London Wine Fair’s Battle of the Bubbles: The Results – English wines take the top and runner up spots
London Wine Fair’s Battle of the Bubbles took place on Monday – the first day of the show – and the results have been announced on Centre Stage. Twenty-six wines were tasted over two sessions on Monday morning by 16 judges, who comprised a cross section of the UK’s leading palates: Masters of Wine; Master Sommeliers; specialist sparkling wine writers
The wines were tasted in pairs under exam conditions over two flights: Thirteen pairs of sparkling wines – one Champagne and one Global Sparkling. The judges scored each wine out of 100, which resulted in a grand total for each wine, and a final overall score for each group; Champagne and Global Sparkling. The retail price of each of the wines was thoroughly researched and a calculated GBP per point was awarded. The lowest GBP per point was deemed best value.
The pairings were selected by Sarah Abbott MW, MD of Swirl Wine Group and Ronan Sayburn MS, CEO of The Court of Master Sommeliers. According to Abbott, “We paired the wines partly through a direct correlation of grape varieties, terroir, ageing and style. In some cases, for very distinctive wines, we paired them because they had a similar personality or structure, even if their elements were quite different.”
The results were presented on Centre Stage by Hannah Tovey, Head of London Wine Fair alongside Abbott and Sayburn.
Top scoring Champagne: 2013 Cuvée Dom Perignon
Top scoring Global Sparkling: 2010 Nyetimber 1086, UK
Top scoring wine: 2010 Nyetimber 1086, UK
Champagnes: 2,782 points
Global Sparkling: 2,418 points
Overall winner: Champagne
Difference: 15%
Best value: NV Cloudy Bay ‘Pelorus’ Rosé, New Zealand
The top 10 wines were as follows:
2010 Nyetimber 1086, UK
2016 Gusbourne ’51 degrees North’ UK
2013 Cuvée Dom Perignon
2010 Champagne Ruinart ‘Dom Ruinart’
2013 Champagne Taittinger ‘Comtes de Champagne’
Champagne Krug Grande Cuvée, 172ème Édition
2008 Champagne Bollinger ‘R.D.’
NV Champagne Egly Ouriet ‘V.P Vieillissement Prolonge’
NV Roederer Estate ‘Quartet’ Anderson Valley, USA
2019 Graham Beck ‘Cuvée Clive’ South Africa
As with last year’s Judgement of London, this year’s Battle of the Bubbles was designed to illustrate a section of the fine wine landscape and whether the playing field had levelled in recent years.
Sarah Abbott MW commented: “It was a thrill to select the wines, and to work with these judges. The sparkling wine category is in a very exciting place, thanks to this diversity of style and superb quality. Champagne, of course, is producing wines of exceptional depth and beauty – and all over the world, producers are expressing the beauty of bubbles through their unique varieties, land and methods.”
Ronan Sayburn MS commented: “It was a fascinating experience to taste such a wide range of high-quality sparkling wines side by side. It’s terrific to see English wine do so well. Ultimately, Champagne still reigns supreme with the mature Prestige Cuvées showing their class. No wines embarrassed themselves and the best of Spain, Italy, California and Australia showed their unique characteristics which were appreciated by the judges.”
Head of London Wine Fair, Hannah Tovey, commented: “Following last year’s seminal “Judgement of London”, London Wine Fair has again delivered a landmark Icon Tasting; not only showcasing the best sparkling wines from around the world but also illustrating – as with last year’s tasting – how closely aligned the best bottles are from the best territories around the world.”
THE WINES
The full list of wines shown within the pairs and in the order each pairing was tasted is as follows:
FLIGHT ONE
Global Sparkling: 2011 Gramona ‘Enoteca’ Cava, Penedes, Spain
Champagne: NV Champagne Eric Rodez ‘Cuvée de Crayères’
Champagne: 2008 Champagne Bollinger ‘R.D.’
Global Sparkling: 2009 House of Arras ‘EJ Carr Late Disgorged’ Tasmania, Australia
Champagne: NV Champagne Laurent- Perrier Rosé
Global Sparkling: NV Cloudy Bay ‘Pelorus’ Rosé, New Zealand
Global Sparkling: 2016 Ca’ del Bosco ‘Cuvée Anna Maria Clemente’ Franciacorta, Italy
Champagne: 2013 Champagne Taittinger ‘Comtes de Champagne’
Champagne: 2012 Champagne Billecart-Salmon ‘Cuvée Elisabeth Salmon’ Rosé
Global Sparkling: NV Cruse Wine Co LC18 Tradition Rosé, Sonoma Coast, USA
Global Sparkling: 2019 Graham Beck ‘Cuvée Clive’, South Africa
Champagne: 2010 Champagne Ruinart ‘Dom Ruinart’
FLIGHT TWO
Global Sparkling: NV Roederer Estate ‘Quartet’ Anderson Valley, USA
Champagne: Champagne Krug Grande Cuvée, 172ème Édition
Champagne: 2018 Pascal Agrapart ‘Minéral’ Blanc de Blancs
Global Sparkling: 2017 Quartz Reef, BdB, Central Otago, New Zealand
Champagne: 2018 Champagne Pol Roger ‘Cuvée Winston Churchill’
Global Sparkling: 2016 Gusbourne ’51 degrees North’, UK
Global Sparkling: 2015 Nino Franco ‘Rustico’ Prosecco Valdobbiadene, Veneto
Champagne: 2016 Champagne Egly Ouriet ‘V.P Vieillissement Prolonge’
Global Sparkling: NV Weingut Karthäuserhofberg Sekt, Ruwer, Germany
Champagne: NV Champagne Drappier ‘Quattuor’
Global Sparkling: 2011 Recaredo ‘Turó d’en Mota’ Cava , Penedes, Spain
Champagne: 2015 Champagne Roederer ‘Phillipe Starck’ Brut Nature
Champagne: 2013 Cuvée Dom Perignon
Global Sparkling: 2010 Nyetimber 1086, UK
THE JUDGES
The 16 judges who participated were:
Elliot Awin, Partner at ABS Wine Agencies
Susie Barrie MW, Writer & Broadcaster, Wine Blast podcast
Sam Caporn MW, Director – The Mistress of Wine
Oz Clarke, broadcaster, author
Giles Fallowfield, Champagne and sparkling wine specialist
Tina Gellie, Content Director of Decanter
Charlotte Gordon, Wine Consultant
Tom Hewson, Champagne Correspondent, Decanter
Henry Jeffreys, author of Vines in a Cold Climate
Alice Lascelles, Journalist at Financial Times
Matthieu Longuere MS, Wine Development Manager, Cordon Bleu
Jane Rakison, Editor and broadcaster
Peter Richards MW, Writer & Broadcaster, Wine Blast podcast
Anthony Rose, freelance press
Joanna Simon, Wine writer, The World of Fine Wine
Siobhan Turner MW, Wine Consultant
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