Calgarians might not yet associate the Calgary Stampede with wine, but with the second year of the Cellar Showdown wine competition that perception might be on the change.

That’s something that the Stampede itself admits is perhaps an uphill battle given the propensity of patrons to the Greatest Outdoor Show on Earth to associate beer and whisky instead of wine with Western culture.

But in reality, the competition hearkens back to the original reason the Calgary Stampede started in the 1880s as an agricultural exhibition.

“We always celebrate agriculture. We would not be the Stampede, could not be the Stampede without it,” said Calgary Stampede President Will Osler, who also served as one of the celebrity judges for this year’s competition.

“It’s genuine and authentic for the Stampede to be celebrating. It is a little different for us… and if it’s something a little bit different, something people might not associate with us, then, so much better.”

Last year’s competition winners were showcased as part of the Stampede’s Cellar Experience in Champions Ballroom, which ended up being sold out after the first three days.

Matthew Protti, Chair of the Calgary Stampede Wine Committee, said what the Stampede learned was that there were a lot of visitors to the Stampede who wanted to try the wines that won during the inaugural competition.

That is a result of how seriously the competition takes the judging so that when consumers select a winner, they know it’s been awarded for quality instead of as a marketing exercise, he said.

“The judges, when they go through everything, are looking specifically for wines that are good representations of that varietal. It’s not around one judge thinking ‘oh, I like this wine more.’ They’re actually going through it technically, looking for faults, looking for the things that you would be looking for that would show the typicity of a wine,” Protti said.

The wines themselves are judged to the medalling standards of no medal reflecting a substandard wine for that price point, a bronze medal representing a good drinkable wine with no obvious flaws, silver medal representing a great quality wine at the price point, gold medal representing a superior wine to most, and double gold medal for outstanding wines that are recognized for being superior on several different rating factors.

Winners of the competition receive medals for their ranking, and in specific categories of wine, coveted Stampede belt buckle awards.

The grand champions also get to take home one of the Stampede’s legendary bronze trophies.

Wine competition first and foremost

Judging is done in a double blind system, where the judges, even if they accidentally glimpse one of the bottles of wine, the number coding that bottle and the number coding the glass of wine they drank from aren’t the same.

Wine is poured before the judges enter the room, and as an added precaution, cellphones are collected by Stampede staff before judging begins.

Protti said that level meets the highest international competition standards for wine competitions and although there is a marketing benefit for companies who win, it ensures that the Stampede Cellar Showdown is first and foremost a real competition.

Among the judges who served on the super panel were Andrea Eby, founder of Vinsanity Wine Education and Consulting, Élyse Lambert, Master Sommelier, Eugene Mlynczyk, Master of Wine, Stephanie Earthman Baird, certified wine educator and expert, and Rys Pender, Master of Wine.

More than 400 different wines were judged at the second annual Showdown, something that Protti said was a result of the competition being operated in a very unique market for wines in Canada.

“We in Alberta are in a really unique position with our deregulated liquor system, and really it’s the only place that something like this could happen as an international competition,” he said.

“We have some great Canadian wines that are entered, and we had some Canadian winners last year as well. Though, we have a large component of international product, much more international wine than what you would see in different provinces.”

He said that virtually any wine importer that operates in Alberta had a chance to submit their wines for judging.

“This is a really great opportunity for them. The feedback has been excellent, and the pickup has been excellent, given that we’re only in year two. We continue to think that we’re going to have really good engagement from the industry,” Protti said.

The winning wines from the 2025 Calgary Stampede Cellar Showdown will be announced on May 10.