SPRINGFIELD, Ill. — The "Frankenvines" at Illinois Sparkling Co. in Utica are behind Illinois’ current champion wine.

This name, all in good fun, is what the vintner calls the French hybrid grapes used in its 2014 Illinois State Fair Wine Competition’s top wine, Franken’s French Hybrid Brut.

"’Franken’s’ an ode to the French hybrid grapes that make up Illinois Sparkling Company’s wines," said Brad Beam, Illinois state enologist.

Beam described the wine as having "hints of raspberries, and a bracing acidity make this a versatile wine for pairing," adding that Franken sells for $32 a bottle at the northern Illinois winery’s tasting room.

Besides winning best wine of the year, Illinois Sparkling Co. was toasted again when Mark Wenzel was named 2015 Winemaker of Year at the Illinois Grape Growers and Vintner Assoc. (IGGVA) annual awards dinner. In addition to dinner, the group meets annually for a conference and a wine tasting open to the public.

Other wine professionals honored at the fete this year were Grape Grower of the Year Ryan Heimann of Breese, and Industry Friend of the Year Candice Dietz of the VESTA program at Rend Lake College in Ina.

A special award of recognition was given to Brenda Logan of Baxter Winery in Nauvoo for her leadership roles in the IGGVA from 1993-2015. She served as IGGVA treasurer for 18 of those years.

Wenzel’s wine competed against more than 420 state vintages to win the top honor. The competition uses judges who represent a range of knowledge about hybrid styles and characteristics, as well as experience.

Those judges include university and extension service experts, restaurateurs, out-of-state winemakers, enologists and viticulturists.

Those Governor’s Cup winners include red wine, Galena Cellars, Eric the Red; white wine, August Hill Winery, Vignoles; rosé wine, Illinois Sparkling Co., Dollface Rose; fruit wine, Galena Cellars, Mead Honey Wine; and dessert wine, Alto Vineyards, Porto di Guido.

"The primary goal of this competition is to recognize the many outstanding wines produced in the state of Illinois. The number of medals awarded this year indicates that we, as an industry, are maintaining a very high degree of quality. For those entries that do not receive medals, the judges provide comments and feedback," Beam said.

"While there are several wineries that produce wines of excellent quality year in and year out, it’s important to remember that many of the vineyards and wineries in Illinois are relatively inexperienced. This feedback should help winemakers avoid repeating mistakes, and ultimately help our industry continue to improve."