The largest competition of American wines in the world names best American wines of 2018

After receiving 6,960 entries from 35 states across the country, the San Francisco Chronicle Wine Competition (SFCWC), presented by BevMo!, has once again successfully narrowed thousands of wines down to an exclusive few.

In the second week of January, 67 independent judges from a variety of fields including trade, education, media, retail and hospitality traveled to the Cloverdale Citrus Fairgrounds in Sonoma County to determine the best wines in the USA. Utilizing an extensive process that divides the varietals into several categories and subcategories, the event gave the panels the chance to rate entries as Bronze, Silver, Gold or “Double Gold”(equivalent to a unanimous rating by all panel members).

Three full days of judging were followed by the Sweepstakes judging, which took place on Friday morning. 47 judges participated in this portion, and an astounding 3,478 glasses were used in the final tasting for the best of the best. Only 7 entries were honored with the prestigious Sweepstake Award in the categories of Label, Sparkling, White, Pink, Red, and Dessert/Specialty wines. For the first time, in 2018 the SFCWC has also added a Cider Sweepstake winner.

The 2018 Sweepstake Award Winners are:

Red Sweepstake Winner

O’Shaughnessy Estate Winery (CA) 2014 Napa Valley Howell Mountain Cabernet Sauvignon

White Sweepstake Winner

Brick Barn Wine Estate (CA) 2016 Santa Ynez Valley Vermintino

 more at SF Gate