There’s a great satisfaction to enjoying top-quality wines that don’t break the bank. But, often these well-priced wines are lined up together on busy shelves, so it’s difficult to know which are just adequate, and which are the best.
Decanter World Wine Awards (DWWA) results are here to help, narrowing a varied selection of Value Gold-awarded wines to a must-try selection of the 20 best.
What Value Gold means
At DWWA, wines priced under £15 a bottle fall into the Value category, with the best of them awarded a Value Gold. Signifying outstanding quality for value, these are ‘everyday’ wines that overdeliver for the price.
As part of the competition’s unique judging process, price band categorisation (alongside country, region, colour, style and vintage) means that judges can evaluate wines with an understanding of how they deliver for the price, ensuring whether you’re spending £15 or £50, you’re getting the best quality wine for the investment made.
Scroll down to see the DWWA 2024 Top 20 Value Gold selection
DWWA Co-Chair Beth Willard explained, ‘At the end of the day, people are going to supermarkets, they’re going to major retailers, and we don’t all have £50 to spend on a bottle of wine every night.
‘What we’re looking for in the Value category are wines which are absolutely delicious, have great character and identity that when they see that Decanter Gold medal Value sticker on the bottle, the consumers will know that’s a great bottle of wine.’
Co-Chair, Michael Hill Smith AM MW added, ‘We make absolutely sure that we’re really selecting the top wines and then giving them a little nudge so that they really are recognised as Value under £15.’
The Top 20 Value Gold selection
The competition’s Top 20 Value Gold selection goes a step further than Value Gold.
Wines are awarded a ‘Value Gold’ in the first week, after being blind tasted and confirmed by a regional panel and Co-Chair. In a second round, all confirmed Value Golds are re-tasted again by the Co-Chairs who flag up the very best of them.
This year’s selection, growing from 10 last year, is an international treasure trove of wines to pick up and try now.
From well-priced Bordeaux and Argentinean Malbec to new discoveries like Bulgarian rosé and Italian Teroldego, the 2024 Top 20 Value Gold list our answer to great wines at great prices.
Below discover the DWWA 2024 Top 20 Value Gold selection, with more Value wines (noted with a ‘V’ on the results site) to seek out at awards.decanter.com
DWWA 2024 Top 20 Value Golds
Angel’s Estate, Deneb Rose, Thracian Valley, Southern Region – Thracian Lowland, Bulgaria 2023
95 points, Value Gold
Impeccable freshness and elegance pervade the raspberry- and strawberry-infused nose and palate, sustained by a delicate acidity, a lacy texture and a long finish. Alcohol 13%
Bare Bones, Shiraz, Great Western (Grampians), Victoria, Australia 2021
95 points, Value Gold
Ripe red fruits, lively white peppercorns and oaky spice with lashings of fresh acidity, a lip-smacking texture and sustaining line of tannin. Long and sumptuous. Alc 14.5%
Barton & Guestier, Syrah-Grenache-Carignan, Côtes du Roussillon Villages, Languedoc-Roussillon, France 2021
95 points, Value Gold
Packed with red cherries, dark plums and violets which dance on plush tannins and tense acidity. Rich and lingering with a black-olive finish. Alc 14%
Blue Canyon, Estate Grown Chardonnay, Monterey, California, United States 2022
95 points, Value Gold
Full of Californian charisma and charm: unctuous orchard fruit, citrus and melon encased in rich toast and vanilla and underscored by refreshing acidity. Rounded and moreish. Alc 13.5%
Bodega Doble, 5 Meses, Ribera del Duero, Spain 2022
95 points, Value Gold
Densely packed Morello cherry, blackberry, blueberry and cassis, serious and muscular. Compact tannins and a joyous mineral seam carries through to the long spicy finish. Alc 13.9%
Cascina Pian D’or, Bricco Riella, Moscato d’Asti, Piedmont, Italy 2023
95 points, Value Gold
Yellow grapefruit and sweet lemon peel percolates through the wine’s gentle fizz, with an unctuous, rounded texture and a piquant white pepper finish. Alc 5%
Cavit, Terrazze Della Luna Teroldego, Teroldego Rotaliano, Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol, Italy 2022
95 points, Value Gold
Classic style exuding scrumptious red berries, plums and inky spice with a cleansing sour-cherry note. Crunchy fresh with smooth tannins and a mouth-watering finish. Alc 12.5%
Celler Masroig, Solà Fred, Montsant, Spain 2023
95 points, Value Gold
Lashings of red berries, blueberries and damson fruit intertwined with liquorice and sweet nutmeg spice. Alert and vibrant with juicy tannins and a lively finish. Alc 14.5%
Château Lamothe-Vincent, Bordeaux, France 2022
95 points, Value Gold
Beguilingly pure cassis, cherry and plum fruit supported by swathes of velvet tannins and subtle oak, underscored with a fresh, gentle acidity. Both generous and elegant. Alc 14.5%
Cotnari, Busuioaca De Bohotin, Cotnari, Moldova, Romania 2023
95 points, Value Gold
A pretty petal-pink, with rose, strawberry and watermelon aromatics with ample spicy pep. Vivacious pink grapefruit acidity and moreish length. Perfect summer wine. Alc 12.5%
Finca Sophenia, Altosur Malbec, Gualtallary, Tupungato, Mendoza, Argentina 2023
95 points, Value Gold
A smouldering charcoal and graphite bass line supports a blanket of lavish dark cherries and vibrant florals. Generous and textured with crunchy tannins and a long, gourmet finish. Alc 14%
Gérard Bertrand, Héritage An940 Bio Viognier, IGP Pays d’Oc, Languedoc-Roussillon, France 2023
95 points, Value Gold
Delightfully complex with lip-smacking nectarine, red apple and mango with a hint of lush lemon curd. Viscous and fleshy with wet-stone salinity on the long finish. Alc 13.5%
Marks & Spencer, Classics no.2 Riesling, Pfalz, Germany 2022
95 points, Value Gold
Dazzling mango, pineapple and yellow plum interspersed with graceful white blossom and citrus peel which refreshes and delights with its gleaming acidity and fine finish. Alc 12%
Robert Oatley, Semaphore Series Shiraz, McLaren Vale, South Australia, Australia 2021
95 points, Value Gold
Brimming with sweet blueberries, blackcurrants and plums which spill over into a silky textured cushion of coffee and chocolate. Long with a minty tang on the finish. Alc 14%
Salzl Seewinkelhof, Grüner Veltliner, Burgenland, Austria 2023
95 points, Value Gold
Beaming with luscious pears and apricots which layer deliciously with zingy white pepper and fragrant herbs. Fresh and pure with a creamy texture which glides towards the long finish. Alc 13%
Sarl Du Grand Bourry, Chevalier Delaude, Languedoc, Languedoc-Roussillon, France 2022
95 points, Value Gold
Succulent and concentrated with flawless blackberry fruit melded with black pepper and dried herbs. The lush richness is tempered by silky smooth tannins and clearly defined structure. Alc 15%
Schieber, Trilógia Bikavér, Szekszárd, Dél-Pannónia, Hungary 2021
95 points, Value Gold
A harmonious blend of dark berries, plums and vanilla spice with supple tannins and a burst of juicy acidity. Engaging and typical. Alc 14.5%
Spier, Signature Collection Albariño, Stellenbosch, South Africa 2023
95 points, Value Gold
Charming Granny Smith and juicy stone fruit characters with a hallmark saline boost. Chalky and mineral on the palate with a gorgeous mandarin twist on the finish. Alc 13.5%
Vernice, Glam, Fiano di Avellino, Campania, Italy 2023
95 points, Value Gold
Expressive pineapple, melon and passionfruit tropics amidst a zesty tone of aromatic citrus. Bright and lively with mineral fresh acidity and an enduring almond finish. Alc 13.5%
Vignobles Luc Schweitzer, Château Bourdieu, Blaye Côtes de Bordeaux, Bordeaux, France 2023
95 points, Value Gold
Brooding blackcurrant, black cherry and cassis combine beautifully with fine tobacco and cedar notes. Persistent and concentrated with satin tannins and supporting acidity. Long and finessed. Alc 14.5%