Dynamic French Sommelier victorious in Gaggenau’s Sommelier Awards 2018.

Gaggenau, the luxury brand for professional-grade home appliances, is proud to announce Mikaël Grou from France has been crowned the winner of the third biennial international Gaggenau Sommelier Awards.

Mikaël fought for his place against five other young, up and coming sommeliers who had all qualified for a shot in the final following a six month global competition. Finalists from France, the Region of Greater China, South Africa, Sweden, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom headed to Beijing to battle it out for the coveted international title.

At the final, the sommeliers competed against one another in tasks that tested their knowledge, skill, ability and flare. In the evening, a celebratory gala dinner at the Red Brick Art Museum, hosted by the acclaimed Michelin-starred Taiwanese chef André Chiang, was attended by more than 150 industry influencers from across the world.

The judging panel monitored and appraised the sommeliers throughout a series of demanding tasks, including a wine tasting, service and food pairing exercise, identifying mistakes in a wine list test, and placing wines at their correct temperature into the newly launched Gaggenau Vario wine climate cabinet 400 series.

The panel consisted of the President of the Austrian Sommelier Association, Annemarie Foidl; Master of Wine, Sarah Abbott; China’s first and only Master Sommelier and Corporate Director of Wine for Shangri-La Hotels and Resorts, Yang Lu, and Head of Global Brand Gaggenau, Sven Schnee. All of them agreed that this year’s competition included the highest calibre of young sommeliers in the event’s history.

Sven Schnee, Head of Global Brand Gaggenau, commented: “We began the journey of the Gaggenau Sommelier Awards with a view to celebrating the art of viniculture and to provide a platform for rising stars to truly showcase their talent. Every year that we have hosted these awards Gaggenau has absorbed and shared so much knowledge and understanding of culinary culture, not only that of wine but also the sensorial journey one takes throughout the experience available to those who know its value. As this knowledge has evolved over time, so too have we, as a contributor to the future landscape of viniculture.

“We are proud of our contestants and their achievements so far and we are especially delighted to have been given the opportunity to showcase these great talents here in China – a country which lays claim to an opulent history in the art of wine making.”

Emma Ziemann of Sweden came second in the coveted awards with Davide Dellago, representing Switzerland, taking third place.

The winner and runners-up of the Gaggenau Sommelier Awards 2018 take home trophies created by leading Chinese designer, Jamy Yang. The winner will, in addition, receive a special sommelier training and master class at one of Europe’s top wine establishments and the title of Global Brand Ambassador for Gaggenau.

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