The International Wine and Spirit Competition (IWSC) announced the winners of 2015 at its Annual Awards Banquet which took place at the Guildhall, London, on 26th November. Big winners on the night included South Africa�s Kanonkop Wine Estate, Marks & Spencer, Kent�s Gusbourne Estate and London Wine Bar, Sager + Wilde.

Celebrating its 46th year, the IWSC was the first competition of its kind and is now renowned for its rigorous seven month judging process which includes a double blind tasting and chemical analysis. Truly international in its reach, entrants are judged from all over the world by over 300 experts from 30 different countries.

Having dedicated the best part of the last half century to the pursuit and promotion of excellence in the wine and spirit industry, the Annual IWSC Awards Banquet gathers influential figures from across the industry to celebrate the coups of the best brands and personalities of the wine and spirit world.

The evening, which won Best Awards Event at The Conference Awards this year, included a five course banquet with winner�s wine pairings, speeches and the official presentation of its 2015 winners. It was also the culmination of the year for 2015 President, CEO of Australian Vintage, Neil McGuigan.

Ewan Lacey, IWSC General Manager said:�”The IWSC remains true to its core objective of seeking and rewarding excellence and as another year draws to a close, it�s fantastic to meet together in recognition of the achievements which have been made. I want to extend a heartfelt thank you to all of our winners, guests and sponsors who make evenings like tonight possible and say a big congratulations to all trophy winners.”

Highlights from this year�s winners include:

Marks & Spencer – Retailer of the Year Award and Wine Buyer of the Year Award
Michael & Charlotte Sager-Wilde – Julian Brind Memorial Trophy for Outstanding Achievement in the Wine Industry
Abrie Beeslaar, Kanonkop – Winemaker of the Year Award
Gusbourne Estate – English Wine Producer of the Year Award
South Downs Cellars – Independent Retailer of the Year Award
Matt Walls – Blogger of the Year Award
Tyson Stelzer & Joseph Bastianich – Communicator of the Year Award