All the medallists from the Global Orange Wine Masters 2025

Much more than a quirky niche for wine geeks, orange wines are hitting new heights of drinking pleasure and reaping the rewards, says Siobhan Turner MW.

ONCE AGAIN, I was in the fortunate position of tasting a small but wonderful group of wines in the Orange category. Of the 22 wines we tasted, every single one of them was awarded (and justifiably so) a medal, of which nine, or more than 40%, were ranked at Gold or above. This is an astonishing hit rate, and it is also worth mentioning that not a single wine was faulty. As a category, there is clearly a great deal of care and attention being put into every stage of producing these wines, and they are delicious and delightful as a result.

Five countries submitted wines, with France the largest representative (eight), followed by Austria (seven) and Italy (five). The Grand Master was Argentina’s sole entry, an absolute joy of a wine from Susana Balbo.

A Master medal went to a wine from the top end of the Gérard Bertrand stable. It’s worth noting that Bertrand alone entered six wines, of which, in addition to the Master, there were three Gold winners. His quality and range are exceptional. Golds also came from Austria and from a Sardinian wine, made from Semidano grapes, which are usually used for sweet, passito wines, but which clearly adapt well to this style.

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The two Masters were noticeably more expensive than the other wines, but Golds came from all price categories except the under-£10 level. There were, in fact, only two entries in this entry-level price tier, reflecting the impact of increased duty rates and inflationary pressures on wine. Both under-£10 wines were sparkling, and delivered a Silver for Luis Felipe Edwards (Chile) and a Bronze for Gérard Bertrand (France), as well as a great deal of pleasure in the glass to accompany their bargain status.

Exciting and enticing

Overall, the orange wine category is proving exciting and enticing. A colleague noted that he felt the oaked wines worked best, and certainly they had a higher concentration of the Gold medals (as well as both Masters), but this could be because these tended to be the higher-priced and, presumably, better-sourced and generally cared-for wines. It is evident that this category does highlight the care taken in the vineyard and winery. This introduction cannot close without another nod to the work of Gérard Bertrand, leading the world in this category, and doing so from a position of immense care and quality. Without exception, these wines were a pleasure to taste, many of them being true delights I shall actively seek out for my own imbibing. As a wine judge, it is easy to become cynical or blasé – but Bertrand’s wines are the best collective antidote to that cynicism that I have yet encountered.

Sparkling Brut (Under 12g/l)

Unoaked Still Orange

Oaked Still Orange