Wine Competition
Columbus Food & Wine Affair Wine Competition 2010
Saturday, August 28, 2010 9:00 - 12:00 Noon
Columbus Fish Market
2010 Medallion Recipients will be announced at the Columbus Food & Wine Affair Grand Tasting on Friday, September 24, 2010. Guests will be able to sample all competition entries at this premier event.
Click here for a full listing of 2009 medallion recipients “….The event showcases quality...my goal is to enhance the event by encouraging wineries to present the best wines they have available. The competition offers wineries the opportunity to receive coveted bronze, silver, gold, and 'best value' medals that will attract the attention of local consumers, retailers, and restaurateurs. This is a great community event, supporting local community charitable organizations, and a wine competition that is judged by a fantastic panel of community participant wine writers, retailers, restaurateurs, distributors, winery representatives, and community wine enthusiasts! “ --Rob Somers, Wine Competition Chair
No Ordinary Wine Competition
Having the opportunity to taste a variety of wines and judge them on their many characteristics may seem like a dream job. But take note: for the Columbus Food & Wine Affair Wine Competition, the judging of over 300 competition wines began at 9 a.m. on a Saturday morning, with each wine being tasted and scored by eight judges each. That’s right. This is no ordinary wine competition.
One of the largest competitions of its kind in the Midwest , the Columbus Food & Wine Affair takes the art of judging seriously. Judging is based on a modified version of the 20-point system developed in the 1950s by Maynard Amerine, a professor in viticulture at the University of California Davis . The scoring structure puts in place a system to objectively analyze the wines.
According to Competition Chair Rob Somers, Ohio Manager, Limestone Estates Division, Foster’s Wine Estates Americas, the wines must be judged on their own merits—not in comparison to the other wines. Each year, the selected judges attend sessions to train them on the judging and tasting process. Objectivity is key which makes the training a must.
The panel of 40 + judges include a unique balance of wine experts and enthusiasts from the community. Taking part are local retailers, restaurateurs, wine suppliers, distributor personnel, wine writers and wine enthusiasts from the community.
Columbus Food & Wine Affair Competition 2009
This 2009 wine competition was held Saturday, August 15 at Columbus Fish Market on Olentangy River Road in Columbus. All of the wines entered—more than 300 of them—were available for tasting at the Columbus Food & Wine Affair Grand Tasting on September 25 at the Franklin Park Conservatory. Those receiving top honors in the competition were announced to the guests and media.
Photos and captions from the day tell the story.