Carluccio's summer of wine

Huge wines and huge prices, this was a category that seemed to be more about ego than elegance

With good value evident across the range and a variety of styles on show, there was something for every restaurant in these must-stock medal-winners

A poorly performing category in previous SWAs, this year sparkling rosé managed to provide a string of good examples across all the price points

The mid-weight wines of the North-East were the stars, but overall Italy succeeded in providing a wide range of good food-friendly reds at decent prices

Over 1,500 wines can be boiled down to this: the hallowed Sommelier Wine Awards Gold List for 2011...

Some good, food-friendly wines in here but very few, surprisingly, that were amazing value for money

Sparkling Wine & Champagne: Under £14

An interesting and diverse category, Tuscany seemed to have everything from ‘affordable and local’ to ‘blinged up and international’

High quality came hand in hand with high prices, with the best examples combining a strong regional character with a more approachable modernity

The Sommelier Wine Awards doesn’t give out trophies per category because we’re worried that tasters will feel under pressure to dispense extra awards in categories where they may not believe the wines are up to it. Instead, in keeping with the whole ethos of the competition, we leave the judgement up to the sommeliers…

With screwcaps to the fore, the quality of the whites (particularly) and the reds here was amazing for the price. Rosé was another matter entirely

A raft of interesting, characterful wines stuffed with meaty terroir-goodness is turning the image of Italian whites on its head. But, says Simon Woods, if you’re going to get the most out of them, you need to throw out the rulebook

A lot of entries, but also a lot of character, quality and food friendliness. On this evidence, the first place to stop if you’re trying to revamp your wine list

A good performance from Italy’s most famous region, with the more traditional styles tending to win out over more modern interpretations