Amateur Wine Competition
REGISTRATION WILL OPEN SOON.
Entering the Amateur Competition
Fee: $35.00 per entry.
There are discounts for AWS Members and those who do not wish to receive medals.
Rules and Information (see Competition Brochure for complete rules)
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- The competition is open to amateur winemakers.
- Pre-Registration is required and entry forms must be received by October 8, 2026.
- One 750ml is required for competition (in one or multiple containers).
- Wine must be delivered between September 1 and October 8, 2026 to the designated receiving point.
- The judging panels consist of American Wine Society-trained judges and industry professionals.
- Judging will be done in a blind tasting.
- All wine categories are eligible to win the following awards: Double Gold, Gold, Silver, and Bronze.
- Winners will be announced at the AWS National Conference on October 23, 2026.
- The competition results will be published in an upcoming edition of the AWS Newsletter and posted on the AWS website.
Use our On-line Entry Page or see below for hardcopy entry.
Hardcopy Entry
Mail-in entries are available from AWC@AmericanWineSociety.org.
Mail to: American Wine Society, PO Box 889, Scranton, PA 18501
(Please do NOT enclose payment in your shipment of samples for evaluation).
Payment: Check or money order should be made payable to: American Wine Society.
VISA, MasterCard, American Express and Discover cards are also accepted.
2025 Best Wine Label
Geisling is by Jeffrey Fisher and Donna Lombardo Fisher
Judging amateur wines
All wines entered in the Amateur Competition are evaluated, blind and by consensus, by the same top-rated professional judges overseeing the Commercial Wine Competition. These judges are chosen from a broad range of industry experts and include those trained and certified by the American Wine Society, many who are current or former home wine makers.
Judges use the same guidelines and evaluation techniques that are applied to the Commercial Wine Competition, with one important difference: the score sheets and critique comments are returned to the amateur winemakers. These written comment sheets are often more valuable to the amateur winemaker than winning an award, as they can include suggestions on how to make improvements or enhance the characteristics of the wines. This very useful service makes the American Wine Society Amateur Competition an instructive tool, as well as an awards program. In addition, the Society provides a database for home winemakers, which allows them to track progress from year to year.
Winning wines receive American Wine Society medals, posting on the American Wine Society website and publicity in American Wine Society publications. Best of Class award winners also are recognized at an awards ceremony at the National Conference.
Amateur Wine Competition Chair:
Susan Whisenhunt awc@americanwinesociety.org
About the American Wine Society Amateur Wine Competition
An American Wine Society amateur wine competition has been an integral part of the National Conference for almost as long as the Society has existed.
In the late 1960s, the Society’s founders addressed home winemakers’ interests in the organization’s first “Constitution.” The founders stated that a purpose of the American Wine Society shall be “to foster the production of wine by home winemakers and to provide means for such amateurs to meet to exchange information and experience, and to compare and judge their products.”
A competition evolved as an opportunity for American Wine Society home winemakers to showcase their creations and have them judged by their peers. Today, the competition requires year-long preparation, dedicated volunteers, and a refined system of computers and human resources to handle operational details. To cover costs of the program, participating wine makers are charged an entry fee.
