The historic Guildhall in the City of London is the setting for this year’s International Wine and Spirit Competition.

New Zealand wine producers have until August 26 to get their entries in front of the competition organisers.

Noted as the world’s most prestigious independent wine competition, the International Wine & Spirit Competition (IWSC), claims to be the only competition of its kind that conducts a fully blind tasting where judges see only numbered glasses, followed by extensive chemical analysis.

The judging is conducted under EU accredited processes with panels selected from more than 300 qualified experienced industry judges representing the full breadth of the trade.

It takes places over a six-month period enabling the IWSC to judge current vintages and making the results indicative of the marketplace.

This year the IWSC is moving the local tasting round for South African wine entries from London to Stellenbosch. This initiative will reduce shipping costs for producers and ensure winners from South Africa benefit from a higher profile on a local and global level.

Allen Gibbons, IWSC Managing Director said; “We at the IWSC are constantly striving to offer producers further added value each year, as the new judging procedure for South African and the continuation of the highly successful US judging demonstrate.

It’s not easy to win an IWSC award and we understand that for producers, winning is only the beginning. Once achieved, we work with the producers to help build brands and drive sales by communicating these triumphs to the trade and press around the world and we provide all our winners with complimentary marketing materials and exposure on our website to help them achieve the recognition they deserve. It has been impressive to see the spread of IWSC medals available in the UK retailers.”

To enter the competition, go to www.iwsc.net.

The International Wine and Spirit Competition was founded in 1969 and its aim is to promote the quality and excellence of the world's best wines, spirits and liqueurs.

All entries of wines, spirits and liqueurs are blind tasted in groups divided by variety, region and vintage as necessary. Awards are made on a points system and sponsored trophies are presented in selected categories.