VARA comes up big at two national wine competitions

VARA comes up big at two national wine competitions

Aug 24, 2025

The East Coast and West Coast may have been on opposing sides during the hip-hop culture war of the 1990s, but when it comes to wines, they’re in agreement: VARA is a player on the national scene.

The New Mexico-based winery and distillery took home a number of medals at both the New York International Wine Competition on May 23 and the Sunset International Wine Competition on June 10-12 in Sonoma, California.

“I think I speak for my uncle and for myself on this: It’s a sense of pride, a sense of accomplishment and a sense of belief knowing that we have the tools and we have the team to accomplish these amazing feats,” said Sofian Himeur, who along with uncle Laurent Gruet is a winemaker at VARA Winery and Distillery.

“This is something to be really proud of — not just what my uncle and I did as far as the winemaking, but the team as a whole.”

In the Big Apple, VARA’s Silverhead Brut drew top honors, earning a double gold with 96 points from a panel of trade-only judges including sommeliers, importers, distributors and beverage directors. According to Himeur, this wine often gets the most out-of-state attention, but it also contains its own local touch.

“That’s our flagship,” Himeur said. “That’s our wine that we make the most of. It does have some California fruit in it, but it does also have some Listán Prieto, which is the mission grape that was first planted in 1629. The story of New Mexico being the birthplace of grape growing almost 400 years ago, we put a little bit of that story in every bottle … It’s special to us because it’s gonna be our workhorse.”

Meanwhile, the VARAxLG Blanc de Blanc captured double gold with a 98-point score at the California competition, where judges included retail buyers, journalists and wine educators along with other prominent industry figures.

“Our favorite sparkling wine to make is a Blanc de Blanc,” Himeur said. “What’s amazing about this wine is if you close your eyes and you didn’t know what it was, it’s very, very comparable to Champagne, which is a remarkable feat to be able to do that. Not only in New Mexico, but in the United States.”

VARA’s wines resonated differently on opposite coasts. For example, the Silverhead Brut — the double gold winner in New York — earned gold and 90 points in California, while VARAxLG Blanc de Blancs — the double gold winner in California — received silver and 93 points in New York. What stands out most for Himeur is the success of all the VARA wines that were entered in both competitions.

“If I have to guess, it’s just different judges with different taste profiles. You know, that’s the beauty of wine and sparkling wine is we make different flavors for different palates,” Himeur said.

“The rankings aren’t the same on both sides of the country. However, what is remarkable and awesome is that they’re all medaling. They’re all getting very good scores regardless of where they’re at in the country.”

Himeur was particularly pleased by the reception for the New Mexico Sparkling Brut, which took home silver at both competitions.

“I’m proud of all the wines that we make, but the New Mexico Sparkling Brut is holding its own — constantly getting 90 point scores,” he said. “That’s 100% New Mexican fruit, and that’s currently our only 100% New Mexican fruit wine. That it can hold its own in sparkling wine competitions around the country goes to show you that you can make great wine in New Mexico.”

There’s more to come in that regard. While Himeur says VARA won’t rush the process of creating new wines, there are a few things in the works for the coming years.

“Our goal of putting New Mexico on the map hasn’t changed. We haven’t diverted from that,” he said. “Something that we’re doing this year is we’re creating another 100% New Mexican wine that we just harvested the grapes from Deming (in July). And that’s gonna be a rosé sparkling wine that will come out next year at some point.

“… We’ll be releasing two wines next year, and then hopefully the year after that will be about five more new wines. We’re just trying to do it right — not try to put the cart in front of the horse — with slow growth and doing it diligently and doing what people want.”