History

Hope Valley Wine circle was formed in about 1973 by a group of Hope Valley wine enthusiasts.  Membership numbers of between 20 and 30 have been maintained over the years.  Meetings are held on the third Monday of the month at the Moore Memorial Hall in Bamford and usually start at 8:00pm.

Aims and objectives

Meetings usually include some entertainment from for example a guest speaker.  Mini-competitions are held for those members who make their own wine.  The evening is rounded off with a supper provided by the members.

Mini Competitions

For those members who like to make their own wine, a series of mini competitions is held throughout the year.  The aim is to test and compare winemaking skills before the annual competition in November.  Members are invited to submit their home-made wines for judging by others.  The following classes are currently used:

Judging is on the basis of the Rules for Competitions.  These are based on national rules, and presentation to this standard is  required when entering the annual competition.

Annual Competition

The Wine Festival is held on a Saturday usually in November each year.  The same wine classes as for the mini-competitions are judged, together with an additional class for fortified wine.  This was introduced in 2000 in memory of Derek and Brenda Jones.  The ten classes are:

Members may enter up to TWO bottles in each class.  The fee is currently 25p per bottle.

Bottles should usually be handed in at the Moore Memorial Hall between 10.00 am and 11.45 am on the day of the Wine Festival, together with fees payable.  Members can hand in their own entries, or ask a fellow member to do so.

Members are asked to return any trophies on the morning of the Wine Festival.

The judges and stewards are usually announced prior to the Wine Festival.

Judging commences at 2.00 pm and usually the judging is completed by about 5.00 pm.

The following rules apply to mini and annual competitions.

1.1 All wines should be made by the process of fermentation.  The fortification of wine by the addition of extra alcohol is not permissible except for the Fortified Wine class (see 8.3 below).

1.2 Wine should be presented in clear glass punted bottles with high, rounded shoulders (Bordeaux type) of approx 750mL (26 fl oz) capacity.

1.3 Plastic topped cork stoppers should be used. All plastic stoppers may not be used.  Capsules should not be fitted.

1.4 The bottles should be filled so that when the cork is pushed fully home, the air space below the cork is between 13 and 25mm (0.5 to 1 inch) in depth.

1.5 Wines should be labelled according to their class (Dry Red, Sweet White, etc).  Only country wine should refer to ingredients.

1.6 The label should be plain white, approximately 40mm (1.5") in depth and 90mm (3.5") in width.  The bottom of the label should be 50mm (2.0") from the bottom of the bottle and be placed midway between the seams.

1.7 For our purposes, a Country Wine is a wine made from fresh fruit, vegetables or roots.  No concentrates, including grape juice, should be used, but raisins can be used as a substitute.  The wine may be of any colour and may be dry medium or sweet.  The label should state the main ingredient(s) and the sweetness.

1.10 A Social Wine may be red, white or rosé and should state on the label if it is dry, medium or sweet.  It should be a pleasant wine suitable for drinking throughout a social occasion.

2.1 Beers should be presented in clear or brown glass bottles of approx. 0.5l (one pint) capacity.  Metal or plastic tops or crown closures can be used.

These are made by the normal process of fermentation whose alcoholic strength is further increased by the addition of ethyl alcohol.  The latter should be in the form of an unflavoured spirit such as Polish Spirit or Vodka, so that the original flavour of the wine is not masked by the flavour of the sprit. In winemaking, fortification is most often used in the simulation of vermouths and other herb aperitifs, sherries and ports.  The principles and procedures involved in judging fortified wines are the same as those for unfortified wines.  Particular care must be taken while assessing the flavour of a fortified wine to note whether the alcoholic strength is in balance.  Two common faults with homemade fortified wines are (a) an unpleasant burning harshness in the mouth and (b) the predominance of the flavour of the fortifying spirit.

It is expected that the prize winners (1st, 2nd and 3rd) will be sampled by members during the Wine Festival.

The wine which will score the most points is one which is stable, well-balanced in all aspects, brilliantly clear, with a good colour (in the case of a red wine) and with a suitable bouquet and flavour.  On a standard marking sheet, the maximum of 50 marks is divided up as follows.

Presentation = 2 Deduct 1 mark for a dirty cork or a dirty bottle.

Clarity = 4 Deduct 1 or 2 marks for ‘floaters’ or a precipitate or sediment. Award up to 3 points for a well cleared wine.  Award 4 points for a really brilliant wine.

Colour = 4

Bouquet = 10 This should be vinous or fruity, or a mixture of both. It should not be too powerful.

Taste = 30 Marks should be deducted for acetification, metallic flavour, excessive sulphite, infection, mustiness of lack of vinousity.