18 November 2019
Villa Maria takes top spot at New Zealand Wine of the Year awards
Villa Maria has been awarded the highly coveted title of New Zealand Wine of the Year with the Villa Maria Cellar Selection Hawkes Bay Syrah 2018 taking away the prestigious Wine of the Year trophy. The same wine also won Champion Syrah and Best Wine – Hawkes Bay.
Villa Maria Reserve Gimblett Gravels Hawkes Bay Syrah vintages 2006, 2013 and 2018 also won Champion Wine of Provenance
at the awards (the Champion Wine of Provenance celebrates a wines’ consistency of quality and ability to age over ten
years).
“The awards bestowed upon our 2018 Syrah’s continue the run of incredible success enjoyed over 15 years of previous
vintages of this variety. They are testament to the uncompromised approach to quality and attention to detail at every
stage of production from the vineyard through to the winery,” said Nick Picone, Group Chief Winemaker for Villa Maria.
Villa Maria was awarded a total of six trophies and 12 gold medals at the New Zealand Wine of the Year Competition on
Saturday, the official wine competition of the New Zealand wine industry. This brings the total medal count for Villa
Maria to 241 from both local and international wine shows this year, an increase of 14% compared to last year’s results.
Villa Maria continues its long-held status as New Zealand’s Most Awarded Winery.
“Villa Maria is a family-owned winery and we have always prided ourselves on producing the best wines possible. Our
commitment to quality underpins everything we do and these awards are an outcome of a passionate and hard-working team
focused on producing world-class wines,” Nick continued.
Our perennial performer was Syrah, scooping six trophies and seven gold medals at local and international competitions
and our Cellar Selection Hawkes Bay Syrah 2018 has also been named in the New World Wine Awards Top 50 wines. Villa
Maria Reserve Gimblett Gravels Syrah 2018 also came out on top in the Syrah category at the Hawkes Bay Wine Awards,
receiving Champion Syrah and Outstanding Wine of Provenance. It also features in Air New Zealand’s Fine Wines of New
Zealand list.
“What stands out for me in the 2018 vintage is the captivating fragrance of the wines, they are so distinctive and hard
to confuse with anything else. Deep in colour, wonderfully perfumed, laden with dark berries and exotic spices - the
wines are supple and silk-like in texture. We are delighted to offer these incredible wines to our consumers so they can
enjoy and appreciate this amazing vintage as much as we do,” he said.
Pinot Gris was another high-achieving variety with five gold medals across the Villa Maria range, a sign of consistent
quality. Most notable was Villa Maria Private Bin East Coast Pinot Gris 2019, awarded Champion Pinot Gris at this years’
New World Wine Awards.
-ENDS-