Star Wine List, the digital guide to the world’s best wine bars and restaurants, has just announced all dates and locations for the spring 2026 section of its 2025/’26 awards season. Simultaneously, entries have been opened in the International Open event of 2026 with an addition to the grading system: Bronze Stars.
November 3, 2025 (Stockholm, Sweden) — Star Wine List of the Year is a competition celebrating the great wine lists of the world, and the people who create them. Wine lists are submitted in the hope of winning a Gold Star from members of Star Wine List’s expert global jury. Runners-up receive Silver Stars, with a newly announced Bronze Star accreditation now also on offer.
While the tour now reaches 14 territories across three continents with designated awards events, this International Open gives a chance to any locations not included within those to take part. Entries are now being accepted, online, until 14 December 2025. Winners will be announced on 2 February 2026.
The International Open judges wine lists in 10 categories. In each of those, Gold Stars will be awarded to winners in each of the five continental groupings of Africa and Middle East, Asia, Australasia and Oceania, Europe, and The Americas. All of those winners will then automatically be entered into the Star Wine List of the Year International Final – an exciting culmination to the world tour taking place in an as-yet-undisclosed location in June 2026.
This year, Star Wine List has introduced a new classification: the Bronze Star. A Bronze Star signifies that the judges have seen and approved a wine list, bestowing it with a formal commendation despite not including it within the competition’s finalists. Bronze Stars will be announced for the categories of Best Long List, Best Medium-Sized List and Best Short List, and this feature will be integrated into the remaining events of this season’s competition.
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
- Denmark – 24 November
- United Arab Emirates – 8 December
Spring 2026:
- Spain – 16 February
- International Open – 2 February
- Sweden – 2 March
- France – 9 March
- UK – 23 March
- Japan – 15 April
- Southeast Asia (Brunei, Cambodia, Timor-Leste, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam) – 21 April
- New York (New York metropolitan area) – 4 May
- Florida – 6 May
- Germany-Austria-Switzerland – 18 May
More information on the Star Wine List of the Year International Open 2026
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.
