Results from the 3rd Annual Foothill Wine Festival Competition

(InEDC) BY Cris Alarcon
Published: September 15, 2023

Wow, Gwinllan Estate’s Sparkling Rosé seems to be dominating the competition! Winning Best Sparkling for two years in a row is quite an impressive feat. And not only that, but it also received the highest score and took home the Best of Show honors. It must truly be a dazzling pink sparkler.

Casino Mine’s Best White, the 2022 “Flicka,” is made from Greco di Tufo. However, it’s interesting to learn that this grape varietal cannot be used on US wine labels. It seems that the name “Greco di Tufo” is proprietary to a specific region in Campania, Italy, and cannot legally appear on labels outside that region. It’s important to respect these regulations and traditions.

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It’s always exciting to see a newcomer take the spotlight, and this year, a Charbono from Jeff Runquist won Best Red at the competition. It’s the first time a Charbono has achieved this honor, and it’s great to see new names making their mark. Additionally, Rosa-Lucca Estates, a first-time entrant, did impressively well, securing three Best of Class honors for their wines. It’s quite an achievement for a winery entering for the first time!

The judges had quite a task at hand, evaluating 378 entries from 23 wineries. It’s no surprise that they awarded a significant number of medals, including 36 Double Golds, 103 Golds, 168 Silvers, and 54 Bronzes. To earn a Double Gold, all judges on a panel must agree that the wine is of superior quality, which makes it an even greater achievement for those wines. Congrats to all the medal winners!

It’s exciting to see so many new wineries entering the competition this year. Fourteen wineries made their debut, including Happy Dayz, Smokin’ Barrel, Corkwood Cellars, Rubidoux Ridge, Dora Dain, J & M Fenaux, and Wolfe Heights Estate. It’s a testament to the growth and potential of the Foothills region. However, it’s unfortunate that some wineries were unable to participate due to the frosts and fires that impacted the region recently. Mother Nature can certainly be challenging, but the resilience of these wineries is inspiring.

The Foothills Wine Competition was co-created by Mike Owen and Joe Gagliardi, two influential figures in the wine industry. It’s great to see their efforts in promoting and celebrating wines from the District 10 counties, including Amador, Calaveras, El Dorado, Mariposa, Nevada, Placer, and Tuolumne. The upcoming consumer tasting hosted by Choose Folsom sounds like a fantastic opportunity for wine enthusiasts to experience the best of the Foothills region. I’m already looking forward to it!

— Contributed by u/lazd on Reddit  —

“How Placerville did? Here’s the PDF with the full results, Bumgarner got best blended white wine for their Van Blanc, Boeger‘s Negroamaro deservedly got double gold, Lava Cap got a double gold for their Cab Franc, Crystal Basin got some gold and silver, Findleton got a double gold Syrah, Via Romano’s Fiano and Sangiovese got gold, even Starfield snagged some gold. Did I miss any other Placerville wineries?

“Placerville was also well-represented at the 2023 California State Fair, Lewis Grace took home a ton of awards including Best red wine of show for their Souzão, Nello Olivo got Best Malbec of California, Boeger got a bunch of golds for their red wines.

This year, 14 wineries entered for the first time, including these new wineries:

Happy Dayz – Placer County
Smokin’ Barrel – Placer County
Corkwood Cellars – Amador County
Rubidoux Ridge – Fiddletown, Amador County
Dora Dain – Placer County
J & M Fenaux – Amador County
Wolfe Heights Estate- Sacramento County

The competition is sponsored by Choose Folsom, which will host the upcoming consumer tasting on November 11, 2023, at the Palladio event center in Folsom. Tickets: www.foothillwinefest.com.