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Rhône winemaker Jean-Louis Chave was awarded the Winemaker's Winemaker Award at ProWein in Düsseldorf. This prize, awarded by the Institute of Masters of Wine (IMW), has recognised outstanding achievements in winemaking since 2011.
What makes it special is that the jury is made up of fellow winemakers, all of whom are Masters of Wine (MW), and previous award winners.
Jean-Louis Chave represents the 16th generation of a family that has been making wines in the Northern Rhône Valley for over 500 years. Among the 15 hectares of vineyards they own, the Hermitage site is the most famous. At the award ceremony, Chave said: "I am very proud to receive this award, especially because it is given by the Masters of Wine, whom I admire so much. It's impossible to make a wine from a vineyard that doesn't inspire you, and a good winemaker should convey a sense of place in their wine. It's more than a technique, it's a deep understanding of the terroir and its history that I try to express in my wines."
Jean-Louis Chave's predecessors as award winners are: Peter Sisseck (2011), Peter Gago (2012), Paul Draper (2013), Anne-Claude Leflaive (2014), Egon Müller (2015), Alvaro Palacios (2016), Eben Sadie (2017), Jean-Claude Berrouet (2018) and Angelo Gaja (2019). The prize was not awarded in 2020 and 2021.
(al / Source and photo: drinksbusiness.com)