Wine shows educating palates

 Relevant offersWine shows provide a useful guide for those who lack the confidence to make decisions for themselves.

There is no guarantee, of course, that their tastes will match those of the judges, but they can at least be assured that the wines which are awarded medals, gold medals in particular, merit some attention.

Whether they get it or not depends largely on cost.

Thus the importance of results which also indicate the recommended retail prices of the wines so punters can work out for themselves which offer the best value for money. This, for most us, is the really important bit.

Such decisions should, however, be tempered by the knowledge that only about half of all producers choose to enter their wines in shows, which in some respects is surprising given the huge part shows play these days in the marketing of wine and the growing number now being staged in New Zealand.

These events do, however, have another important function. They are an excellent barometer of trends (or fads and fashions if you like), of vintages, of regional strengths in terms of quality, variety and style; of the state of the industry as a whole.

It's just a matter of interpreting the results.

Let's for instance look at The Royal Easter Show Wine Awards, New Zealand's longest-running show and traditionally the first to be held, in March, each year.

With more than 1,500 entries, the 2009 event was the biggest ever, which is either a reflection of a booming industry, some good vintages or, in this case, both.

The most obvious clues are the number of medals awarded and the number of new producers among those who earned them.

Of the 1,562 wines entered, 952, or nearly 70 percent, got a medal, 93 won gold - up from 76 in 2008, 211 (200) silver and 648 (576) bronze.

The biggest collection - 37 gold, 73 silver, 248 bronze - went to Marlborough, the country's largest wine region with Hawke's Bay - 37 gold, 73 silver, 164 bronze - next on the list.

And sauvignon blanc was not the biggest winner.

Nor was it pinot noir or pinot gris but good old chardonnay, the most princely and maligned of white wines, which punched way above its weight in terms of gold medals won to wines entered.

The tally was 14 in all with Wild Rocks 2007 Pania ($21), Selaks 2007 the Favourite ($21), Shingle Peaks 2007 Reserve ($22) and Coopers Creek 2007 SV The Limeworks ($24) offering great value for money.

Other surprises were the success of merlot and gewurztraminer in the gold medal stakes. Which is good news for producers who have seen merlot gradually losing out to other reds and gewurztraminer only gradually winning wider favour.

Good news too for consumers, who have just been reassured there are excellent examples of both varieties available at the right price.

Among the golden gewurztraminers are Askernes 2007 ($22), Kemblefield's 2007 The Distinction ($21) and Torlesses 2008 Waipara ($20).

Among the most outstanding merlots Kim Crawford's 2007 Hawke's Bay ($22), Missions 2007 Reserve ($23), and Thornburys 2007 Hawkes Bay ($21).

The show also justified much of what has been said about the quality of Central Otago pinot noir, with eight of the 11 golds awarded for this variety going to wines from this region.

This included two each for Olssens (Jackson Barry 2007, Slapjack Creek 2007) and Wooing Tree, which scored with its 2007 estate and 2007 Beetle Juice, which at just $28 is a bargain.