The Star Wine List of the Year competition is returning to Spain for a second time and entries are now open. Wine bars and restaurants across the country are invited to submit their wine lists, free of charge. Winners will be announced at an awards ceremony in Madrid, on 16 February 2026, each receiving a coveted Gold Star.
October 24, 2025 (Stockholm, Sweden) — After a thrilling debut at Barcelona Wine Week in 2025, Star Wine List of the Year will once again celebrate the best wine lists in Spain – and the sommelier teams who have created them. Entries are now open in nine categories.
“After a very successful first awards event in Barcelona last time, we can’t wait to go and celebrate in Madrid next year,” says Krister Bengtsson, Star Wine List’s Founder and Publisher. “We look forward to seeing a lot of great entries from all across Spain!”
Entries are now open in nine ‘international’ categories. The winners in each one will not just receive a Gold Star listing in the Star Wine List guide, but go on to compete in the Star Wine List of the Year International Final, to be held in June 2026. The International Final will conclude this 16-stop world tour, which has been running since September 2025, by pitting the winning wine lists in the key categories from each region against one another, for a chance at global glory.
Those categories include new, recurring awards for the Best Italian Wine List and a Special Jury Prize, plus an enhanced Sustainability Prize, which recognises venues making a concerted and notable effort towards sustainability in all operations.
The wine lists will be assessed by a group of expert judges from across the world of wine – Star Wine List is proud to draw on an international jury panel of top sommeliers and writers, with regular judges including current Best Sommelier of the World Raimonds Tomsons, El Bulli veteran Ferran Centelles, plus Pascaline Lepeltier, Paz Levinson, Marc Almert and many more. Individual jury members for the Spanish competition will be announced shortly.
Gold Stars will be presented to the winners at a ceremony in Madrid, in February, attended by the finalists, commercial partners, judges and key media. Please contact us for further information and press accreditation.
More information on Star Wine List of the Year Spain 2026
Key dates:
- Entries open: 23 October 2025
- Deadline for entries: 7 December 2025
- Finalists announced: 8 January 2026
- Awards event: 16 February 2026, in Madrid
Star Wine List of the Year 2025/’26 tour schedule:
Autumn 2025:
- The Baltic states (Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania) – 15 September
- Belgium and the Netherlands – 29 September
- Norway – 12 October
- Ireland (Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland) – 10 November
- Denmark – 24 November
- United Arab Emirates – 8 December
Spring 2026:
- Asia
- Florida
- France
- Germany, Austria & Switzerland
- International Open (digital event for countries not covered by their own awards)
- Japan
- New York
- Spain
- Sweden
- UK
About Star Wine List
Star Wine List is the international wine lovers’ guide to great wine bars and restaurants. Available as an app and at starwinelist.com, it was launched in Stockholm, Sweden in 2017, and is now live in more than 45 countries. All venues are selected by top wine professionals for the quality of their wine programmes.
The Star Wine List of the Year competition celebrates the wonderful wine lists of the world and the dedicated sommelier teams who create them. Since its inception in 2018, this global tour has evolved to cover numerous territories. Its highly anticipated awards events recognise excellence in the wine and hospitality industries, and culminate in an International Final each summer.
