Wine aisles across the motu are sparkling as the Top 50 wines from the 2024 New World Wine Awards hit New World shelves across the country.
This year, 35 of the 50 winning wines are from Aotearoa, representing some of the country’s most loved, trusted and imbibed wine brands – plus a few new names and varieties too.
Topping the list is iconic Hawke’s Bay winery Church Road, which took two varietal Champion titles for its Church Road Chardonnay 2023 and Church Road Syrah 2021. Both wines then went on to win a hotly contested taste-off for the titles of White and Red Wine of the Show, respectively.
Chair of Judges Jen Parr says it’s rare for one winery to take both pinnacle titles out of the more than 1,280 wines entered.
“All our judging is done ‘blind’, so no brands are known, and every winner earns its place purely on its own merits,” she says.
“After the three-day marathon of judging and ranking, it’s always a thrill to unveil the Top 50 list. Seeing two Champion wines from one winery at this level is very exciting – for us and for the wine-loving shoppers who can now enjoy the fruits of this win.
“These Champion and Wine of the Show titles mean these wines not only scored highly and ranked best against around 100 entries of their same variety, they also rose above strong competition from all other white or red varieties.”
Church Road isn’t the only Hawke’s Bay winery in the limelight, with locally grown wines from Clearview Estate, Mission Estate, Selaks and Trinity Hill rounding out the region’s Top 50 wins.
Sourcing its grapes from Hawke’s Bay and Gisborne, Lindauer also showed why it’s the country’s go-to bubbles brand with another Champion win for its Special Reserve Rosé NV and a Top 50 win for its Special Reserve Blanc de Blancs NV.
Heading south, the Wairarapa delivered three winning pinots, including the Champion Pinot Noir from Luna Estate, and two Top 50 pinot gris, one also from Luna Estate and another from Matahiwi Estate.
The country’s biggest wine region, Marlborough, secured a haul of 15 Top 50 Gold medals . The repeat-winning Triplebank Awatere Valley Sauvignon Blanc 2024 earned the Champion Sauvignon Blanc title, alongside Top 50 wines from Esk Valley, Hunting Lodge, Selaks, Summerhouse, Vicar’s Choice and Wairau River.
Marlborough also proved its prowess beyond sauvignon, with winning rosé wines from Ara, Caythorpe Family Estate and first-time winner Holdaway, pinot gris from Triplebank and Vavasour, pinot noir from Grove Mill and Misty Cove, and a delicious riesling from te Pā.
“The Top 50 list has such diversity to explore,” says Parr, “with winning wines from brands that Kiwi wine drinkers already know and love, as well as those from relatively new names and first-time winners in these awards.
“It’s a great opportunity to grab something completely different and give it a go, knowing the judges have already put it to the taste test on your behalf.”
That’s particularly true of one of Nelson’s three winning wines, and the Champion Aromatic, the Tohu SV Whenua Matua Albariño 2021 – a new variety to New Zealand shores that is ready to win over white wine fans. Tohu also made the Top 50 with their 2024 rosé, alongside a sophisticated chardonnay from Top 50 first-timer Heaphy.
Further south, North Canterbury delivered a repeat winner from Mud House and the Champion Pinot Gris from Thornbury. Central Otago’s Madam Sass returned too, beside repeat winner McArthur Ridge, new winner Welcome Swallow and the Champion Rosé from Te Kano.
There were a further 15 winning wines from overseas, including the Champion Red Blend from Yalumba in Australia and the Champion Single Variety Red from Trapiche in Argentina, with Italian Prosecco, French Rosé and Spanish Garnacha also in the mix.
The New World Wine Awards Top 50 is made up of the top-ranked Gold medal wines under $25, selected from more than 1,280 entries through a blind tasting process by an independent panel of expert judges.
Through the judging process, Gold medal wines were tasted at least 19 times by 11 different judges, and a Champion wine were tasted a whopping 36 times or more.
The Top 50 wines are available in New World stores nationwide for the next five weeks, while stocks last.
Full results and more information are also available at www.newworld.co.nz/wineawards
