Alexander’s Steakhouse, Press Restaurant in Napa, and spirits giant Pernod Ricard to name but a few. 

Judges that take part in day-to-day wine choices at their establishments not only know which wines are good, but also know how well a wine will work at restaurants, bars, and stores, and what consumers like to drink.

This year, the Sommeliers Choice Awards was proud to witness 20 Master Sommeliers under one roof tasting wines. 
 

Brett Davis MS - Master Sommelier and Sales and Education Manager at E. & J. Gallo Winery

 

Maximilian Kast MS - Master Sommelier and Director of Education at Broadbent Selections Inc

 

Laura Williamson MS, CWE - Master Sommelier, Owner of Unlock Your Palate Inc and Partner at RingIT Inc

 

Mia Van De Water MS - Master Sommelier, New York

 

 

Gillian Ballance MS DWS - Master Sommelier and Education Manager at Treasury Wine Estates

 

Jim Bube MS - Master Sommelier and General Manager of Mercantile Dining and Provision in Denver, CO

 

Will Costello MS - Master Sommelier

 

 

Ira Harmon MS - Master Sommelier and Fine Wine Speacialist at Vin Sauvage, Las Vegas, NV

 

Morgan Harris MS - Master Sommelier

 

 

David Keck MS - Master Sommelier and Wine Director at VT Wine Shepherd, VT

 

Kyungmoon Kim MS - Master Sommelier and Founder KMS Imports

 

Rachel Lowe - Director of Beverage for Levy Restaurants, Chicago, IL

 

Katelyn Peil - Beverage Director at Heavy Restaurant Group, Kirkland, Washington

 

Koen Masschelein - Director Of Food And Beverage at Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts, Yountville, CA

 

Cami Lehmann - Purchasing, Wine Programs, and Marketing at Maggiano’s Little Italy, Carrollton, TX

 

Jon Mcdaniel - Head of Wine Education at Scout & Cellar, Chicago, IL

 

Tonya Pitts - Award-Winning Sommelier, San Francisco, CA

 

 

Mikayla Avedisian-cohen - Wine Director and General Manager at Crenn Dining Group, Alameda, CA

 

Natalie Matthews - Sommelier at The Village Pub

 

 

Hunter Hammett - Award-Winning Sommelier, Wine Judge, and Wine Educator

 

Bret Patterson - Certified Sommelier and Wine Professional

 

 

Marc R. Kauffman - Noted Celebrity Sommelier, CS, CSW

 

 

Sean Widger - Wine Director at Alexanders Steakhouse, San Francisco

 

Michael Mighetto Hoefling  - Service Manager & Sommelier at Spruce in San Francisco

 

Wes Box - Winemaker at All points West

 

 

Thomas Brenner - Head Sommelier at Chez TJ, Mountain View, CA

 

Jacob Brown - Head Sommelier at Lazy Bear, San Francisco

 

 

Paul Carayas - Wine Director at Chez TJ, San Mateo, CA

 

 

Au Chung - Sommelier

 

 

Chappy Cottrell - Award-Winning Wine Director, Certified Sommelier and Wine Podcast Host

 

Joshua Decolongon - Sommelier and Co-founder at Endless West, San Francisco, CA

 

Serena Harkey - Director of Wine at Left Bank Brasseries and LB Steak

 

Sahar Gharai - Wine Buyer, and Sommelier at La Dolce Vita Wine Lounge

 

Brandon Heist - General Manager and Sommelier at Credo, San Francisco

 

David Hunter - Wine Director at Tavern on Kruse, Lake Oswego, OR

 

Brent Jones - Cellar Sommelier at The French Laundry, Napa

 

 

Luke Kenning - Wine Director at Farallon Restaurant SF

 

 

Beki Miller - Sommelier and Production Manager for Master the World

 

Vincent Morrow MS - Master Sommelier

 

 

Tiffany Tobey - General Manager and Sommelier for Thirty Eight & Vine, Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex

 

Keep your eyes peeled for the list of 2021 winners, from which the top 100 make it to our list of Top 100 on-premise wines.