Delicata wines win two silver medals in France

Maltese wines winning trophies in France is like stealing fresh meat from the mouths of hungry lions.

Okay, maybe that’s an exaggeration but the point is that two Maltese wines won a silver medal each in two separate wine competitions on the home turf of some of the best wine producers in the world.

Delicata just bagged a silver medal in Bordeaux for their Grand Vin de Hauteville Viognier on the heels of the silver medal for the Grand Vin de Hauteville oak-aged Chardonnay received in Burgundy.

In a time that virtually all professional wine fairs and wine tasting gatherings got cancelled, two of France’s most prestigious wine judging competitions managed to take place albeit with measures of distancing between judges.

The recently held Challenge International du Vin attracts more than 4,000 wines from over 35 countries that get evaluated over two days by wine connoisseurs in Bourg by Bordeaux. At the first round, Delicata’s 2018 Grand Vin de Hauteville Viognier DOK Superior Malta amassed a silver medal for its outstanding overall qualities.

Delicata’s example is a tightly knit, well-structured dry white wine with a delicate floral nose. The wine walks a tight rope: it’s extremely well-balanced. This rich and ripe Viognier is all blossom-scented with opulent exotic peach fruit in the finish.

Earlier this year, Delicata also earned a silver medal for the 2018 oak-aged Grand Vin de Hauteville Chardonnay DOK Malta Superior in the Chardonnay du Monde competition at Saint Lager in the Burgundy wine region of France, which is the heartland of the Chardonnay grape variety.

The competition is to Chardonnay what the Wimbledon Championships is to tennis, Circuit de Monaco to Formula One or FIFA World Cup to football.

Delicata’s silver-medallist Chardonnay opens with a delightful mineral nose. It’s fresh with lively, dancing acidity, well-extracted and endowed with lush exotic stone-fruit and subtle hints of pineapple.

Over the years, the Delicata Winery has taken an impactful lead with consistently high-scoring premium Maltese wines and signature labels that have gained recognition as sought-after wine gems of the Mediterranean. Delicata’s Malta-grown Grand Vin de Hauteville wines especially keep on winning on the international stage and the overall award count for this Maltese wine brand alone stands unmatched at 29.

Winery director Mario Delicata said: “Of course we’re invigorated by the latest silver trophies in France. But all of us at Delicata are also grateful for the goodwill around us in Malta, where many voices speak up in favour of buying local so as to support our community. As a Maltese winemaker, we’re thankful for that upsurge in solidarity. It encourages us to keep on making wines from Malta of world excellence.”

This article by Georges Meekers was first published in the Times of Malta on 10/07/20.