5StarWines – the Book: The exclusive wine Guide now available for consultation online

5StarWines – the Book: The exclusive wine Guide now available for consultation online

5StarWines – the Book 2022 is now online and available for anyone who would like to browse its top 510 wines from Italian and international wineries, all of which received a score of at least 90 out of 100 possible points. Among these wines, 119 are certified organic or biodynamic, grouped in the Wine Without Walls section.

5StarWines – the Book is the result of this year’s edition – the 5th – of the blind wine tasting 5StarWines & Wine Without Walls, which took place on June 16-18. The printed version of the Guide, not for sale, will be distributed among leading industry experts and international buyers from all over the world. However, anyone can have access to the online version, which is now available for consultation on the event website. The Guide includes technical characteristics, tasting notes, and information about the selected wines.

In this edition, more than 600 wineries from all over the world participated, and almost half of them got selected to be part of the 5StarWines & Wine Without Walls 2022 Guide. Approximately 60 wines were tasted each day by an international jury composed of Masters of Wine, Masters of Sommelier, WSET graduates, Vinitaly International Academy Experts and Ambassadors, oenologists, and journalists. More than 2000 wines were tasted by the jury, which was divided into two categories (one for 5StarWines, and the other for Wine Without Walls which focused on certified organic, biodynamic wines and wines produced by sustainable wineries). The wines awarded a score of at least 90/100 by the jury are now featured in the official Guide 5StarWines – the Book 2022. This year 510 wines were selected: 391 for 5StarWines’ category and 119 for Wine Without Walls.

The main scope of the guide is to facilitate wineries in better promotion and education of the acclimated wines. Veronafiere is committed to promoting all awardees through all of their resources, including the distribution of the guide 5StarWines – the Book during the main wine trade fairs, B2B meetings, tastings, and masterclasses throughout the year. Moreover, the digital version of the Guide allows a widespread distribution, reaching not only wine experts, but also wine lovers across the world. The Guide is an important marketing tool for the selected wines and wineries, and guarantees them visibility through constant promotional support on a national and international scale. The wines included in 5StarWines – the Book appear also on the Wine-Searcher website, the world’s most popular wine search engine, exposing them to a broad new client base.

The Digital format of the guide is available online on the official website of the event: https://www.5starwines.it/la-guida/?lang=en. The paper version of the guide will be published by the end of September 2021.

 

The printed version of the Guide, not for sale, will be distributed among leading industry experts and international buyers from all over the world. However, anyone can have access to the online version, which is now available for consultation on the event website.

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.

510 Selected wines: 5StarWines & Wine Without Walls was the first wine blind tasting to be held in person after the pandemic

510 Selected wines: 5StarWines & Wine Without Walls was the first wine blind tasting to be held in person after the pandemic

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.

What happens in the 22 days before 5StarWines & Wine Without Walls

What happens in the 22 days before 5StarWines & Wine Without Walls

Registrations have closed for the blind wine tasting organized by Veronafiere with the support of Assoenologi. Now what? Wine samples are being anonymized for tasting which will be carried out by more than 80 international experts. The Selection culminates with the publication of the annual guide, both paper and digital, containing all the wines that obtain the highest scores. The Guide is then shared with the Vinitaly community; the wines will go on to gain visibility on the new Vinitaly Plus platform as well. Social Media posts are created by the 5StarWines & Wine Without Walls team for every single selected bottle, carrying the public relations buzz around 5StarWines & Wine Without Walls wines throughout the year.

Registrations have closed for the blind wine tasting organized by Veronafiere with the support of Assoenologi. Now what? Wine samples are being anonymized for tasting which will be carried out by more than 80 international experts. The Selection culminates with the publication of the annual guide, both paper and digital, containing all the wines that obtain the highest scores. The Guide is then shared with the Vinitaly community; the wines will go on to gain visibility on the new Vinitaly Plus platform as well. Social Media posts are created by the 5StarWines & Wine Without Walls team for every single selected bottle, carrying the public relations buzz around 5StarWines & Wine Without Walls wines throughout the year.

Last year, this was the point where we had to roll up our sleeves. From the moment that registered wine samples got to our warehouses, our staff were tasked with putting each bottle in blue bags to anonymize and ready them for tasting. While this already takes quite a lot of time, last year, after tailored planning and registration, due to the inability of the judges to reach Verona for the tasting, we also had to pack and ship each bottle to each individual judge – it was a mammoth undertaking.

This year, even though the judges have been permitted to travel to Verona, we cannot state that things have gone back to “normal”. The last edition before the pandemic was in April 2019 and things were very different. Judges would taste and score each wine seated around a table of 6, being able to have an open session. In this edition, the staff will prepare the tasting rooms following specific safety protocols: each judge will be seated at their own table but grouped in sets of 5, to allow consultation amongst the jury – things maybe a little louder than usual!

After the first round of tasting, all the wines that receive a score equal or higher than 90 are to be re-tasted by the General Chairmen, further discussing its final score. As the last wine receives its final score, results will be published online through the registration platform and producers will be notified. Wines with higher scores in each category will be awarded the “Trophy” title.

While we patiently count the days until the beginning of this year’s edition of 5StarWines & Wine Without Walls, we are using our social media platforms (@5StarWines) to introduce all the judges joining us in Verona, helping you to get to know each of them better; posting video messages by them as well. Follow us to stay up to date on this year’s edition of the tasting!

 

In this edition, the staff will prepare the tasting rooms following specific safety protocols: each judge will be seated at their own table but grouped in sets of 5, to allow consultation amongst the jury – things may be a little louder than usual!

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.

Last call for producers: registration for 5StarWines & Wine Without Walls are closing soon

Last call for producers: registration for 5StarWines & Wine Without Walls are closing soon

As more than 80 international judges are getting ready to finally physically come back to Verona to attend 5StarWines & Wine Without Walls – from June 16th to 18th, 2021, producers are sending in their registered wines for the anonymization process to begin. May 20th will be the last day to register for Veronafiere’s blind wine tasting, while the final date to send in registered wines is set for May 24th.

“Life is like a box of chocolates, you never know what you are going to get.” This famous quote from the well-loved movie Forrest Gump can be applied to more than just the metaphor of life. Take 5StarWines & Wine Without Walls for example, the annual blind wine tasting organized by Veronafiere, much like a box of unlabeled wrapped chocolates, the wines will also be covered up, hidden to mask which bottles are being tasted by a selection of international wine experts chosen for their contrasted backgrounds. Each time a wine is tasted, the judges will be unwrapping the scents, flavors and personal stories held within each bottle. Layers of experience culminated in a finished product, spread open for the world to see.

To have their wines tasted, producers will have to register on the 5StarWines & Wine Without Walls platform https://www.5starwines.it/apply-now/?lang=en by May 20th, 2021.

Selected wines will not only have tailored tasting notes, but they will also receive a diploma displaying their score, and will be featured on the “Critics” section on the biggest wine dedicated searching engine Wine Searcher https://www.wine-searcher.com/ moreover, their scores will be published in the wine guide that takes its name from the selection. “5StarWines – the Book” – this as well as a multitude of communication tools will also be provided to producers of selected wines, to help them spread the word regarding their results.

Each time a wine is tasted, the judges will be unwrapping the scents, flavors and personal stories held within each bottle. Layers of experience culminated in a finished product, spread open for the world to see.

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.

5StarWines & Wine Without Walls sees a glimmer of hope thanks to safety protocols that allows an in-person Selection once more

5StarWines & Wine Without Walls sees a glimmer of hope thanks to safety protocols that allows an in-person Selection once more

After one year of a virtual selection, 5StarWines & Wine Without Walls, the blind wine tasting organized by Veronafiere, will return to Verona in-person. Rules of the blind tasting remain as rigorous, as do the newly implemented protocols to maintain safety due to the pandemic.

As always, the selection is led by an international team of highly qualified wine professionals. Henry Davar, Thomas Curtius MW, Francesco Marchio, Brandon Tebbe MS, Richard Kershaw MW, Isao Miyajima, JC Viens, Jinglin Zhang, Sue Tolson, Vincenzo Donatiello, Paul Caputo, Irving So, Hayley Black and Niklas Bergqvist will guide the selection as the Panel Chairmen of the fifth edition of 5StarWines & Wine Without Walls, and will be present in Verona, Italy to taste and score the registered wines from June 16th to June 18th, 2021.

This edition is going to be special for everyone taking part in the tasting both because the exceptional safety protocols put in place will allow them to return to travelling and tasting wine together. As always, this selection brings together the diverse profiles and international palates of the judges, who are aided in promoting their selection by a range of cutting-edge communication tools that facilitate the announcement of the results. However, this year there is an added value to the event: the social factor.

No more screens, no more poor connections: the judges will be able to travel to Verona and be together. Nothing is quite back to normal: the tasting will be taking place in 2 rooms with a maximum capacity of 60 people in each, and every judge will have his/her own table arranged in a semicircle to make up Panels of 5 judges. This is very different from prior years, where each panel would be at the same table. But, it is a welcome step towards bringing judges and wines back together in the same place once more.

One year ago, who would imagine we would be able to receive judges from the U.S. together with judges from all over the world! On the basis of the legislation currently in force, judges will be able to reach Italy without the obligation of quarantine, staying for a maximum of 120 hours. It is going to be different, presenting once more a challenge for all involved. However, it will be worth the hard work to to give us a glimmer of life how we remember it and to continue bringing about 5Star Wines and Wine without Walls and promoting the Selection once more.

 

New features include the revamped registration platform, where producers will be able to check the results autonomously and have access to their personal page to view outcomes and download prompts to promote the scores.

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.

Less than 2 months until the first 5StarWines & Wine Without Walls held in person since the pandemic

Less than 2 months until the first 5StarWines & Wine Without Walls held in person since the pandemic

More details of the judges that will arrive in Verona and the organization of a blind tasting during a pandemic. May 20th will be the last day available to register for Veronafiere’s blind wine tasting – but until April 26th producers can apply for a 10% discount. Warehouses are already open and will receive samples by May 25th.

Judges are already recruited and ready to fly out to Verona to taste and score registered wines, after a year of non-presence. At the head of the tasting will be the General Chairmen – who have been with 5StarWines and Wine Without Walls since the first edition, showing their commitment and trust in Veronafiere’s blind wine tasting event. Their task is, on one hand, to give the guidelines, to be the beacon of how to approach the various flights. On the other hand, they are also available to intervene when doubts arise about the evaluations. The group includes Pedro Ballesteros Torres MW, who is also a VIA Italian Wine Ambassador; the editorial consultant of Meininger’s Wine Business International, and creator of the first International Wine Challenge, Robert Joseph; the founder of Doctor Wine and Gambero Rosso Daniele Cernilli; the columnist and sole head of Le Figaro’s wine column Bernard Burtschy. This year Gabriele Gorelli MW will join the General Chairmen, the first Italian to become a Master of Wine.

Finally, Monty Waldin, writer and biodynamic specialist, will return to lead the section dedicated to organic, biodynamic and sustainable wines. All judges have been identified and chosen according to their competence, experience and nationality. This is in order to guarantee to the selection not only authority, but also a multiplicity of points of view, the internationality of palates and, in the end, the objectivity of the selection.

The format of 5StarWines & Wine Without Walls aims for maximum effectiveness by facilitating the dissemination of results, integrating the awards with a range of cutting-edge communication tools. The Selection culminates with the publication of a guide, both paper and digital, containing all the wines that have obtained the best scores. The Guide is then shared with the Vinitaly community and wines will later on have visibility on the new Vinitaly Plus platform. Social media posts are created by the 5StarWines & Wine Without Walls team for every single selected bottle, carrying on the celebration of selected wines all year long. Find out more about the selection here https://www.5starwines.it/?lang=en.

 

First 5StarWines & Wine Without Walls held in person since the pandemic. Judges are already recruited and ready to fly out to Verona to taste and score registered wines, after a year of non-presence.

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.