Belgian sparkling wine Ruffus wins gold at the Brussels World Wine Competition

07/09/2017

You may have already heard about a top whiskey that costs less than € 20 a bottle? But did you also hear that the Belgian sparkling wine Ruffus won a gold medal at the Concours Mondial in Brussels? And that it only costs € 16.50 a bottle?

It is one of the most important competitions in the world. A few figures. The jury comprised 320 wine experts with 40 different nationalities, who tested around 9,000 samples of about 2,000 sparkling wines from 50 countries. The testers sit at tables in groups of 7. 'There have to be people of different nationalities because taste relates to culture', says wine maker Raymond Leroy, the delighted wine maker from the domain of Les Agaises near Binche. 'At each table, there must be a representative from each continent; one European, one African, one Asian, one American...'

Ruffus is a white sparkling wine made according to the Champagne method, on a limestone, south-facing slope which was ruled by a certain Mr Ruffus during the 12th century', according to the wine's website. It has a low sugar level (6g/l), on the cusp of being extra brut.

You can buy it from a regular sales point or from the domain itself. In both cases, you'd better be patient as it is rarely available from stock. At the domain itself, you can order a maximum of 6 bottles, and you must collect them. There will probably be a waiting time of between 6 months and 1.5 years.