Attention, wine lovers of the world! Wine Spectator has released the winners of the 2015 Restaurant Awards, which honor outstanding eateries with extraordinary wine lists. This year, the program recognized more than 3,600 restaurants from all over the globe.
Wine Spectator began its program to recognize the world’s best wine lists in 1981. There are three award levels: the Award of Excellence, the Best of Award of Excellence and the Grand Award—with 2,563; 973; and 81 winners this year in each respective category. Eight of the Grand Award winners are first timers, joining 73 others who have maintained their status as a top wine destination.
“Once again, Wine Spectator congratulates each and every Restaurant Award winner on a job well done,” said Marvin R. Shanken, Editor and Publisher, Wine Spectator. “With this year’s list spanning all 50 U.S. states and over 75 additional countries and territories, we hope wine lovers will use this issue, alongside WineSpectator.com’s Restaurant Awards database, as guides to finding the perfect restaurant for any occasion.”
A total of 2,563 restaurants earned the program’s Award of Excellence, which recognizes a wine list offering an interesting and diverse selection of wines that are well-presented and thematically match the restaurant’s cuisine in price and style. Another 973 restaurants earned the Best of Award of Excellence for offering a wine list of typically 350 or more quality selections with significant vintage depth or superior breadth in one or more major wine regions.
The Grand Award represents the program’s highest honor. Those in this elite group—representing 13 countries and 15 U.S. states—generally offer more than 1,000 selections, with superior breadth and depth in many of the world’s classic wine-producing regions. Wine Spectator carefully assesses each candidate, including rigorous independent, on-site inspections of the wine program, cellar, service, ambiance and cuisine of the restaurant.
The complete list of award winners is featured in the August 31 issue of Wine Spectator, available on newsstands July 21. The issue also features a detailed analysis of wine list trends and full profiles of this year’s new Grand Award winners. All of the restaurants can be found in WineSpectator.com’s Restaurant Search, which allows users to find information about their wine selections, cuisine, prices, key staff and more. Follow the Restaurant Awards on Twitter and Instagram, and join the conversation by using #WSRestaurantAward, #WSTopWineLists and #WSGrandAward.
