Belgium triumphs in the Jerez Cup

The Belgian team composed of sommelier Paul-Henri Cuvelier and chef Fabian BaiHe, from the restaurant Paul de Pierre (Maarkedal), have risen this Wednesday with the Jerez Cup, but it has also taken the Juli Soler award for Best Sommelier and the award for Best Chef.

Seven teams representing restaurants competed in this international food and wine competition, several with Michelin stars, from Spain, the United States, Denmark, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, Germany and Russia. a three-course menu harmonized with sherry and chamomiles at the Villamarta Theater in Jerez de la Frontera (Cádiz) before the public and the jury.

The Paired menu that has won the Jerez Cup and has given its authors the Best Sommelier and Best Chef awards It was made up of a starter with mackerel, artichoke and chorizo ​​in a nod to Spain, served with Fino Viña Corrales from Bodegas San Francisco; a main with lamb and zucchini flower stuffed with Manchego cheese, accompanied with Oloroso from Bodegas Gutierrez Colosía, and a dessert of pear in tobacco syrup and creamy lemon with Medium Old Harvest from Bodegas Ximénez-Spinola.

During the competition, held on Tuesday, sommelier Paul-Henri Cuvelier defended the need to consider sherry not only as aperitif or dessert wines, since “they can accompany an entire meal from start to finish” according to its typology, and to try it in their restaurant they serve it in a bottle wrapped in a black cloth with a green question mark so that the diner does not get carried away by prejudices.

The Netherlands team has been awarded the prize for Best Pairing with Starter; that of Denmark, with that of Best Pairing with Main Dish; the award to Best Pairing with Dessert It was for the United States -whose team is made up of the Spaniards Nicolás López and Jordi Paronella, from Mercado Little Spain-, and that of More Creative Pairing, for Russia.

Spain is empty

Spain, represented by the chef Juan Pablo Stefanini and the sommelier Iván Sánchez, from Venta Moncalvillo (Daroca de Rioja) has gone empty.

Although the competition took place on Tuesday, it was not until Wednesday that the winners were announced at the closing gala of the ninth edition of the Copa Jerez Forum & Competition, organized by the Regulatory Council of Wines of Jerez and Manzanilla in collaboration with Fedejerez and that for two days has filled the Villamarta Theater of lectures, culinary demonstrations and tastings.

Josep Roca, president of the jury

The jury, chaired by the sommelier from El Celler de Can Roca (Girona), Josep Roca, was made up of Quique Dacosta, who has five Michelin stars; Andreas Larsson, Best Sommelier in the World 2007; José Pizarro, from the Pizarro Restaurants Group; Peer Holm, president of the Association of Sommeliers of Germany, and José Carlos Capel, food critic and director of Madrid Fusión.

Roca has highlighted the “very high level” of this edition of the enogastronomic championship and he pointed out that the jury was surprised by “the deep knowledge that all the participants have of the wineries, of history, of everything that has to do with the harmonies and trends of current gastronomy and how they harmonize well with the wines from Jerez “.

Related news

He has said about the winning proposal that, even though it is “classic in style”, it stands out for its “ability to reinterpret the scenes on the plate and in the wine proposal”.

For Quique Dacosta, the “classic knowledge from the kitchen to the world of wine” and the “didactic content and great knowledge” demonstrated by the Belgian team has made them worthy of being awarded the Jerez Cup, which says goodbye until 2023.