First Best of New England Wine Competition Announces Results

The first Best of New England Wine Competition took place on March 1^st. Dozens of entries from all six New England states resulted in 63 medals; four Double Gold, five Gold, 31 Silver and 20 Bronze medals. The competition took place in Charlottesville, VA to ensure judges would not recognize the wines. Judges were: Christine Iezzi of Country Vintner, a distributor; Doug Hotz, a retailer; Dr. Joseph Fiola, an enologist; Maryann Costa, a wine consultant for a store in the Kroger grocery chain; Michael Fairbrother of Moonlight Meadery, and Neal Wavra, a sommelier and restaurateur.

Best of Category results were:

• Shelburne Vineyards of Vermont with Best White Wine, for their 2015 La Crescent;
• LaBelle Winery of New Hampshire with Best Red Wine, for their Amherst Vineyard Red 2015;
• Sharpe Hill Vineyards of Connecticut with Best Rosé for their Dry Summer Rosé 2015;
• Cellardoor Winery of Maine with Best Sparkling Wine for their “Vendage” 2012;
• Stowe Cider of Vermont with Best Cider for their Dry Hopped Cider;
• Copper Beech Winery of New Hampshire with Best Fruit Wine for their Country Crabapple;
• Hermit Woods Winery of New Hampshire with Best Mead for their Three Honey Gold:
• Carolyn’s Sakonnet Vineyard of Rhode Island with Best Dessert Style for their Amrita 2014;
• Aaronap Cellars of Massachusetts with Best Specialty Wine for their Forest Gold maple wine.

Best of State awards went to LaBelle Winery in New Hampshire, Stowe Cidery in Vermont, Sharpe Hill Vineyards in Connecticut, Savage Oakes Vineyard & Winery in Maine, Aaronap Cellars in Massachusetts, and Carolyn’s Sakonnet Vineyard in Rhode Island.

• Most Awarded Winery was Sunset Meadow Vineyards of Connecticut which won seven medals, one for each wine entered.
• New Hampshire was the state with the most Best of Category awards in the competition.

The Best of New England Wine Competition is dedicated to showcasing the best of 100% New England grape and fruit wines, mead, cider and eaux-de-vie, as being of high quality, diverse, food-friendly in the Old World style and worthy of pairing with fine New England-sourced cuisine. Complete competition results will be posted at www.bestofnewenglandwine.com;

Best of New England Wine Competition 2017 Medal Winners