Byron & Harold's "The Protocol" Cabernet Sauvignon Wins Gold at IWSC 2026 Margaret River Judging
Margaret River just had its biggest moment yet on the world wine stage, and Byron & Harold's The Protocol Cabernet Sauvignon 2024 was right in the thick of it, taking home a gold medal from one of the industry's most respected competitions.
What Happened in Margaret River, and What Is the IWSC?
The International Wine & Spirit Competition (IWSC) is one of the oldest and most influential wine and spirits competitions in the world, known for rigorous blind judging by panels of buyers, sommeliers, and wine writers. Each year the IWSC runs "Global Judging" sessions in key wine regions, bringing international judges directly to the source to taste wines in context.
This year marked the IWSC's fourth Global Judging trip to Margaret River, held in partnership with the Margaret River Wine Association. The panel, co-chaired by Freddy Bulmer (Wine Buyer, The Wine Society) and Andrew Caillard MW, brought together leading UK and Australian tasters, including judges from Jeroboams and the Michelin-starred London restaurant Trivet.
The results were record-breaking: more than 230 medals awarded, including 29 golds and a historic 100-point score for House of Cards Ace High Chardonnay 2025, the first perfect score since IWSC introduced its 100-point system in 2019. Chardonnay led the field with over 90 medals, while Cabernet Sauvignon topped the reds with more than 60 medals and nine golds. The results also reflect Margaret River's growing international profile: the region's export value has grown 5% over the past year, with UK exports up an impressive 38%, making the UK Margaret River's number one export market by value.
The Protocol Cabernet Sauvignon 2024: A Standout Gold
Among the region's strongest reds, Byron & Harold's The Protocol Cabernet Sauvignon 2024 stood out as one of the standout gold medal winners, scoring 96 points.
Sourced from Margaret River, Western Australia, the wine is a 100% Cabernet Sauvignon, bottled at 14.2% ABV under screw cap. The IWSC judging panel, Freddy Bulmer, Isa Bal MS, Andrew Caillard MW, Kayleen Reynolds, and Nick Ryan, described it in their tasting note:
"Generous aromatic hints of ripe fruit led to a firm, taut palate defined by graphite, ironstone, and slate. Tight-packed, shaley tannins provide structure and balance, while layers of detail unfold, building intensity and elegance that promise great longevity."
That combination of concentrated fruit balanced by polished, approachable tannins was exactly what judges said separated the best Cabernets from the rest this year. As judge Emma Robinson noted of the category overall, wines that managed to make their tannins "slightly more polished and approachable in their youth" typically scored higher, a quality clearly on display in The Protocol.
The wine earned its place alongside other top-scoring Margaret River Cabernets, including Menzies Vineyard Wilyabrup Cabernet Sauvignon 2023 (97 points) and Domaine Naturaliste Morus Cabernet Sauvignon 2023, in a year judges called one of the strongest yet for the variety.
What's Next for The Protocol
Gold isn't the end of the road. As a gold medal winner, The Protocol Cabernet Sauvignon 2024 now advances to IWSC Trophy Judging in London on 30 September 2026, where it will be tasted blind alongside gold medal-winning wines from across the IWSC's global 2026 judging program in contention for a Trophy, the competition's highest honour.
It's a fitting next step for a wine that already embodies the "clear-cut" regional identity co-chair Andrew Caillard MW pointed to when describing what makes Margaret River's best wines so distinctive. With Margaret River's export momentum building, especially in the UK, recognition like this puts Byron & Harold, and The Protocol in particular, in a strong position to capture attention in exactly the markets where the region is growing fastest.
Full results from the IWSC 2026 Margaret River judging, including the complete list of medal winners, are available on the IWSC website.
