100 % medal success for the Baloun and Stapleton-Springer wineries at the Vins de Terroir competition plus a gold for "design" and "appeal" in the Grand Concours Packaging

This competition, held under the auspices of O.I.V., is focused on wines having a specific geographical origin from all the world's wine regions. The aim is to show the public not only what role terroir plays in the life of a wine but to encourage the broadening of the vine and wine culture on the international level, but also to emphasise its vocation to bring gastronomy and agritourism together.

Terroir is an all-too-often fallaciously explained and incorrectly understood term. It is in fact a magical but barely translatable word which has its roots in the French terre (earth). It refers not just to the location and the influence on a wine's quality exerted by soil conditions, but also takes into consideration a range of other factors: specific microclimate, varietal composition, tradition, history and lastly the winemker's own savoir-faire.

Some 100 wines were entered in the competition emanating from all five continents, among which three samples from the Czech Republic were to be found:
Roučí 2009 (Moravian Land Wine) from the Stapleton-Springer Winery of Bořetice and
Muškát moravský (Moravian Muscat) late harvest 2012, from the Nadzahrady vineyard in Velké Pavlovice, and Tramín červený (Gewurztraminer) late harvest 2012 from the Bavorsko vineyard in the commune of Klentnice, both from the Baloun Winery in Velké Pavlovice.

Moravian terroir indeed enchanted the 25 members of the International Jury, who came from 14 countries (France, Italy, Spain, Germany, Austria, Great Britain, Poland, Russia, Ukraine, Monaco, China, Japan, Switzerland and the Czech Republic) to such an extent that all three received silver medals - Terroir d’Argent.

In all 41 wines received awards: 10 Terroir d’Or (gold medals) and 31 Terroir d’Argent (silver medals). Moreover, every one of the prize-winnning wines was included in the competition Grand Prix Packaging, in which the overall appearance of the samples were assessed not only by the international jury, but also by the lay public present at the exhibition of winning wines in Brignoles town hall on Saturday 16th February. This tournament which the organisers stage as part of all their wine contests (Femmes et Vins du Monde, Monaco and Concours International des Vins de Gastronomie) appears to some like a sort of fashion parade, although the fact remains that this is perhaps the most important detail in the sale of a wine. The customer, unfamiliar with the content of a particular bottle standing on the shelf, will likely be influenced not just by the prices in the chosen category, but above all by the seductivity and presentation of the product overall.

Although this competition's patron, photographer Guillaume Barclay, bestowed his "coup de coeur" on his particular favourites, Roučí 2009 from the Stapleton-Springer Winery was rewarded with a gold medal, having received the greatest number of points from the specialised and lay committees. Furthermore all awarded wines will be in attendance at the international oeno-gastronomic fair 1ère Rencontre Internationale des Vins de Terroir et des Cuisines du Monde, which is scheduled for 5th to 7th July in the town of Brignoles in the département of Var.

The next edition of the Concours International des Vins de Terroir competition will take place on 20th and 21st February 2014.

Further information and complete results can be downloaded on: www.civt-ictw.fr

Source: Helena & John Baker, members of the international jury at Concours International des Vins de Terroir.