KWC 2017 selects the best wines for the Korean palate

This year marked the 13th anniversary of Korea’s one and only International Wine Competition, known as the Korea Wine Challenge (KWC), hosted by the monthly magazine <Wine Review>. Under the slogan of ‘Selecting the best quality wines for the Korean palate to introduce the most trustworthy wines to customers,’ KWC has made dedicated efforts to develop the Korean wine market over the past 12 years. Domestically, KWC is considered an unparalleled platform for identifying global trends in the wine industry, while being one of the useful indicators for overseas wineries to consider when preparing to enter the Korean market. The judges for the KWC 2017 consisted of wine experts including practicing sommeliers working in close contact with the general public, and wine importers who actually import fine wines into Korea through carefully researching the preferences of the general population.

For KWC 2017, a total of 810 wines from 23 countries were exhibited, constituting an array from the most diverse set of countries in the competition’s history. Once again, there were stand-out wines from countries that are less familiar in Korea, including Greece, Romania, the Czech Republic, Lithuania, Azerbaijan, and Indonesia. The participation rate for sparkling wines was 9.1 percent, significantly higher than the average of 4 to 5 percent seen in previous years. A range of sweet wines and fortified wines were also exhibited. It is distinctions like these that give KWC its unique position in Korea as a prestigious international wine competition. By reflecting the expansion of the internationally strong sparkling wine market, KWC can be seen as leading the diversification of the Korean wine market.

Over the last two weeks, from Monday, June 12, through Friday, June 23, all of the wines that participated in this competition were categorized according to country of origin, variety, blending ratio, oenology and price, as well as being evaluated through impartial and strictly monitored blind tasting. The competition adopted a 100-point scoring system in which a default score of 50 points was given to all wines entering the contest as a courtesy for the effort of sending a bottle of wine for the competition. The remaining 50 points were strictly and fairly evaluated by a select panel of judges in the following categories; 6 points for the ‘color and appearance’, 12 points for ‘aroma and bouquet’, 20 points for ‘flavor and finish’, and 12 points for ‘harmony and balance’. To ensure impartiality, a brand-new panel was assembled, and the selection criteria and regulations for judges were made even more rigorous, as befits an internationally reputable competition whose global recognition has increased with every passing year of its 13-year history. With 19 judge facilitators added for the first time since the KWC began, the panelists for KWC 2017 also included the existing judging panel of 26 and 12 new panelists drawn from award-winners or otherwise qualified judges. For one year, the 19 judge facilitators will serve as ambassadors promoting the award-winning wines from KWC 2017, for instance, by writing feature articles related to the event 2017 and taking part in marketing activities, such as tasting events for award-winning wines.

The inclusion of a variety of quality fine wines has raised the international reputation of the KWC to global status and opened wider opportunities for the Korean wine market. As for the KWC 2017’s awards, ‘Trophies’ were given to the best wines in seven different categories: Red, White, Sparkling, Rose, Sweet, Ice, and Fortified. Additional awards, equally prestigious to a trophy, were bestowed on wines scoring over 94 points, including products from 13 countries. A total of 11 Best Reds and 2 Best Whites with the highest points were awarded among wines from nations with the highest number of entries this year. Best Country awards went to Argentina, Australia, Chile, France, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Portugal, Romania, Spain, USA, New Zealand, and the Czech Republic. This year a Red wine from Romania and a White wine from the Czech Republic showed more superb quality than ever, leading their nations to win the Best Country awards. Those 11 Best Red wines contended with each other to clinch the one and only ‘Trophy’ red wine. From a total of 810 entries at the KWC 2017, the final tally of awards was 7 Trophies, 13 Best Countries, 113 Gold Medals, 179 Silver Medals, and 136 Bronze Medals. These wines will hopefully serve as superb guides for Korean wine consumers, showing the way in selecting fine wines.

KWC JURY MEMBERS SINCE 2005