A red by Grupo García Carrión earned the best score among 150 wines served by 31 participating airlines. Notes by a jury of 35 professional wine tasters highlight the potency and balance to be found in a wine made from Tinta del País, Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot. “Big, round, balanced”, wrote judge Eric Woods. For another jury member, Linda Lawry, the wine was “deep ruby, fruit and spice, concentrated”.

‘Viña Arnáiz Reserva 1999’ was added to Iberia’s winelist last year, as a result of a careful selection by sommeiller Jesús Cobo, from La Broche restaurant. Cobo chose five wines from different Spanish appellations to match chef Sergi Arola’s menus.

Each year, Iberia’s passengers consume about 150,000 bottles of red wine on its long-haul international business-class flights. Consumption of cava stands at 60,000 half-bottles and whites at 52,000 bottles. Overall, Iberia’s winelist rated fourth.

Global Traveller is the U.S.’s only magazine devoted specifically to business-class travel. 31 of the world’s main airlines took part in this year’s edition of the contest. Five wines from the business class winelist were tasted for each: two reds, two whites and one sparkling.