Results from the 2024 Nationals – Sparkling

Announcing the Results from the 2024 National Wine Awards of Canada

The 2024 Nationals took place in Niagara Falls from June 21st to 25th. Today, we are pleased to announce the winners in the Sparkling Wine category. Category results will be rolling out throughout the rest of July, with the final Platinum, Best Performing Small Winery, and Winery of the Year announcements at the end of the month. We hope that you will stay tuned to follow the results!

We’ve asked a few of our judges to summarize their impressions of each category. Today we are pleased to present the Sparkling winners.

Sparkling Wine

Category Overview by Judge Treve Ring

While global wine consumption has dropped overall in the past two years, fresh, fun, food-friendly sparkling wine, save for pricey Champagne, has bubbled upwards. The sparkling category exploded during the pandemic (bubbles for troubles?), especially with accessible and affordable offerings. Global quality continues to rise, and we see it constantly with Canadian wines, and very clearly with NWAC24.

One Platinum, to Ontario’s classic Henry of Pelham NV Cuvée Catharine Brut Rosé, was very closely followed by 14 Golds, split between BC and ON, and across various grapes and colours, though all traditional method. The balance between fruit and acidity was smartly handled in all (especially with Blanc de Noirs) and dosages in these wines were thankfully low. One of my favourites tasted throughout the week was from Nova Scotia’s Lightfoot & Wolfville 2018 Brut, standing out for its streaking, strident acidity and energy shaped by the Atlantic coast.

Overall there were nearly 100 medals awarded for sparkling wines this year, and I think that’s a very just result, considering the quality and diversity of style, place, and grape.

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