17th annual Platinum Judging begins today

KENNEWICK, Wash. – The 17th annual Platinum Judging takes place for the next three days in the heart of Washington wine country.

The competition, staged by Wine Press Northwest magazine, is an invitational-style judging limited to wines that have won gold medals at any of about 50 wine competitions conducted around the world. Wine from Washington, Oregon, British Columbia and Idaho form the field.

Typically, the Platinum – known as “the best of the best in the Great Northwest” – draws 500 to 600 entries. This year’s judging has about 550 entries.

The results of the 17th annual Platinum Judging will be released in the Winter issue of Wine Press Northwest, which comes out around Christmas.

The judges for this year’s Platinum Judging are:

• Hank Sauer, longtime member of Wine Press Northwest’s tasting panel.
• April Reddout, wine program director at the Walter Clore Wine & Culinary Center in Prosser, Wash.
• Parks Redwine of Atlanta, Ga., owner and director of the Northwest Wine Summit, one of the largest wine judgings in the Pacific Northwest.
• Dan Berger of Santa Rosa, Calif., owner and director of the Dan Berger International Wine Competition, formerly the Riverside International Wine Competition.
• Ellen Landis, a certified sommelier, wine educator and international wine judge. She is the former owner of Landis Shores in Half Moon Bay, Calif., and has recently relocated to the Vancouver, Wash., area.
• Ken Landis, a professional chef and international wine judge. He lives in Vancouver, Wash.
• Kristine Bono, tasting room manager for Goose Ridge Estate Winery in Richland, Wash., and is a longtime member of the Great Northwest Wine tasting panel.
• Heather Unwin, former executive director of the Red Mountain AVA Alliance, now teaches wine marketing at Walla Walla Community College and Washington State University. She is a longtime member of the Great Northwest Wine tasting panel.
• Ken Robertson, a retired newspaper editor, has been writing about Northwest wine since the 1970s. He is a columnist for Wine Press Northwest magazine and is a longtime member of Great Northwest Wine’s tasting panel.
• Gregg McConnell is the editor and publisher of Wine Press Northwest magazine and is publisher and president of the Tri-City Herald in Kennewick, Wash.

The moderators for this judging are:

• Eric Degerman is the president and CEO of Great Northwest Wine and former managing editor of Wine Press Northwest magazine. He is an international wine judge.
• Andy Perdue is the editor and publisher of Great Northwest Wine and wine columnist for The Seattle Times. He is the founding editor of Wine Press Northwest magazine and judges up and down the West Coast.

The judging is taking place at the Clover Island Inn in beautiful, historic downtown Kennewick, Wash.

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