Renowned masters choose Turkey’s standout wines

ISTANBUL - Hürriyet Daily News

In the event, 17 Turkish wines were selected as ‘extraordinary wines.’ AFP photo

The “Masters of Wine Weekend Istanbul,” one of the most prestigious wine events in Turkey, brought together Turkish wine producers and international experts from May 3 to 7 in an effort to choose Turkey’s best wines.

Among the 320 wines from 43 different Turkish producers, 17 were selected as “extraordinary wines with high character and style” by the jury members.

The top wines were Kavaklıdere Pendore Syrah 2010 and Kavaklıdere Prestige Boğazkere 2004 with 92 points. Vinkara Doruk Boğazkere 2010, Suvla Sur 2010, Sevilen Magnesia KK 2011, Suvla Merlot 2010, Prodom Syrah-Kalecik Karası 2011 and Melen Shiraz Reserve 2010 all tied for second with 91 points.

The other wines on the best list were Kavaklıdere with four wines, Prodom, Sevilen, Suvla ve Vinkara with two wines each, as well as the Barbare, Doluca, Küp, Melen and Yazgan wines.

The event’s jury consisted of Tim Atkin, Charles Curtis, Peter McCombie, Ronn Wiegand, Sarah Abbott, Roger Bohmrich and Christy Canterbury.

Wine expert Yunus Emre Kocabaşoğlu said the event was designed to support the remarkable development of the Turkish wine sector.

Noting that the event was not a competition, he said: “Our goal is to present Turkish wines to world-renowned authorities and determine their general quality level and show our people that we have wines [good] enough to compete against world wines.”