SIERRE, SWITZERLAND – The winners of the top awards for the Mondial des Pinots wine competition will be named 5 September, but the winners of the special prizes are already known. The highest honour, a Great Gold medal, went to five wines: a French Pinot Noir, a German Pinot Gris and three Pinot Noir wines from canton Valais in Switzerland.

Three-quarters of the 95 gold medals were given to Swiss Pinot wines (68 medal), with one-third of these from canton Valais, 11 to canton Graubünden, 6 to canton Vaud, 4 to Schaffhausen and 3 to Aargau. Other went to wines from Bern, St Gallen, Thurgau and other areas. German Pinots won 12 medals.

Nearly 1,300 wines from 25 countries were submitted to the judges of the 17th annual Mondial des Pinots (MDP), which is open to three grape varieties: Pinot Noir, Pinot Gris and Pinot Blanc.

The awards ceremony takes place Friday 5 September at the start of the VINEA Swiss Wines Fair, which opens its doors to the public at 16:00. It runs until Sunday. An exclusive and new this year: visitors are invited to a free tasting of their choice of award-winning wines from the Mondial des Pinots as well as the Mondial du Merlot. Even better: They’ll be able to test their own ability to judge wines by comparing the notes they taste to those of the professionals who were judges during the competitions; Saturday 6 and Sunday 7 September from 11:00-13:00 in tent number 9.

Lebanese judge Elie Maamari, oenologist and export manager at Châeau Ksara, emphasizes that the “dream of every oenologist is to create a great Pinot. It takes know-how and skill to hold the aromas of this grape that is a combination of elegance and complexity.” The Beirut-based oenologist had much to celebrate, because the only Lebanese Pinot wine entered in the competition won a gold medal.

The Mondial des Pinots offers 9 special awards. Among these: the Gran Maestro du noir prize, which is given to the wine with the highest score for three consecutive vintages; this year it went to a producer from canton Vaud. The Univerre Trophy du Pinot helvetique prize for the wine with the highest overall number of points in the competition also went to a Vaud winery, for a wine from grapes grown in canton Valais.

The awards ceremony takes place Friday 5 September at the start of the VINEA Swiss Wines Fair, which opens its doors to the public at 16:00. It runs until Sunday. An exclusive and new this year: visitors are invited to a free tasting of their choice of award-winning wines from the Mondial des Pinots as well as the Mondial du Merlot. Even better: They’ll be able to test their own ability to judge wines by comparing the notes they taste to those of the professionals who were judges during the competitions; Saturday 6 and Sunday 7 September from 11:00-13:00 in tent number 9.

SPECIAL PRIZES

Gran Maestro du Pinot Noir
Given by Syngenta Agro AG
Parfum de Vigne, Jean-Jacques Steiner, Dully, Vaud,  Suisse
Château de Vincy, Coteau de Vincy, La Côte AOC, 2010, 2011, 2012

Univerre Trophy
Sang Bleu les Evouettes 2012, AOC Valais
Cave des Rois, François and Marco Grognuz, La Tour de Peilz, Suisse

Mousseux (sparkling wines)
Given by the Union Suisse des Œnologues
Le Millésimé 2009, Champagne
Champagne Grémillet, Anne Grémillet, Balnot sur Laignes, France

Rosés
Given by Eticolle Sierre
Œil de Perdrix Hurlevent 2013 AOC Valais
Les Fils de Charles Favre, Sion, Switzerland

Pinot Gris
Given by Serex Plastics Puidoux
Schloss Proschwitz 2012 Sachsen
Weingut Schloss Proschwitz, Prinz zur Lippe, Zadel über Meissen, Germany

Pinot Blanc
Given by Branchenverband Deutschweizer Wein
Stadt Schaffhauser Heerenberg Pinot Blanc 2013, AOC Schaffhausen
Weinkeller.sh, Marlies Keller und Beat Schindler, Schaffhausen, Switzerland

Bourgogne Aujourd’hui
Given by wine revue Bourgogne Aujourd’hui, Beaune France
Laborbe Juillot Givry 1er Cru 2012 AOC Bourgogne, France
Domaine Laborbe Juillot, Buxy, France

VINOFED
Given by the VINEA Association, Sierre
Pradafant Pinot Noir Barrique 2011, AOC Graubünden, Switzerland

Digital communications prize
Awarded by Vitisphere
Le Millésimé 2009, Champagne
Champagne Grémillet, Anne Grémillet, Balnot sur Laignes, France