It’s no walk in the park, making great wine: in fact, it relies on everything from the ripeness of the grapes to the quality of the soil, the climate, a good fermentation process, and even how the stuff is bottled.
Thankfully, there are marvellous vineyards all over the planet worrying about that so we don’t have to, and the most impressive of them all were just named by the World’s Best Vineyards at a ceremony at Nyetimber in West Sussex.
So, how was the winner decided? Well the top 50 list was compiled from all the nominations by the very official sounding global academy of voters. Each region of the world was headed up by an expert who recruited 36 wine and travel professionals, and they all voted for seven vineyards each.
Claiming the top spot was Bodegas De Los Herederos Del Marqués De Riscal, a stunning vineyard in Rioja, northern Spain. Founded in 1858, the winery is still known for producing cracking vino, but there’s also quite a dazzling luxury hotel onsite where you can overlook the vines.
In second place, it’s VIK in Chile, and in third place it’s Creation in South Africa. However, the list was (unsurprisingly) dominated by France, which claimed five of the top 25 spots – check out the rest of the list below.
These are the 25 best vineyards in the world
- Bodegas De Los Herederos Del Marqués De Riscal, Spain
- VIK, Chile
- Creation, South Africa
- Bodegas Ysios, Spain
- Fürst Von Metternich-Winneburg’sche Domäne Schloss Johannisberg, Germany
- Maison Ruinart, France
- Château Smith Haut Lafitte, France
- Abadía Retuerta, Spain
- Weingut Dr. Loosen, Germany
- Finca Victoria - Durigutti Family Winemakers, Argentina
- Bodega Garzón, Uruguay
- Champagne Bollinger, France
- Château d’Yquem, France
- Tenuta Cavalier Pepe, Italy
- Quinta do Crasto, Portugal
- Robert Mondavi Winery, USA
- Montes, Chile
- Bodegas Salentein, Argentina
- Viu Manent, Chile
- Ceretto, Italy
- Château Pape Clément, France
- Castello Banfi, Italy
- Bodega Muga, Spain
- Jordan Vineyard & Winery, USA
- Tenuta Castelbuono (Tenute Lunelli), Italy
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