“The World’s Most Admired Wine Brands” 2026: Antinori No. 2 overall and leader in Europe

Antinori, one of the most prestigious benchmarks in world winemaking and the quintessential history and name of Italian wine (headed by Albiera Antinori together with her father Piero, her sisters Allegra and Alessia, and ceo Renzo Cotarella), is the best European wine brand (and therefore also the best Italian one) worldwide, and ranks No. 2 overall, just behind the most admired brand, which remains that of the Argentine winery Catena (also at the top for South America). The No. 3 position goes to Familia Torres, the Spanish winemaking institution which completes the podium. This is the verdict of “The World’s Most Admired Wine Brands” 2026, the annual ranking compiled by “Drinks International” magazine and analyzed by WineNews basing on votes cast by an “academy” made up of sommeliers, buyers, wholesalers, Masters of Wine, and wine writers.
Italy, as one scrolls through the ranking, is a leading protagonist, with 7 wineries in the Top 50, the same number as in the 2025 edition, and with no “new entries”. At No. 5, there is Gaja, the undisputed symbol of the Langhe of Barbaresco and Barolo, a winery headed by Angelo Gaja together with his sons Gaia, Rossana, Giovanni, and his wife Lucia. Position No. 16 goes to Ornellaia, one of the jewels of Bolgheri within the Frescobaldi Group, and the wine which made the most significant climb in the classification compared to 2025, gaining even 34 positions. Antinori appears again in the ranking with one of its most iconic wines, Tignanello (position No. 21), which made a notable leap of 25 positions compared to the 2025 edition. In the prestigious “list”, there is another brand of absolute excellence from Italy this year: Sassicaia (position No. 30) of Tenuta San Guido, owned by the Incisa della Rocchetta family, which runs the historic Bolgheri estate together with Tenuta San Guido president Alessandro Berlingieri and ceo Carlo Paoli. In position No. 32, there is another top Italian wine brand, Frescobaldi, the historic estate headed by Lamberto Frescobaldi, while at No. 38, there is Planeta, a symbol of Sicilian winemaking which is affirming worldwide. Under the leadership first of Diego Planeta and today of his cousins Alessio, Francesca, and Santi Planeta, the winery has been, and continues to be one of the great names of the island winemaking “renaissance”.
In a classification which highlights excellence in terms of quality, consistency, innovation, and brand strength, European wine with Italy among the absolute protagonists continues to shine, occupying 36 of the first 50 positions.

Focus - “The World’s Most Admired Wine Brands” 2026

1 - Catena Zapata (Argentina)
2 - Antinori (Italy)
3 - Familia Torres (Spain)
4 - Vega Sicilia (Spain)
5 - Gaja (Italy)
6 - Penfolds (Australia)
7 - Domaine de la Romanée-Conti (France)
8 - Symington (Portugal)
9 - Cvne (Spain)
10 - La Rioja Alta (Spain)
11 - Henschke (Australia)
12 - E Guigal (France)
13 - Château Cheval Blanc (France)
14 - Château Margaux (France)
15 - M Chapoutier (France)
16 - Ornellaia (Italy)
17 - Kanonkop (South Africa)
18 - Gérard Bertrand (France)
19 - Château d’Yquem (France)
20 - Marqués de Riscal (Spain)
21 - Tignanello (Italy)
22 - Château Haut-Brion (France)
23 - Château Latour (France)
24 - Pétrus (France)
25 - Marqués de Cáceres (Spain)
26 - Juvé & Camps (Spain)
27 - Yalumba (Australia)
28 - Perelada (Spain)
29 - Nyetimber (the United Kingdom)
30 - Sassicaia (Italy)
31 - Ramón Bilbao (Spain)
32 - Frescobaldi (Italy)
33 - Château Mouton Rothschild (France)
34 - Ridge (the United States)
35 - Château Musar (Lebanon)
36 - Esporão (Portugal)
37 - Faustino (Spain)
38 - Planeta (Italy)
39 - Codorníu (Spain)
40 - Bodegas Abadal (Spain)
41 - Scala Dei (Spain)
42 - Château Lafite (France)
43 - Louis Latour (France)
44 - Concha y Toro (Chile)
45 - Errázuriz (Chile)
46 - Cloudy Bay (New Zealand)
47 - Opus One (the United States)
48 - Bruce Jack (South Africa)
49 - Barton & Guestier (France)
50 - Felton Road (New Zealand)