ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) — The International Cold Climate Wine Competition returns to the St. Paul campus of the University of Minnesota on Thursday.

A panel of 21 experts will taste and judge more than 325 wines from commercial wineries in 12 states and Canada.

The fourth annual competition is a partnership between the Minnesota Grape Growers Association and the University of Minnesota, which developed several of the cold-hardy grapes used to make the wines in the competition.  The judges include prominent wine writers, restaurateurs, retailers and wine educators.

Seven three-judge panels will determine the initial awards, with top-scoring wines evaluated by all 21 judges for “best of” categories and the Governor’s Cup award to the top Minnesota grape wine.

(© Copyright 2012 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)