The Noble Grape, on Cowbridge High Street, has picked up an award for best newcomer in Decanter's 2019 Retailer Awards.

The Noble Grape is a wine shop and online store in Cowbridge founded by Master of Wine, Richard Ballantyne, in 2017.

Nub News spoke to Richard Ballantyne MW, the director of Noble Grape, about the award and what it means to the local company.

He said: ''We entered the category for best newcomer for Decanter Magazine, the world's best wine magazine as they call it.

''There is a judging panel who asses all the entries. I'm not sure how many entries there were but there were 4 shortlisted for our category and I understand a lot more entered.

''We were given the award on the 26th September at the awards dinner in London at the Oxo Tower.

''The award was presented by Peter Richards MW. The criteria which the judges look at are quality of range, staff knowledge, and customer service.

''We have a great number of online reviews with Google, Trustpilot and Facebook, so those greatly worked in our favour.

''This is obviously a great award to win, and we best off some stiff competition from other excellent merchants.

''We are pleased that our efforts have been recognised and it's great for the town having a nationally recognised retailer on our high street.''

Mr. Ballantyne already holds the prestigious Master of Wine title. Their website states: ''Our Members, Masters of Wine (MWs), hold the most respected title in the world of wine.

''MWs have proved their understanding of all aspects of wine by passing the Master of Wine (MW) examination, recognised worldwide for its rigour and high standards.

''There are 389 Masters of Wine today, working in 30 countries. The membership encompasses winemakers, buyers, journalists, shippers, business owners, consultants, academics, and wine educators.''

The awards are described by Peter Richards MW, Chairman of the Decanter Retailer Awards. He states: ''Things are changing fast in British retail, and wine is no exception.

''The aim of these awards is to celebrate and champion the very best wine retailers out there, rewarding imagination, drive, creativity, energy, evangelism – and even hedonism.

''After all, one of the primary duties of wine is to be fun."

Founded in 1975, Decanter is the oldest consumer wine publication in the UK.

The publication reaches over 660,000 wine lovers every month from 99 countries around the globe.