On the day of the competition, the panels are seated in the tasting rooms under the supervision of event organisers, who ensure that everything runs smoothly. These rooms are calm, well-insulated, well-lit and properly aerated. Access is strictly forbidden to any person whose presence is not required for the competition. The environment is carefully regulated for smells, noise and temperature (18-22°C/62-72°F). Smoking is prohibited. The wines are poured in the tasting room with the judges present.
Tasting is done blind. The identity of each wine is hidden by covering the bottle and label and by using unmarked stoppers. Wine samples are presented in standard tasting glasses. Each wine is tasted individually, not comparatively. Prior to the start of the official tasting, the judges taste a wine to prepare the palate.
Tasting sessions are held in the morning only. Each day, no more than 20 samples are presented to the tasters. Judges are seated at individual tables and are instructed to remain silent during the tasting. The wine score sheets are precise and specific. After sensory analysis of the wine sample, each judge ticks a box on the sheet to indicate his/her assessment of each characteristic.
All comments and qualitative assessments are indicated in a special box. The expert judges do not have to add up scores and therefore can focus all their attention on evaluating the wine.
All tasters at Alliances du Monde® are experienced professionals from throughout the world. Men and women, oenologists, wine stewards, retailers, grape growers, formally trained wine tasters, wine merchants and wine journalists from all continents: they give the competition its multicultural dimension, and they ensure the international legitimacy of its results.
To become an expert judge at Alliances du Monde, all the tasters are trained in tasting methodology as a part of a sensory analysis course specifically applied to Alliances du Monde wines.At the end of each competition, the expert judges are evaluated, and each receives an individual assessment of his/her participation.
These expert judges comply strictly with the standards for international wine competitions and for Quality Assurance (ISO 9002).
Is an oganisation of the association Forum Œnologie