Results from the 2026 Nationals – Winery of the Year

Tawse Winery

By David Lawrason

The WineAlign National Wine Awards of Canada is pleased to announce that Tawse Winery of Niagara has won Winery of the Year honours in 2026, its fifth win in the Awards’ 26-year history. Tawse earned this honour with a stellar showing from three outstanding 2023 chardonnays – one Platinum with a 93+ score and two Golds with scores of 91 points or higher. Their chardonnay-based 25th Anniversary Spark also earned Gold, as did their Quarry Road Riesling 2024.

The Winery of the Year rankings are determined by each winery’s top five scoring entries, combined with the weighted value of their medals. The medal’s weighted value reflects its relative scarcity across the competition; the fewer medals awarded overall, the greater each medal’s value in the final calculation. But looking deeper into the stats, Tawse submitted 27 wines, with 25 winning medals, demonstrating how impressively consistent they are across a large portfolio.

Tawse Winery Property in Twenty Mile Bench

Tawse last won Winery of the Year in 2016, after three consecutive titles in 2010, 2011 and 2012. So, to see Tawse make the long bounce back a decade later is confirmation of the goals and vision of owner Moray Tawse.

“Winning Canadian Winery of the Year is always an honour, but what means the most to me is that it reflects the dedication of our entire team and the consistency of the philosophy we’ve followed since the beginning. We’ve always believed that great wines are made in the vineyard, and this recognition is really a tribute to everyone who shares that commitment,” said Moray Tawse.

The efforts at Tawse in 2026 are led by two very talented and driven women, Head Winemaker Jessica Otting and Vineyard Manager Augusta Van Muyen. We can’t be 100% sure, but they are very likely the first women to have been at the helm of winemaking and viticulture for a Winery of the Year Award winner.

Ms. Otting has worked at Tawse since 2014 and was named Head Winemaker in 2020. She is a graduate of Niagara College’s Winery and Viticultural program (class of 2011). Like so many, she went afield for three years to work in Australia and at other Ontario wineries.

Augusta VanMuyen, named Grape King 2025-2026 by The Grape Growers of Ontario, has been at Tawse since 2013. She graduated from Niagara College in 2010, then worked in Germany and Nova Scotia. She joined Tawse as an assistant winemaker but, following her passion for viticulture, was appointed Vineyard Manager in 2018 for the sustainably tended 200 acres of vineyard on the Niagara Escarpment in the Twenty Mile Bench and Vinemount Ridge appellations.

Jessica Otting (left) and Augusta VanMuyen (right)

“Augusta and I work incredibly closely together, and constant communication helps us make better decisions from the growing season right through to bottling,” said Jessica. “I’m also fortunate to work alongside an exceptional cellar team. Devin Campbell, our Production Manager, and Laurianne Miller, our Assistant Winemaker, share the same attention to detail and commitment to quality,” she said.

I asked Jessica to elaborate on her role and goals at Tawse as it may have contributed to the team’s success in 2026.

“I inherited a philosophy I believed in, rather than one I wanted to change,” she said. “My goal hasn’t been to reinvent Tawse, but to continue refining the wines while remaining true to what has always made them distinctive. We’ve invested in new tanks and equipment, expanded our laboratory capabilities, and I’ve continued to refine our barrel program and fermentation practices, leaning into closer monitoring and gentler extraction as we learn from each vintage.”

I also asked her about the success of the platinum and gold medals awarded to the 2023 chardonnays, which I believe are some of the finest ever produced in Ontario.

“Chardonnay is one of my favourite varieties because so many small decisions can have a huge impact on the finished wine, and it’s so rewarding to see those decisions come together in the glass. Each of the 2023 Chardonnays was hand harvested, gently pressed, settled for 24 hours, barreled down, wild fermented and aged for 12 months in 228 L and 500 L French oak barrels. From there, I selected the best barrels for each final blend. Having our own bottling line also gives us the flexibility to bottle when the wines are ready, rather than working to a fixed bottling schedule.”

The focus on the vineyards is also evident as Moray Tawse reflects further on the Winery of the Year award. “Receiving this recognition for the fifth time makes me incredibly proud – not only of what we’ve accomplished at Tawse, but also of how far the Niagara wine region has come. But what excites me most, though, is not looking back – it’s looking ahead. Every vintage teaches us something new, and every year our vineyards continue to evolve. Many of our vineyards are still maturing, and that’s something I find incredibly exciting. I truly believe our best wines are still ahead of us.”

Here are all the NWAC 2026 Tawse Winery medal winners: