Gold for Finland at the Concours Lyon 2019

For only the fourth time ever, a Finnish wine has been honored with a gold medal in a major international competition.  Ainoa Sametti, made from wild Finnish blueberries earned the first gold for Finland at the International Eastern Wine competition in Sonoma California in 2016.  But since then, Vaapukka has been the star performer, earning golds at the Vinalies Internationales 2017 in Paris, at the San Francisco International Wine Competition 2017, and now at the Concours Lyon 2019.  At the Vinalies competition, it received the 11th highest score overall of the 3500+ wines competing, the vast majority of them traditional grape wines.  Vaapukka is also the only wine from the Nordic region to ever win a trophy in France.

The consistency of its performance in international events, even across different vintages, confirms Vaapukka is something truly special.  It exemplifies the ideals of the new Nordic cuisine; using local ingredients to create an extraordinary taste experience.  Unlike beers or distilled drinks, where the biggest impact on quality is the skill of the maker, for wines quality is mostly determined by the ingredients used.  There is no shortage of raspberries in Finland, but Ainoa is so demanding about the berries used that the winery has never been able to produce large quantities of Vaapukka.  It is one reason founders Paola Guerrero de Cohen and David Cohen are so excited about Ainoa’s new home in Hollola; the winery farm has fields suitable for growing raspberries that meet the standards they require.  Estate production is expected to eventually supplement the supply they now get from farms in Huruksela and Kärköla.

Vaapukka is served in top restaurants around Finland.  Bottles can be purchased at the Helsinki Airport Duty Free stores by international travelers and at the winery itself later this year when Ainoa opens its own wine shop.