National Treasures: Results from the 2009 CWA

The 9th annual Canadian Wine Awards perfectly capture the increasing confidence and focus of a wine industry and market maturing beyond adolescence. Quality is on the rise. Consumer support is at an all-time high. New regions are gaining ground and producers in established regions are fitting the right grapes to varying microclimates and soils. Regional styles are coming into sharper definition. New wineries abound, and new names have infiltrated the top 10 in this competition, overturning the long dominance of British Columbia's perennial winners. And Ontario, which missed getting its first Winery of The Year honours by a whisker, shares the Top 10 equally with British Columbia.

The Awards really aren't about place, however. The competition is designed to find quality, which is all about good grape growing and winemaking, no matter where it occurs. There are obvious examples among the top-performing wineries.

The Winery of the Year title is all about consistently good winemaking across a range of wines. Veteran Sandhill winemaker Howard Soon is rewarded with Winery of the Year honours based not only on the success of his stunning syrah and viognier, but also for having the highest percentage of medals won compared to number of wines entered. From Ontario, a very strong showing from Tawse earned the young winery a close second place.

There is another indication that Canadian winemaking has improved. Let's call it the "Happy Judges Syndrome." Always a cynical bunch, four solid days of tasting can make judges ornery, especially when one has to endure flawed and/or boring wines. In the early years of the competition, judges sometimes wondered why we were putting ourselves through the exercise. This year, the mood was noticeably more buoyant, the judges' comments were far more positive and they generally expressed relief, in the way that parents are relieved to see their kids maturing nicely.

For those interested in an unprecedented, backstage glimpse of the competition, we are proud to present Behind the Scenes at the Canadian Wine Awards

Results Features:

• Announcing the Wine Access 2009 Winery of the Year

• Introducing the top-scoring Wines of the Year

• The Performance Report highlights the top 20 performing wineries

• The Top 25 Wines from the West and the Top 25 Wines from the East