Wine Master of the Week: Château Ksara

We at team db want to celebrate the very best bottles from our Global Masters series. Every Wednesday, we select a wine that picked up either a Gold or Master from our competition series, and tell you why the judges loved it.

Key to the concept of our Global Masters competitions is the chance to draw attention to the unusual, as well as confirm the reputation of the established. This is because the tasting format see us assess wines from right around the world according to style, grape variety and price, but not source region, ensuring that the judges are focused on one thing: a quality assessment of the sample in front of them.

And it was in our recent Chardonnay Masters that we unearthed a brilliant wine at an affordable price, which we later found out, was from an unexpected source. In fact, it was from Lebanon, and, in my view, represents one of the best-value Chardonnays money can buy. Hailing from Château Ksara in the Bekaa Valley, this barrel-fermented wine, called Cuvée du Pape, has all the hallmarks of great Chardonnay: a touch of stone fruit, an edgy lemon-like acidity, a slightly oily texture, and a lovely cashew nut richness.

Delicious served chilled on its own, or with strongly flavoured foods, this is a hugely versatile, quite powerful white wine, that has plenty of personality, without being too intense to enjoy in any quantity.

The wine: Château Ksara Chardonnay Cuvée du Pape

The source: Bekaa Valley, Lebanon

The grape(s): Chardonnay

The style: Barrel-aged still white wine made from Chardonnay

The price: £10-15

The medal: Gold – The Global Chardonnay Masters, 2018

Thanks to the quality of the judges and the sampling process, the Global Wine Masters provides an unrivalled chance to draw attention to hidden gems, as well as confirm the excellence of the renowned.

Indeed, it is a competition dedicated to one thing: making winners out of winemakers.

Please visit the Global Masters website for more information, or please call +44 (0)20 7803 2420 or email Sophie Raichura at: sophie@thedrinksbusiness.com