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Rules of entry


Entering the Competition

 
  • Entrant can enter the Competition by submitting an Entry Form, paying the Entry Fee and delivering the Entry to Decanter. Entries that do not arrive by the entry deadline cannot be refunded or credited.
  • Decanter accepts no responsibility for Entry Forms unsuccessfully submitted.
  • Four (4) samples of each Entry must be submitted to Decanter. An exception to this is Bag in Box and Wine Pouches where only two (2) samples are required per entry.
  • Where the same Entry is submitted by more than one Entrant, each of Entrants’ stockists’ details will be featured equally in the report of the tasting. Entry Fees for multiple entries will not be refunded.
  • An Entry will not be included in the Competition where the Entry Fee has not been received by Decanter by the deadline.
  • No refund or credit of an Entry Fee will be given in any circumstances, including circumstances in which an Entry is disqualified, withdrawn, lost or damaged or does not arrive in time.

Criteria for Entries

 

Entries must:

  • be made exclusively from the partial or complete alcoholic fermentation of fresh grapes, whether crushed or not, or of grape must;
  • with the exception of sweet wines, have an actual alcohol content of not less than 5% in volume;
  • have a minimum production quantity of 600 litres (66 cases) available to the market, with the exception of sweet and fortified wines, which must have a minimum production quantity of 450 litres (50 cases);
  • be finished and in their final container; and not be tank samples;
  • be sealed with the same closure as the final, commercially available wine;
  • be contained in a 750ml bottle, with the exception of sweet and fortified wines, which may be contained in 250ml,375ml, or 500ml bottles and sparkling wines which may be contained in 1.5ltr bottles and Vin Jaune from the Jura, which may be contained in a 62-cl bottle
    OR
    • Bag in Box (up to 3L) - quantity required: 2
    • Wine Pouch (up to 3L)- quantity required: 2
    • Aluminium Can - quantity required: 4
    • Carton (eg. Tetra Pak) - quantity required: 4
    • Paper Bottle (up to 1L) - quantity required: 4
    • PET Bottle (up to 1L) - quantity required: 4
  • be labelled in accordance with EU legislation in force from time to time, including (i) the geographical area of origin; (ii) the product category; (iii) the producer details; (iv) the nominal volume; (v) actual alcoholic strength; and (vi) a Lot number.
  • If the front and back labels for the vintage submitted are not yet available, Entrant must not use the label from the previous vintage. Instead, please use a temporary label bearing the following information:
    • name of producer
    • name of wine
    • vintage (where applicable)
    • country of origin
    • region of origin (where applicable)
    • sub-region (where applicable)
    • bottle size
    • alcoholic strength
    • Lot number
  • Entries may be produced entirely in one country and then bottled in another.
  • Any wine that is produced for commercial availability anywhere in the world can enter, with the exception of fruit-flavoured wines which will not be accepted.
  • There is no limit to the number of entries which may be submitted by an Entrant.
  • In the event that Entrant is not the producer of the Entries, Entrant warrants that it has all necessary consents and permissions to enter the Entry into the Competition. Entrant will indemnify Decanter for any claims which arise as a result of Entrant submitting an Entry which it does not have the authority to submit.

Retail Pricing

 
  • Retail prices are taken into consideration when judging the Entries. Entrants must provide the correct free on board (“FOB”)/Ex-cellar price or select the correct retail price band per bottle.
  • The FOB/Ex-cellar price is the price charged by the producer to the wholesaler. The FOB/Ex-cellar price does not include any of the following costs: (i) freight costs, (ii) operating costs; (iii) profit margins (distributor and retailer); or (iv) Duty and VAT.
  • Decanter will convert the FOB/Ex-cellar price using the standard industry conversion formula to a retailer’s suggested price.
  • All FOB/Ex-cellar prices are kept confidential and are for Decanter internal use only to ensure Entries are judged in the right category and will not be published or passed onto a third party.
  • The FOB/Ex-cellar price and the retail price band must be per bottle, not case of 6 or 12.
  • The FOB/Ex-cellar price or the retail price band per bottle quoted at the time of entry must accurately represent the Entry’s predicted retail price and not a discounted or promotional price and must be valid for 6 months after publication of the Competition results.
  • Any major discrepancies between the FOB/Ex-cellar price or the retail price per bottle quoted at the time of entry and the eventual retail price, except for factors outside of Entrant’s control (including tax and duty), may result in the Entry’s medal being withdrawn, and future participation in the Competition may be prohibited.
  • Winning entries judged in the retail price band A category may be marketed as Value Wine, e.g. Value Gold.

Payment

 

  • The Entry Fee may be paid online by credit or debit card at the time of submitting the Entry Form via the Competition Platform.
  • The Entry Fee may also be paid by cheque or bank transfer in accordance with the payment instructions contained in the invoice made available for download after submission of the Entry Form via the Competition Platform. Additional fees apply to payment by cheque or bank transfer. Entrants must bear all applicable bank charges for remittance (if any).
  • The deadline for payment of the Entry Fee is indicated on the Website. An Entry will not be included in the Competition where the Entry Fee has not been received by Decanter by the deadline.
  • No refund or credit of an Entry Fee will be given in any circumstances, including circumstances in which an Entry is disqualified, withdrawn, lost or damaged or does not arrive in time.

Delivery

 
  • It is Entrant’s responsibility to ensure that the four (4) bottles of each Entry are delivered to Decanter in accordance with the deadlines detailed on the Website.
  • Entrant may deliver the Entries:
    • directly to the Decanter Warehouse (please click here for more information);
    • to the Shipping Agent’s depot for consolidated shipment (please click here for more information)
    • hand delivered to the Decanter stand at specified trade fairs (please click here for more information)
  • Please go to ‘Shipping Options’ for further terms, fees and restrictions.
  • Entries that arrive after the deadline dates or that are delivered to the Decanter office in London will not be accepted.
  • Decanter recommends the use of its Shipping Agent. This will be a more cost effective method and will help ensure the safe arrival of the Entry.
  • If using the Shipping Agent, please ensure you select the consolidated shipping option when submitting your Entry, as an additional payment is required if using this service.
  • If Entrant is unable to use the Shipping Agent, Decanter recommends that Entrant uses a shipper that allows Entrant to track its delivery to confirm that its Entry has arrived.
  • It is Entrant’s responsibility to contact the Shipping Agent or its courier company to confirm the delivery deadline, address and documentation required.
  • Entrant will be responsible for payment of all delivery charges, duties, taxes, insurances. All such charges must be paid by Entrant in advance of receipt of the Entry by Decanter.
  • If Entrant is sending wines from the European Union, Entrant will have to pay excise and duty before sending the Entries to the UK.
  • Entrant must inform its courier that Entrant, as the consignor or sender, will pay all duties, VAT, and tax, otherwise the Entries will not be accepted by the Logistic Partner.
  • Entries must be Delivered Duty Paid (DDP). Instructions to complete the import declaration should be given to Entrant’s forwarder/courier company by Entrant. Entrant must choose ‘shipper accept all charges’ on the documentation provided by Entrant’s courier company. Entrants are responsible for any fees related to the import declaration. Entries cannot be accepted by our Logistic Partner if the charges associated with shipping have not been paid. Any penalty and additional cost incurred from the non-compliance of declaration requirement in the UK will be borne by Entrant.
  • The Logistic Partner does not have an excise number.
  • It is Entrant’s responsibility to ensure that Entries arrive in good condition.
  • Entrant must complete and affix the delivery label, which can be downloaded by Entrant in its online account after submission of the Entry Form, on the outside of the box. Entrant must indicate the name of its company and the Entry on the outside of the box to assist the Logistic Partner in correctly identifying the Entry when it arrives.
  • Entrant can check the status of its delivery by logging in to its online account.
  • Decanter will notify Entrant in case of discrepancies between the Entry received and the Entry in Entrant’s online account. If Decanter does not hear from Entrant within the deadline, Decanter will use the information on the Entry label on the bottles received by Decanter and update the Entry in the Decanter system accordingly. Once the Entries are judged, no changes can be made to the Entry
  • The Entries will be transported at Entrant’s risk and it will be Entrant’s responsibility to arrange adequate insurance. Decanter and the Logistic Partner will not be liable for any loss or damage to the Entries whatsoever whilst the Entries are in the possession of Entrant, the Shipping Agent, or at any stage during the delivery process.
  • Refunds will not be issued after the Competition deadline for any cancellations, late deliveries, or non-deliveries.
  • Upon completion of the Competition, any unopened Entries will be destroyed or sold to raise money for charities selected by Decanter. Leftover Entries will not be returned or available for collection.

Promoting winning Entries

 
  • Winning Entrants will be sent full details of how they can promote medal-winning Entries, including through Bottle Stickers and other point-of-sale material. Please click here for further information.
  • The Decanter word marks and logos (including the medals) are the property of Future Plc and any use of such marks by winning Entrants is under licence. Any unauthorised use, reproduction or alteration is strictly prohibited.
  • Winning Entrants may only use the Decanter logos accessible here on their printed and digital marketing material to publicise their winning Entries. The Decanter logos may not be used on bottles without prior written authorisation from Decanter.
  • Winning Entrants may purchase Bottle Stickers to promote their winning Entries. Bottle Stickers may only be purchased and used by winning Entrants.
  • Entrants agree that they will only use Decanter’s name, logo and Bottle Stickers to promote specific winning Entries and not to promote their whole range. Only the winning Entries may be promoted as winners of the Competition.
  • Medals may only be displayed against, and Bottle Stickers may only be affixed to, winning Entries of the appropriate medal and correct vintage from the relevant awarding year of the Competition. Furthermore, such wines must adhere to the same criteria (for example, Residual Sugar, Style, Oaking, Bottle Size etc.) as those selected for the Entry on the online Competition Platform.
  • If your Entry has multiple labels and/or names (eg. for use in different sales markets), notice must be sent to awardswinequeries@decanter.com and permission received to use the result and any associated medals for such wines. Such permission must be sought prior to the judging week. Permission will not be given to use an Entry’s result in such a way after the commencement of the judging week. Please note it is Decanter policy that, even if a wine is bottled under multiple labels, it is
    only allowed one opportunity to be evaluated by our judges; multiple entries are not allowed.
  • Entrants must at all times comply with the Brand Guidelines accessible here, and any instructions provided by Decanter from time to time, when using Decanter’s name, logos and Bottle Stickers.
  • When publicising their award, winning Entrants must always state the year in which it was won. No changes can be made to the name and details of the winning Entry after close of the Competition.
  • Winning Entrants will be able to download their certificates via their online account.
  • Unauthorised use, reproduction or alteration of the Decanter word marks, logos, medals and Bottle Stickers may result in the medal being withdrawn and future participation in the Competition may be prohibited.

General

 
  • If there is any reason to believe that there has been a breach of these Rules, Decanter may, at its sole discretion, reserve the right to exclude Entrant from participating in the Competition.
  • Decanter may vary these Rules at any time without notice to Entrants. Any revision of these Rules will be placed on the Website without notice to Entrants.
  • The full version of the terms and conditions is available here.