“Mundus Vini” 2026: Fantini “Best Italian Wine Producer”, Italy at the top (with 787 medals)

Fantini Wines, a company from Ortona (Chieti) in the Abruzzi, founded in 1994 and headed by Valentino Sciotti, one of the export leaders in Southern Italy (and, since 2020, owned by Platinum Equity, ed), has been named “Best Italian Wine Producer” 2026 at the “Spring Tasting” 2026 by Mundus Vini, one of the largest and most authoritative wine competitions in the world, organized by the German group “Meininger”: this recognition (the fifth in Fantini history, following previous awards in 2017, 2020, 2022, and 2024) will be celebrated at ProWein 2026 (March 15th - 17th, in Düsseldorf).
And that is not all. In addition to several gold medals, the wines of the Abruzzi group also received “golden medals” for two labels: “Best of Show Montepulciano d’Abruzzo”, awarded to Casale Vecchio Montepulciano d’Abruzzo DOC 2023 as the best wine in its category, and “Best of Show Castilla-La Mancha White”, assigned to Altado Verdejo DO 2025 by Finca Fella, Fantini Spanish branch. “Every time, we love putting ourselves to the test, so that our choice to focus on quality, especially quality in Southern Italy, can be validated by independent experts. And every time we receive this recognition  - explains Giulia Sciotti, Fantini marketing manager and daughter of Valentino Sciotti -  it becomes a motivation for us to continue on this path and try to improve even further. It celebrates our relentless pursuit of excellence, the passion we pour into every bottle, and our dedication to bringing the soul of Italian terroir to the world”.
But Italy medal tally goes far beyond this: there are 182 “Best of Show” awards in total, 40 of which go to Italian producers, featuring wineries such as Mezzacorona (“Best Italian Wine Producer” in 2025), Banfi, Varvaglione, Kurtatsch, Settesoli, Siddùra, Zenato, and Tollo, among others (the detailed list of awards by category and label is highlighted in the focus section). And, more broadly, Italian wines earned 787 medals overall (full list available here), including 8 “Grand Gold”, 446 “Gold”, and 333 “Silver”, confirming Italy as the absolute leader of the competition ahead of Spain (683), Portugal (394), France (373), and Germany (284).
The eight Italian “Grand Golds”, out of a total of 46, are Montepulciano d’Abruzzo Cagiolo Riserva DOP 2020 by Tollo, Barolo Castelletto 2021 by Fortemasso, Amarone della Valpolicella Camporal Classico Riserva DOCG 2021 by Corte San Benedetto, Amarone della Valpolicella Classico DOCG 2020 by Paolo Cottini, Amarone della Valpolicella Classico DOCG 2022 by Scriani, Amarone della Valpolicella Classico Riserva Fracastoro DOCG 2015 by Vigneti Villabella, Lugana DOC Brut Metodo Classico 40 Mesi 2020 by Fausto Bulgarini, and Rosso del Camul 2019 by Vini Tonon. And, among the “Gold” medals, there is again strong representation from Italian wine, from North to South, with producers such as Lo Sparviere, Tenuta Ulisse, Bosca, Cavit, Schenk, Bottega, Cottini, Tollo, Rocca delle Macìe, Valdo, Ruffino, Zenato, Siddùra, Baglio del Cristo di Campobello, Cecchi, Villa Sandi, Ceci, Mottura, Cantine Ermes, Settesoli, Gruppo Mezzacorona, Kellerei Kurtatsch, Mack & Schuhle, Viticoltori Ponte, Kellerei Kaltern, Vignaioli del Morellino di Scansano, Ruggeri, Cadis, San Felice, Farina, Zenato, and not only.