Results from the 2026 Nationals – Platinum Winners

Announcing the Results from the 2026 National Wine Awards of Canada

The 2026 Nationals took place in Niagara, Ontario from June 12th to 18th. Today, we are pleased to announce the Platinum Medal winners. We conclude our announcements with the Best Performing Small Winery tomorrow and the Winery of the Year announcement on Friday. We hope that you will stay tuned to follow the results!

The Platinum Winners

Category Overview by Anthony Gismondi (Co-Chair and Co-Founder)

Go straight to the winners.

The 2026 “Nationals,” as we like to call them at WineAlign, took place in Niagara in mid-June, attracting just over 1,800 wines. It’s a significant number, given the damage to vineyards across the country over the last few years, none more than in British Columbia, where some 2,000 acres have already been replanted since 2024.

The number of entries is especially significant compared with the number of Platinum medals awarded at the Nationals. It took 13 years for the first 12 Platinum awards to appear in 2013. From the beginning, the goal was to recognize the very best wines in the competition: the top one percent of entries, plus ties, or about one wine in every hundred. Over the years, the lowest-scoring Platinum entry has risen from 91 points to this year’s minimum of 93 out of 100, reflecting the increasing quality of entries that earn the highest praise from the judges.

Before we get to the results, there are two other salient points. Canadian wines are often entered in international competitions, with big winners receiving great praise because they were judged offshore. But a relatively small “Canada” category in an international competition, usually judged by Canadians, is no match for the 100 percent Canadian wines competing at the Nationals. When you consider there were 148 pinot noirs and 155 chardonnays in their respective categories, winning any category or earning a Platinum medal is a monumental achievement and well worth bragging about.

And what we have found, but is never really discussed, is that years down the road, when we come across a Gold or Platinum award winner, it generally still delivers in the glass, rewarding the consumer, the vision of our judges, and the rigour of the process each wine goes through. Nothing is perfect in wine. But our goal is to ensure every entry shows at its best when it reaches the tasting room.

Now to the 2026 Platinum winners.

Overall, they tell a story about maturity across the Canadian wine industry. It is no longer surprising that the Platinum tier is not defined by a single variety, region or winemaking style, but rather by its level of diversity and quality, which speak to the strength of an industry less dependent on traditional European benchmarks. The 2026 Platinums suggest we are no longer imitating the world’s best but are beginning to explore the nuance of place at home seriously.

Ontario and British Columbia accounted for 22 of the top wines, with 13 from the east and nine from the west. Notably, neither region dominated through a narrow set of categories; both excelled across multiple styles. Two Platinum medals were awarded in the Library Wines category, although that category is not eligible for Winery of the Year consideration.

As for highlights, chardonnay is the dominant Platinum variety, with 5 awards. It is succeeding at every price level and in both provinces, from Naramata Bench to the Niagara Bench. The styles also range from terroir-driven, mineral expressions (Meyer, Tawse) to richer barrel-aged expressions (Stratus, Queenston Mile).

A second cluster is built around the substantial-in-number Red Blends category, often referred to as the Bordeaux varieties, a term I think we could drop any time now. The list is again varied and, as has been the trend, rather than blockbuster styles, these wines suggest judges rewarded balance, structure and varietal expression over sheer power. Again, we see regional identity making inroads.

Ironically, the syrah vines so harshly hit by the deep freeze events in 2023 and 2024 were the biggest B.C. success story, although it will be some years before we see the many replanted vines making wine again. This year, the Laughing Stock Syrah and the Mayhem Gill Estate Vineyard Syrah finished ahead of many high-profile Cabernet-based wines. Just missing out on Platinums were Painted Rock, Clos du Soleil, Vanessa Vineyard, Corcelettes, and Rust, further raising the bar on the South Okanagan and Similkameen Valleys.

The highest-scoring B.C. wine led all pinot noirs, Little Engine 2022 Vineyard Selection Pinot Noir. A second pinot Platinum went to Niagara-based Malivoire Three Rows Pinot Noir. Clearly Canadian pinot noir is no longer an emerging category—it is now a mature benchmark category.

Riesling fans will be happy with this year’s outcomes, including a Library selection, the Tawse 2016 Limestone Ridge North Riesling, and from its sister winery, Redstone 2023 Riesling Limestone Vineyard. Although riesling’s representation is smaller than chardonnay’s, the scores are exceptionally high.

Canadian sparkling wine has never been better, but winning a Platinum remains elusive. Our judges are nothing if not worldly in the wines they taste every day. It’s that experience that qualifies them to be at the Nationals. Right or wrong, I sometimes think they are still on the lookout for a true Champagne-like experience to notch a Platinum, explaining the scarcity of top scores. That said, the judges found two Platinums this year, and both were rosés: Fielding Sparkling Rosé and Malivoire Bisous Rosé. The fact that the Fielding sparkler leads the entire competition is one of the most compelling headlines from the Platinum awards.

Finally, for all you number geeks, the average Ontario Platinum sells for $44.55; the British Columbia Platinums for $50.99. The absolute best value wine was the Meyer 2023 Chardonnay Old Main Rd Vineyard, Naramata Bench, Okanagan Valley, selling for a modest $37.

Our congratulations to all the wineries that entered this year’s awards. We use the word competition from time to time, but David and I have always thought of the National Wine Awards of Canada as a yearly snapshot of the Canadian wine industry, nothing more and nothing less. Enjoy the 2026 Platinum Medal winners as listed below

And the winners are…