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In 2011 the committee of judges, consisting of 180 well-known international wine experts, tasted more than 6,000 wines from all over the world.

So far, no wine has managed to get the desirable 100 points since the competition was first held in 2001. Nevertheless, every year very few wines get very close to the dream. These wines are awarded a double gold medal (GROSSES GOLD).

But in order to be taken into consideration for this desirable and highly esteemed honour the wine has to obtain at least 95 points – and only the wines with the very highest points are awarded with GROSSES GOLD. This means that the wines might have obtained an even higher score than the 95 points.

In 2011, only 33 out of 6,000 wines were awarded the double gold medal – among them a port; Late Bottled Vintage 2006 from the Danish owned Quinta do Pégo.

Golan Heights Winery recently earned the Gran Vinitaly Special Award as the best wine producer at the 19th International Vinitaly 2011 Wine Competition, which was held from March 28 to April 1, 2011, in Verona, Italy. In winning the top award at this prestigious competition, the Winery beat out over 1,000 wine producers from 30 countries including traditional wine-producing powerhouses such as France, Italy and Spain.

Golan Heights Winery earned the Gran Vinitaly Special Award as the wine producer achieving the best results calculated as the sum of the highest scores for two wines that took medals in two different categories. The Winery earned two Grand Gold Medals – the highest awards granted to individual wines at Vinitaly – for the 2009 Yarden Chardonnay Odem Organic Vineyard and the 2008 Yarden HeightsWine. Only 16 Grand Gold Medals in total were awarded at the competition.

“Winning the Gran Vinitaly Award is yet another sign of respect that places the developing Israeli wine industry, in general, and Golan Heights Winery, in particular, at the center of the international wine world,” said Anat Levi, CEO of Golan Heights Winery. “As shown by this historic achievement, our wines are competing successfully with the world’s top-quality wines, and representing us with honor.”

Vinitaly 2011 confirmed its reputation as one of the world’s most selective competitions, awarding only 71 total medals for over 3,700 wines produced by more than 1,000 wineries. A panel of 105 judges, chosen from among the world’s leading winemakers and wine journalists, selected the winning wines in carefully supervised blind tastings that ensured the anonymity of each wine.

“We are extremely proud of being the first Israeli winery to be named the best wine producer at Vinitaly – the top award at one of the world’s most prominent wine competitions,” added Levi. “I am confident that Golan Heights Winery will continue to create remarkable wines and bring the taste of quality Israeli wines to discerning wine enthusiasts in Israel and across the globe.”

About Golan Heights Winery

Golan Heights Winery is the leading premium wine producer in Israel. Since its founding in 1983, Golan Heights Winery has marketed its wines under the renowned Yarden, Gamla and Golan brands. Today, the Winery is considered Israel’s foremost producer when it comes to wine quality, technological innovation and varietal development. Golan Heights Winery has led the way in nurturing Israel’s wine culture and placing Israel firmly on the world’s wine map.

“The Great Wine Capitals” (GWC) is a network of nine major global cities, which share a key economic and cultural asset: their internationally renowned wine regions. It exists to encourage travel, education and business exchanges between the internationally renowned cities of Bilbao/Rioja, Bordeaux, Cape Town, Christchurch/New Zealand, Florence, Mainz/Rheinhessen, Mendoza, Porto and San Francisco/Napa Valley.

In the spring 2009, after a total renovation the vineyard Quinta do Pégo in the Douro valley in Portugal opened in a totally new shape with hotel. Quinta do Pégo is one of the most beautiful quintas in the Douro valley - and Hotel Rural Quinta do Pégo is certainly worth a visit according to the guests who have visited the hotel so far. As per 27th July 2010 the hotel has achieved an impressive guest feed back score of 9.2 (scale 0-10) at booking.com. Furthermore, Hotel Rural Quinta do Pégo is the hotel with the highest score amongst all the good 4 and 5 stars hotels in the Douro Valley - and actually, it is the only hotel in the area with a guest feed back score above 9. Considering the fact that the hotel is only in its second season, this is an extremely impressive score.

Furthermore, the wines from Quinta do Pégo have received a lot of prestigious medals and reviews. Quinta do Pégo produces port, red table wine and olive oil. In 2010 the wines from Quinta do Pégo have received a lot of medals at prestigious international wine competitions. For example Quinta do Pégo 2005 Late Bottled Vintage has gained 5 out of 5 stars at www.vinavisen.dk, 5 out of 6 stars in Morgenavisen Jyllands-Posten, Gold in International Wine Guide 2010, Gold at Mundus Vini 2010 in Germany, Gold at Wine Masters Challenge 2010 in Portugal and Silver at Concours Mondial de Bruxelles 2010.

If you would like to be surrounded by beautiful vineyards and to experience the spectacular view of the Douro river valley, you should really visit Hotel Rural Quinta do Pégo - it will be a unique experience. Book at www.booking.com or at www.quintadopego.com. There are 10 rooms, which are all tastefully decorated and each room has air conditioning, satellite TV and underfloor heating in the bathroom. The price is EUR 150.00 per double room per night. This price includes breakfast, free internet, satellite TV and access to swimmingpool.

We look forward to welcoming you at Quinta do Pégo for an unforgettable and unique experience.

A guest review says...
“An absolutely fabulous setting in vineyards overlooking the Douro. Modern and very well appointed hotel with super friendly, efficient and helpful staff. Great infinity pool - again with those great views. Informative wine tasting as part of the experience and very good fixed-menu dining.”
Rodney, London, June 30, 2010

The high quality and excellence of Santa Rita wines has been recognized once again by the prestigious US magazine, which once again named the Chilean winery the “Winery of the Year”. The excellent scores obtained by its different lines of wines has allowed Santa Rita to continue to shine in Wine & Spirts Hall of Fame, given that it has earned this distinction ten times and is one of the only Chilean wineries to appear in the magazine’s prestigious Hall of Fame.

Santa Rita was named the Wine & Spirits “Winery of the Year 2010,” which positions it as one of the most important wineries in the world. Santa Rita’s commitment to the high quality of its wines has been its top priority for 130 years and is deeply ingrained in everyone who works there and is reflected in every bottle of Santa Rita wine they make. Obtaining this honor for the tenth time shows the winery’s constant dedication to consistently doing things right.

This year the magazine particularly highlighted Casa Real 2005, which was named the Best Chilean Cabernet Sauvignon of the year with 93 points, Medalla Real Cabernet Sauvignon 2007, which earned 91 points and also stood out among the best Chilean Cabernet Sauvignons of
the year, and Medalla Real Chardonnay 2008, with a score of 90 points.

The magazine also named Santa Rita its “Value Brand of the Year 2010,” an award that is recognized by North American consumers. According to AC Nielsen, Santa Rita has grown more than any other Chilean brand in the US market over the past 12 months.

Wines & Spirits’ process of choosing the Winery of the Year begins with conducting numerous blind tastings each month to evaluate quality, consistency, and expression of origin of each wine. The magazine’s experts evaluate and rate more than 10,000 wines from around the world over the course of the year and finally choose the best 100 wineries based on the performance and scores earned throughout the year. The high ratings that Wines & Spirits has awarded all of the Santa Rita lines in 2010, as well as such important distinctions as “Value Brand of the Year” and “Winery of the Year” for the tenth time reflect the company’s ongoing commitment to the quality and consistency of its wines