He issued a challenge.
In January 2026, James Tidwell took the stage at the Texas Hill Country Wine Symposium, one of the most significant annual gatherings in Texas wine. His keynote touched on several ways the industry could continue to mature.
But one challenge now looks especially timely.
Texas wines had already begun proving themselves nationally. They had earned strong scores from respected critics. They had found success in major competitions. The progress was real.
Tidwell urged Texas wine to look beyond that — to compete more broadly on the international stage.
He specifically mentioned the Decanter World Wine Awards in London.
It was not a dismissal of what Texas had accomplished. It was an exhortation. A challenge from someone who understood exactly what that stage meant.
Tidwell is not a casual observer. A Master Sommelier, founder of TEXSOM, and Regional Chair for the USA and Central America at the Decanter World Wine Awards, he has spent years evaluating wine in a global context. When he pointed Texas toward Decanter, the point was clear: if Texas wine wanted to be part of the larger conversation, it needed to show up where the world was judging.
And the Decanter World Wine Awards is no small stage.
Now in its 23rd year, the Decanter World Wine Awards is one of the largest and most influential wine competitions in the world. In 2026, nearly 17,000 wines from 58 countries were entered and judged blind by 245 of the world’s leading wine experts, including 63 Masters of Wine and 24 Master Sommeliers.
Before this year, the highest medal count for Texas wines at Decanter had been nine, in 2024.
In 2025, Texas earned one.
It is not that Texas wines had been tried and found wanting.
It is that they had largely been untried on this stage.
For years, Texas had not entered the Decanter World Wine Awards in significant numbers. This year, Texas showed up in force.
At the 2026 Decanter World Wine Awards, Texas wines earned 122 medals.
Texas earned four Gold medals, the first Gold medals ever awarded to Texas wines at Decanter:
- AB Astris Souzão 2022 — 96 points, Gold
- Turtle Creek Vineyard Tannat 2023 — 96 points, Gold
- Spicewood Vineyards Las Montañas 2022 — 95 points, Gold
- Adega Vinho Estate Tempranillo 2021 — 95 points, Gold
Another fifteen wines scored 93 or 94 points.
Of the 122 Texas wines that medaled, 62 scored 90 points or higher — more than half of all Texas medals.
As WineBusiness put it, “That breadth of high-scoring wines points to a consistency of quality across Texas wine country, not just a handful of standout bottles.”
Texas finished second among U.S. states in total medals, behind only California.
Tidwell later put the showing in broader context: “This year’s judging demonstrated the overall high quality coming from the U.S., giving it a well-earned place in the global wine pantheon. The Iberian, Italian, and Mediterranean varieties from Texas were standouts for their prevalence amongst the entries and overall quality.”
Could Texas show quality across producers, regions, varieties, and styles when judged on one of wine’s most important international stages?
This year, for the first time, there was enough evidence to answer.
The 2026 Decanter results do not end that story. They move it forward.
A challenge was issued.
Challenge accepted.
