White Burgundy
Usually, this is a section of the Sommelier Wine Awards that is dripping in Gold. Typically, we have to hold our tasters back, and still often end up with at least half a dozen wines on the Gold List. So the fact that we had just two this year – our smallest haul for many years – should tell you that our tasters were not exactly head over heels with what they found here.
The problem was largely in the £12-25 area where there were, simply, a lot of pretty average wines at decidedly non-average prices. The medal winners were good, and Lequin-Colin deserve credit for picking up a Gold for the fourth year on the trot. But overall, this was an atypically underwhelming performance from one of SWA’s star categories.
From The Tasting Teams
‘Consistency is the word here. If you know where to look you can find something good at any price range.’ Savvas Symeonidis, Goodman Restaurant Mayfair
‘The bottom end and top end here were superb, but the middle end was patchy, and that’s what should be going on the list.’ Angela Reddin, team leader
‘They were pretty simple, but I could find what I needed for a list from these, even if I would have preferred something with more complexity.’ Juan Manuel Marcos Perez, The Gilbert Scott Restaurant
‘I didn’t find these very exciting. They were a bit commercial, and the oak could be too obvious, though I did find some good value around the £10 mark.’ Diego Carballido, Bar Boulud at Mandarin Oriental Hyde Park
‘In the mid-range we didn’t find what we were expecting; you didn’t get that value for money. Burgundy is still very price sensitive, but it was the lower range here that were the most impressive.’ Matteo Furlan, The Ritz London
‘The entry level here really showed potential to go on a list. They’re approachable and show the characteristics of Burgundy.’ Lukas Nikanorovas, 20 Stories
‘There’s still a market for expensive Burgundy.’ Tom Forrest, team leader