The 5th edition of 5StarWines & Wine Without Walls, the blind wine tasting organized by Veronafiere in collaboration with Assoenologi, has been carried out in person after last year’s virtual edition. Società Agricola Siddùra, Luogosanto (SS) was given the special Gran Vinitaly 2022 Winery of the Year Award; for the “green” section of the Selection – Wine Without Walls, the winery selected for top honors was Fattoria La Vialla di Gianni, Antonio E Bandino Lo Franco, Arezzo (AR). Two wines were also awarded the special “Dante” Trophy, in honor of the 700th anniversary of the homonym Italian poet.

5StarWineWines & Wine Without Walls, the wine blind tasting that during normal times takes place during the days preceding Vinitaly, drew to a close with a total of 510 selected wines, 121 of which included in the Wine Without Walls section. The wine Selection’s fifth edition included over 2000 bottles, one third of which were registered to Wine Without Walls. Submissions came from Italy as well as Canada, Croatia, Argentina, Australia, Ukraine, Austria and Brasil.

Under the supervision of the General Chairmen – MW and VIA Italian Wine Ambassador Pedro Ballesteros Torres MW, editorial consultant of Meininger’s Wine Business International, Robert Joseph, Doctor Wine and Gambero Rosso founder Daniele Cernilli, editorialist for Le Figaro Bernard Burtschy and last but not least the first Italian MW other than marketing and communication consultant Gabriele Gorelli MW – over 70 experts in the wine business participated as judges: Masters of Wine, Master Sommeliers, oenologists, producers, importers, buyers, journalists, and bloggers.

Here is a list of the top performing wines that were assigned the “Trophy” award by the judges at 5StarWines:

  •     WINERY OF THE YEAR – GRAND VINITALY 2022

Società Agricola Siddùra, Luogosanto (SS)

  •     BEST ITALIAN WINE – BANCO BPM 2022

Abruzzo DOP Pecorino 2020 96/100
Cantina Tollo, Tollo (CH)

  •     BEST WHITE WINE

Collio DOC Bianco “Fantazija” 2019 95/100
Società Agricola Polje, Cormons (GO)

  •     BEST ROSÉ WINE

Cerasuolo D’Abruzzo DOC “Orsetto Oro” 92/100
Casal Thaulero, Ortona (CH)

  •     BEST RED WINE

Barolo DOCG Sarmassa 2016 95/100
Marchesi di Barolo, Barolo (CN)

  •     BEST SEMI-SPARKLING WINE

Lambrusco di Sorbara DOP Frizzante Secco 2020 90/100
Cantina di S. Croce, Carpi (MO)

  •     BEST SPARKLING WINE

Trento Doc Brut Millesimato “Sarò Franca” 2015 94/100
Azienda Guido F. Fendi, Roma (RM)

  •     BEST SWEET WINE

Trentino DOP Vino Santo 2004 94/100
Cantina Toblino, Madruzzo (TN)

  •     DANTE TROPHY – BEST WINE FROM VERONA

Amarone della Valpolicella DOCG Classico Riserva “Campedel” 2015 94/100
Azienda Agricola Gamba, Marano Di Valpolicella (VR)

  •     DANTE TROPHY – BEST WINE FROM RAVENNA

Romagna DOC Sangiovese Superiore Romandiola “Novilunio” 2019 90/100
Terre Cevico, Lugo (RA)

A key section of the blind tasting was dedicated to sustainable wines: Wine Without Walls. More than 500 were the entries and here is the list of “Trophies” awarded in that specific category:

  •     BEST WINERY WINE WITHOUT WALLS 2022

Fattoria La Vialla di Gianni, Antonio E Bandino Lo Franco, Arezzo (AR)

  •     BEST BIODYNAMIC WINE

Vin Santo del Chianti DOC Riserva Vino Biologico 2015 92/100
Fattoria La Vialla di Gianni, Antonio E Bandino Lo Franco, Arezzo (AR)

  •     BEST ORGANIC WINE

Valpolicella DOC Superiore Vino Biologico 2018 94/100
Bonfanti Vini, Verona (VR)

  •     BEST SUSTAINABLE WINE

Soave Superiore DOCG Classico Foscarino “Foscarin Slavinus” 2019 95/100
Montetondo, Verona (VR)

Now, the wines that received a score equal or higher than 90, will be published on 5StarWines – the Book, a marketing tool internationally promoted in digital and paper format and distributed to more than 11,000 wine professionals worldwide. Moreover, the wines published on the Guide will receive a paper and digital Diploma with the score obtained, as well as being described in a tasting note written by the judges themselves. This is then listed under the “Critics” section on wine-searcher.com, the number one search engine dedicated to wine in the world, and on the Vinitaly Directory and Vinitaly app. Trophies, will have access to dedicated masterclasses, podcast interviews with the collaboration of Italian Wine Podcast and tastings reserved for buyers and press.

This edition was special and in the words of Gabriele Gorelli MW “It’s always good to taste wine together, in person, this time around even more. It was a time of re-assessment, a so-to-say revert edition: like Christmas in a way, when you finally get to see some people that you haven’t seen in a while.”

Please see the full lists of wines selected by 5StarWines & Wine Without Walls here:
https://5starwines.it/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/VINICITORI-2021/Classifica2021_5StarWines_ENG.pdf
https://5starwines.it/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/VINICITORI-2021/Classifica2021_WWW_ENG.pdf

 

It’s always good to taste wine together, in person, this time around even more. It was a time of re-assessment, a so-to-say revert edition: like Christmas in a way, when you finally get to see some people that you haven’t seen in a while.

About: 5StarWines – the Book is the annual wine selection organized by Veronafiere, held in the lead-up to the biggest Italian wine fair in the world. The event is now in its fifth edition. 5StarWines – the Book is a blind tasting aimed at shedding light on wineries investing in the improvement of their products. During the event, a highly qualified panel of wine professionals will taste and score—using a 100-point scale—participating wines. In this edition, over 2000 bottles took part in the competition and 847 were selected for inclusion in 5StarWines – the Book. The Guide is a useful tool both on the promotional and commercial side. It introduces international buyers and wine lovers to new wine products of great value. It guarantees wine quality and it maintains and certifies their value at an international level.