This year’s panel includes experts from leading companies such as Bibendum Wine, Berkmann Wine Cellars, Enotria Winecellars Ltd, LWC Drinks, Keeling Andrew, Noble Rot, Shrine to the Vine, Vinos Latinos, Made in Little France Import Limited, Cheers Wine Merchants, Yapp Brothers Ltd, Wanderlust Wine, Good Pair Days, Raeburn Fine Wines and Ultracomida. 

These esteemed professionals bring unparalleled expertise and market knowledge, ensuring that the awarded wines reflect the highest standards of quality, value, and packaging. Their collective insight guarantees that the competition identifies wines that resonate with both trade professionals and consumers alike.

"We are thrilled to have an expanded judging panel for the 2025 London Wine Competition, including not only sommeliers and on-trade experts but also top importers, distributors, and off-trade fine wine merchants. These professionals are at the forefront of the wine industry, making critical decisions about what wines make it to the market and onto consumers' tables. By including their expertise, we ensure the awarded wines are not only exceptional in quality but also commercially viable and appealing to buyers at every level of the supply chain. This evolution reflects our commitment to recognizing wines that truly excel in all aspects—quality, value, and packaging—while staying relevant to the demands of the trade and end consumers."

Here are some of the key wine experts who will be joining the London Wine Competition judging panel:

Valeria Rodriguez AIWS Head of Fine Wine Bibendum Wine

Svetoslav Manolev MS Regional Sales Manager at Berkmann Wine Cellars

Carla Bertellotti Managing Director at Vinos Latinos

Joshua Castle Group Head Buyer For Keeling Andrew, Noble Rot, and Shrine to the Vine

Bianca Ford, Operations Director and Buyer at Yapp Brothers Ltd

Paul Grimwood Buyer and Founder of Spanish Importer and Retailing Group Ultracomida-Spanish Wines.

David Harvey Wine Importer at Raeburn Fine Wines

Maxence Masurier Director & Founder at Made In Little France Import Limited

Dafydd Morris Director, Cheers Wine Merchants, UK

Sara Rossi Trade Sales Manager at Vine Trail

Kathrine Larsen Robert MS Premium Wine Ambassador at Enotria Winecellars Ltd

The London Wine Competition has worked in the last few years to build up the pedigree of its judges and to ensure they all have direct buying responsibilities and understand the disciplines by which certain wines are chosen to go on a wine list or in the distributor's portfolio or on retail shelves or not. It is those skills that the event is looking for in order to pick out the most commercial as well as best quality drinks being entered into the competition.

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Along with the importers, distributors, and fine merchants, the London Wine Competition judging panel includes leading Masters of Wine, Master Sommeliers and Top Wine Directors like Matteo Montone MS, Claire Blackler MW, Philipp Reinstaller, Vincenzo Arnese, Beatrice Bessi, Filipe Bhering Reis, Maria Boumpa, Salvatore Castano, Christopher Delalonde MS, Yves Desmaris MS, Giovanni Ferlito MCA, Matteo Furlan DipWSET and Georgios Iordanidis. View the full list of judges here.

Also Read:
The Making of a Winner: What London Wine Competition’s Judge Yves Desmaris MS, Look for in Top Wines
The Making of a Winner: What London Wine Competition’s Judge Eric Zwibel MS, Looks for in Top Wines
London Wine Competition Introduces New Special Category Awards