The Volcanic Wine Awards is the only international wine competition that focuses on wines from a single soil type. Born from dramatic geology and stony soils in places such as Santorini and the Azores, central France and Washington State, wines from volcanic soils can be some of the most compelling wines in the world.
The competition is open to all wines from volcanic-derived soils. Entrants will be judged blind by tasting panels organised and led by the team at JancisRobinson.com and Volcanic Wines International co-founder, John Szabo MS. Judges will be provided with only the vintage, region and variety(ies), with wines assessed according to regional expression and overall quality. Judges will designate the winners with bronze, silver and gold medals, and the competition chairs will elevate the most compelling volcanic wines to Best in Show.
We will feature the top wines of the tasting on this site, and also gather them in a celebration of volcanic wines during the fifth edition of the International Volcanic Wines Conference, taking place in New York City in June 2026. Stay tuned for dates and times.
If you're a wine producer or distributor interested in submitting wines, you can submit through our submissions portal. Please note that only wines from volcanic terroirs will be accepted.
Photo at top of John Szabo MS in the volcanic vineyards of Lanzarote, Canary Islands, courtesy John Szabo MS.