Best of Class for Black Star Farms

Mark Urban, The Record-Eagle, Traverse City, Mich.
·3 min read

Feb. 8—MIAMI — More than 550 wines from 125 different wineries accepted the invitation for the 16th annual American Fine Wine Competition.

The 2021 Arcturos Dry Riesling from Black Star Farms won Best in Class honors at the American Fine Wine Competition for the second consecutive year. The wine earned a score of 93 to win Dry Riesling category at the invitation-only event.

"The 2021 Arcturos Dry Riesling is a great representation of what this variety can do when conditions favor all of the crucial elements: plenty of sunshine and warmth, moisture at the right time throughout the season and enough hang time to fully develop," Black Star Farms Head Winemaker Lee Lutes said in a release. "When we then combine these natural elements with the skill and passion of our winemaking team, especially with this variety, a wine like this is what we expect will emerge.

"This wine is drinking beautifully now, but will absolutely reward those who prefer this variety with a little more 'patina' on it, if you age it in good conditions for 5-plus years. We will be doing this ourselves and would encourage everyone to do just that."

The American Fine Competition 2023 Invitational was held at the Florida International University Chaplin School of Hospitality and Tourism Management Jan. 14-16. Wines were judged by a 28-member panel of "wine industry educators, restaurateurs, retailers, journalists and sommeliers from across the country," according to www.americanfinewinecompetition.org.

"At AFWC, we look for the very best wines the country has to offer," Co-founder and President Shari Gherman said in a release. "The wines must be vetted before being personally invited. Our elite acquisition team spends a great deal of time each year tasting thousands of wines from across the U.S. identifying wines they deem to be the best in the country."

Four Best of Show winners were named for the best red, white, sparkling and sweet wine winners.

The 2021 Arcturos from Black Star was one of 20 Best of Class category winners.

Black Star Farms also won a gold medal for Other White Single Varietals and a silver in Single Varietal at the 2023 American Fine Wine Competition.

Other White Single Varietals was a popular category for area wineries. Brys Estate Vineyard and Winery won double gold in the category for its Gewürztraminer Reserve and Bel Lago Vineyards and Winery also won double gold for its French Valley Traminette.

Bel Lago added two silver medals in the category while Brys Estate and Blustone Vineyard and Winery each had one.

Bel Lago and Brys Estate each won a double gold in the Riesling Off Dry category. Brys added a silver medal in the category.

Blustone doubled up in the Sparkling category, taking double gold for its Blu Sparkling Riesling and adding a gold in the same category. Blustone went double gold in Other White Blends as well with Lattitudes.

Black Star Farms and Bel Lago each won a silver medal in the Other Red Single Varietal category. It was also silver for Bel Lago and Blustone in the Merlot category.

Bel Lago also claimed a silver medal in Chardonnay, Bluestone silver in Other Red Blends and Brys Estate in Pinot Noir.

Editor's Note: This story was updated from the one that ran in print to correct a name error.