An expert panel of 21 judges tasted 16 pairs of white and red wines, pitting Europe and the Rest of the World, in an homage to the 1976 Judgment of Paris tasting.
It was a blind tasting where wine worlds blurred rather than collided; where ‘Old World’ and ‘New World’ felt obsolete against nuance, texture, elegance and balance.
Following four hours of judging 32 wines – eight pairs of whites and eight pairs of reds – by a panel of 21 Masters of Wine, Master Sommeliers and other UK wine experts, the margin of difference between Europe and the Rest of the World (ROW) in the Judgement of London came down to just 0.65%.
Scroll down to see the pairings of European and Rest of the World wines 
Judges and organisers of the Judgement of London tasting at the London Wine Fair on 20 May 2024. Credit: AnthonyUpton.com
A level playing field
Europe triumphed, its 16 wines earning a total of 2,621.5 points (an average of 7.8 out of 10 for each), against ROW’s 2,604.5 points (7.75/10).
However, top white and overall top-scoring wine went to a New Zealand Riesling: Pegasus Bay’s 2011 Bel Canto from Waipara in North Canterbury. The runner-up white was another ROW Riesling: Grosset’s 2012 Polish Hill from Clare Valley in South Australia.
Rhône and Bordeaux took the plaudits in the reds, with Domaine J-L Chave’s 2012 Hermitage the top scorer, ahead of 2009
