Wine Style Asia Award enters alliance with Spanish wine challenge Seventh edition celebrates excellence in wines with new collaboration

For Immediate Release

Singapore, 25 May 2010

 The Wine Style Asia Award (WSAA), the wine competition held in conjunction with the Wine for Asia (WFA) trade exhibition, has entered an alliance with CINVE (Concurso Internacional Vinos Y Espirituosos), or International Wine & Spirits Contest, held in Spain.
CINVE is a contest officially recognised by the Spanish Ministry of the Environment and Rural and Marine Affairs, and is endorsed by the Regional Government Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries of Andalusia.
For a start, WSAA and CINVE have agreed to promote the winners of their respective contests,
hence increasing the exposure for participants. The alliance is expected to be strengthened with
further developments in the future.
WFA is the largest international wine exhibition in Southeast Asia and among the most outstanding in Asia. Organised by MP Wine Resources Pte Ltd, it will be held from 28 to 29 October at Marina Bay Sands Expo and Convention Centre.
Ms Maria Isabel Mijares, Vice-President of the International Federation of Wines and Spirits
Journalists and Writers, and who is the Technical Director for CINVE 2010, will also be on the
panel of judges for WSAA 2010.
Said Mr Malcolm Tham, Programme Director, WSAA: “We are delighted that a prestigious wine
competition from Europe has allied itself with us. It is mutual recognition of the high standards that we have respectively set for our competitions. It will also be a good platform for wines that have done well in the WSAA, to be promoted at CINVE, and vice versa.”
“CINVE is confident that our alliance with WSAA will be beneficial for both shows. The exchange of experiences will prove to be bountiful for all participants. We look forward to working closely with WSAA to promote higher standards for the international wine community,” said Mr Jesus M Guirau, President, CINVE 2010.
WSAA celebrates top quality wines for the Asian palate and market. The competition acknowledges innovative achievements in wine making, profiles international wines to the dynamic Asian market and connects wine exporters to Asian wine consumers.
With wine consumption in Asia Pacific expected to rise by some 25 per cent between 2009 and
2013, and the value of wine sales in the region set to increase from US$4.75 billion in 2009 to
US$6.4 billion by 2011 (source: International Wine and Spirit Record), the Asia market represents a booming opportunity for wine makers and distributors.
Wine Style Asia Award enters Alliance with Spanish wine challenge Panel of international wine judges A panel of distinguished wine experts has been invited to judge the wines for the upcoming competition this October. The WSAA panel consists of both international and regional judges. 
The former bring their international judging experience while the latter represents the expectations of the Asian markets.
Heading the WSAA panel is wine guru John Chua, a well-known international wine judge and
accredited lecturer for L'Ecole du Vin de Bordeaux for Asia. The other professionals on the panel
are not only influential figures in the wine community who have judged international and regional
competitions, but they are also expert columnists and contributors to leading wine publications, and bring a wealth of knowledge and experience to the panel. They will include judges from Australia, China, Thailand, Malaysia and Singapore.
The judges will award based on sight, nose, taste and overall impression. Quality wines which
express good and appropriate flavour intensity, balance between the key elements in the wine and a good length and quality in aftertaste, will be awarded the trophy, gold, silver or bronze medals.
Wines will be grouped according to region, style, grape varieties, vintages and price points before the judging. Only grape varietals and vintages are revealed to the judges. The scoring system is based on a 100-point system. Not more than 10% of the total submission will be awarded a trophy or gold and not more than 45% of the total submission will be awarded a medal.
To ensure smooth and hassle-free submission, an online platform has been set up to facilitate the entire application process. Wine makers who wish to submit their wines for the competition can register their wines and pay the relevant fees for each label submitted through the website.
In WSAA 2009, there were 520 entries received, with eight of them receiving the coveted Trophy
Award. Additionally, there were 27 Gold Platinum, 2 Gold Classic, 99 Silver and 145 Bronze
winners.
More information is available at www.winestyleasiaaward.com.