Keels Creek Winery wins medals

"These wines were top notch," said Bob Foster, director of the Mid-American Wine Competition. "Consumers ought to track them down and enjoy them."

The competition was held July 13-15 and included wines from 15 Midwestern states.

More than 600 wines were entered by more than 100 different wineries. Professional wine judges from throughout the United States awarded 104 gold medals, 190 silver medals, and 183 bronze medals. Full results of the competition can be found at www.midamericanwine.org.

"While wines in the Midwest have grown in prestige and success in national wine competitions, we believe that by focusing strictly upon the wines of our region, we can bring to greater prominence the best of the area, and identify up and coming success stories as well," said Chief Judge Doug Frost of Kansas City. "It conclusively demonstrates that the Midwest is making top notch wines."
In selecting judges, emphasis was placed upon finding experts in wine production, wine service and wine distribution. The judges were selected by Frost, who is one of only three persons in the world to earn both the coveted Master of Wine degree and the Master Sommelier title.

The judging panel included a mix of seasoned professionals and a select group of local wine judges who passed a strenuous Judges Qualifying Exam. The judges have over 200 years of cumulative judging experience.

"The local volunteers who made this competition possible, were some of the finest, hard-working people I have ever met," said MAWC Director Bob Foster, who has been running California wine competitions for over 25 years. "They were superb and made the competition possible. They were flawless."