The winners of The 2021 Golden Vines Awards were announced on 7 October in a ceremony held at Annabel’s Private Members Club in London's Mayfair.
Guests enjoyed a world-class dinner, sponsored by S.Pellegrino, cooked for them by Mirazur chef Mauro Colagreco, at a glamorous ceremony for the awards, which recognised the ‘star performers of the fine wine industry’, including producers from all over the world in categories that included Europe, Americas, Best Fine Wine and World’s Best Rising Star. The event also included an auction hosted by Christie’s of luxury experience lots, which raised £1.2 million for good causes.
While the world of viticulture is well known for the excellences that make fine wines a highly sought-after commodity, the industry is trying to shake off a perception of stuffiness and lack of diversity. With that in mind, The Golden Vines, organised by Liquid Icons, announced the winner of the Taylor’s Port Golden Vines Diversity Scholarships, worth £55,000 each for two BAME/BIPOC students studying for the Master of Wine or Master Sommelier programmes . The winners were Angela Elizabeth Scott from the USA and Dr Erna Blancquaert from South Africa.
Angela Elizabeth Scott, originally a human rights lawyer, decided to leave the legal world behind to relocate to Napa and work in wine, where she enjoyed a successful period working for Karen MacNeil, author of The Wine Bible, and Spottswoode Winery as hospitality manager. Scott embarked on her next wine adventure and headed for Hawke’s Bay, New Zealand, where she met the complexity of Hawke’s Bay Syrah and Chardonnay by studying for the MW. Throughout a period of pandemic-enforced uncertainty, Scott has shown courage and determination to achieve her dreams of accomplishment in the wine industry.
Dr Erna Blancquaert - a lecturer and researcher in viticulture at the Department of Viticulture & Oenology and the South African Grape & Wine Research Institute at Stellenbosch University - was the other recipient of the scholarship. She holds three degrees from Stellenbosch, including a PhD in viticulture, and was the first BIPOC female to obtain a PhD in viticulture on the African continent.
The winners of the 2021 Golden Vines® Awards:
The SGC Golden Vines Best Fine Wine Producer in Europe Award: Weingut Egon Müller, Mosel Valley, Germany.
The Gucci Golden Vines Best Fine Wine Producer in the Americas Award: Ridge Vineyards, Santa Cruz Mountains, California, USA.
The VistaJet Golden Vines Best Fine Wine Producer in the Rest of the World Award: Penfolds, South Australia, Australia.
The Rolls-Royce Motor Cars Golden Vines World’s Best Fine Wine Producer Award: Domaine de la Romanée Conti, Burgundy, France.
The Virgin Galactic Golden Vines World’s Best Rising Star Award: Domaine Arnoux-Lachaux, Burgundy, France.
The Julius Baer Golden Vines Innovation Award: Coravin, US.
The Macallan Golden Vines Hall of Fame Award: Aubert de Villaine, Burgundy, France.
The Liquid Icons Special Award for Wine Entrepreneurialism - The Most Successful Rosé Wine Launch of 2020/21: Kylie Minogue Wines, UK.
Download the 2021 Gerard Basset Global Fine Wine Report
Alongside the awards, organisers Liquid Icons has also published the 2021 Gerard Basset Global Fine Wine Report available to download for free. The report was compiled form a survey that involved the 442 leading fine wine professionals from 55 countries and can be accessed here.