Six Sommeliers through to the semi-finals of the Bollinger Exceptional Wine Service Awards 2013

Thursday, 25 July, 2013

The Bollinger Exceptional Wine Service Awards 2013

A wide range of enthusiastic applicants entered the First-Round of The Bollinger Exceptional Wine Service Award 2013. All applicants completed an ‘open book’ test, from which the top six have progressed to the Semi-Finals. First-Round candidates were assessed on the basis of their completed Questionnaire (theoretical component) for which the minimum pass was 65%, as well as on the basis of their experience in wine service in fine dining establishments.

Runner-Up of The Bollinger Exceptional Wine Service Award 2012, Kayetan Meissner, currently Sommelier at Bosman’s Restaurant at the Grande Roche Hotel in Paarl, and Semi-Finalist in both 2011 and 2012, Eric Botha, currently Sommelier at Bel Punto Restaurant in Umdloti, are both through again to the Semi-Finals.

Once again this year, all the Semi-Finalists are from Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal and the Western Cape, the three provinces which have the highest concentration of fine dining restaurants in South Africa.

The Six 2013 Semi-Finalists are:

Gauteng	Current employment	Previous success in this competition
Germain Lehodey	Restaurant Mosaic, Pretoria
Sean Trollip	Kream Restaurant, Pretoria	2011 Semi-Finalist
Xolani Manconywa	Saxon Boutique Hotel, Johannesburg

KwaZulu Natal	Current employment	Previous success in this competition
Eric Botha	Bel Punto Restaurant, Umdloti	2011 and 2012 Semi-Finalist

Western Cape	Current employment	Previous success in this competition
Barry Scholfield	Rust en Vrede Restaurant, Stellenbosch
Kayetan Meissner	Bosman’s Restaurant at the Grande Roche Hotel, Paarl	2011 Semi-Finalist and 2012 Runner-Up

= The Semi-Finals will take place on 5^th August 2013 at Morgenhof Wine Estate in Stellenbosch.

= The Finalists will compete in Cape Town on 9^th October 2013 at Ellerman House, Bantry Bay.

= The winner of The Bollinger Exceptional Wine Service Award 2013 will be announced at an exclusive Champagne event at Ellerman House on 31^st October 2013, and will win a trip to France, including a trip to the prestigious House of Champagne Bollinger. The Runner-Up will win a one night stay for two, including bed and breakfast, at Ellerman House.

Competition criteria and judging:

The competition entry criteria are:

= Those currently employed in the service of food and wine and with a history of minimum three years of such service.

= Contestants are required to have substantial knowledge of the local wine scene and of the professional service of both food and wine.

= An adequate knowledge of international wine appellations and styles of wine is also a prerequisite.

= More importantly, however, the contest examines the ability of those selling wine in the hospitality industry to relate what is produced in South Africa to the expectations of international visitors more familiar with the major wine producing regions of the world.

Semi-Finalists for the practical component of the competition are tested on their knowledge of wine styles and tasting ability in the form of a blind tasting. They are further assessed on their competence in making food and wine pairing recommendations, and finally on their ability to perform tasks of professional wine service.

Judges at all rounds of the competition include internationally trained sommeliers, Cape Wine Masters and members of the hospitality trade.

The South African Sommelier Association is fully behind The Bollinger Exceptional Wine Service Award and some of its members will again be judges at the Semi-Finals and the Finals.