The Gilbert & Gaillard International wine competition has lost part of its prestige by awarding the gold medal to a wine from the Belgian supermarket Delhaize for only 2.5 euros. The joke was carried out by the Belgian television program ‘On n’est pas des pigeons’ .
According to Belgian media, the judges of the international wine competition were deceived by the RTBF program after Éric Boschman , elected the best sommelier in Belgium in 1988 , agreed to participate in the report to demonstrate how international wine competitions have lost professionalism.
In this wine tasting competition , participating wineries must pay a €50 entry fee, submit samples for tasting, and provide laboratory data such as alcohol and sugar levels. This last requirement could easily be circumvented, since the organizers of the competition do not pay for their own laboratory analyzes and do not verify the data provided by the wine producers.
The sommelier chose a low-quality wine and they changed the label, creating a more striking one. They even invented a story for it, claiming that it was made from native grape varieties in the Côtes de Sambre and Meuse (Wallonia).
The good presentation of the wine and the excellent comments from Éric Boschman about it were enough for the jury to award it the Gold Medal after a blind tasting in which they said that it was a “very interesting wine, with a red color. ” bright garnet. Shy nose that combines stone fruits, currants, discreet oak. Soft, nervous and rich palate with clean young aromas that promise pleasant complexity. Evolution on fine spices »
After announcing the result, the organizers also informed the winners that they could purchase 1,000 gold stickers to display on their wine labels for just 60 euros.
This mistake by the jury reveals a trend that is not fun, the proliferation of this type of people who lack professionalism and who live only off the money that many wineries pay to enter the contest just for marketing reasons. Of course, it exposes not only the organization, but also the judges, who should be professionals in the sector.
This prank planned by a television channel reveals the truth behind some wine tasting competitions. And having one or more medals adorning the bottle can increase sales by up to 15% , a way for the consumer to buy that or another bottle. And you? Do you let yourself be influenced by wine awards?
