Copa Jerez Forum & Competition, the world’s largest Sherry-themed food & wine event, jointly organised by the Regulatory Council (Consejo Regulador de Vinos de Jerez y Manzanilla) and Fedejerez (Federation of Jerez Region Wineries), has been named the Best Promotional Initiative at this year’s edition of International Wine Challenge Merchant Awards.
Chaired by Pedro Ballesteros, MW, the panel of judges was comprised of a prestigious line-up of wine industry professionals who acknowledged Copa Jerez as being “a unique event that brings together sommeliers and top world-renowned restaurant chefs from three different continents. The chef-sommelier teams take to the stage to present their best pairing menu before a live audience and in the process, put Sherry Wines and Manzanilla front and centre on the international wine map”.
The world-famed awards, considered the “Oscars” of the wine world, were announced at a gala dinner attended by nearly 300 guests. The occasion serves to acknowledge and award all those professionals in Spain who have contributed in a significant way to highlighting wine and affording it greater visibility to the public.
After eight editions, Copa Jerez Forum & Competition has become a solid frontrunner and a world-reference event focusing on Sherry Wines, encompassing a prestigious food and wine pairing competition with the participation of restaurants from around the world, and a conference forum showcasing the latest research and knowledge, presented by leading experts from the international food and wine scene.
In its last edition, Copa Jerez premiered at the Villamarta Theatre in Jerez, launching a new and highly innovative format in which seven international chef and sommelier teams prepared their Sherry Region wine and food pairing menus simultaneously and live onstage. The winning team this year was from the restaurant Clou* of Denmark.
Copa Jerez Forum & Competition 2019 attracted over 300 oenologists, sommeliers, specialised journalists, distributors, chefs and Sherry Wine lovers from around the world, giving them the chance to participate in a full programme of activities, tastings and presentations given by some of the most relevant figures in food and wine. The event was a chance for attendees to widen their knowledge and assessment criteria of these wines by delving into their history and traditions, making them so highly valued in the world of gastronomy.
“This is an award for our perseverance and unwavering commitment to authenticity, and pays tribute to the knowledge of generations of winery owners and winemakers. It is their generosity that allows Sherry Wines to be considered of the highest quality by wine experts around the world. Thanks to the thousands of sommeliers, waiters and chefs worldwide and their inspiring and creative pairing menus at Copa Jerez, the present and future of Sherry Wines is, no doubt, to be found in the world of cuisine. This award is the best news we could ever receive now, as we celebrate International Sherry Week—the festive week-long event that showcases Sherry Wines and Manzanilla with over 2,400 events in 39 countries,” affirms Carmen Aumesquet, Promotional Director of the Consejo Regulador de Vinos de Jerez y Manzanilla.
Likewise, the Secretary General of Fedejerez, Patricia de la Puerta, added that “for the Federation of Jerez Region Wineries (Fedejerez), the fact that we share this award with the Regulatory Council is magnificent news. We are extremely proud that Copa Jerez has accomplished its goal of becoming a forum where top-level cuisine and our universally acclaimed wines share the limelight. Something unimaginable without the collaboration of so many people, which is why we want to express our heartfelt thanks to all the teams of chefs and sommeliers, members of the jury, international coordinators, local collaborators, members of the press and of course, to all the wineries and organisers of the event, for being part of this initiative.”
REGULATORY COUNCIL FOR THE DESIGNATIONS OF ORIGIN “JEREZ-XÉRÈS-SHERRY” AND “MANZANILLA-SANLÚCAR DE BARRAMEDA“
The Regulatory Council for the Designations of Origin “Jerez-Xérès-Sherry”, “Manzanilla-Sanlúcar de Barrameda” oversees the more than 1,750 winegrowers and 60 wineries that are located in the Jerez Region (in Spanish, “Marco de Jerez”) in southern Spain’s province of Cádiz. These wines offer a wide range of varieties, each with its own unique character, and have been exported for centuries under a number of iconic brands which have led these Spanish wines to gain worldwide acclaim.
About the International Wine Challenge
The International Wine Challenge (IWC) awards, owned by William Reed Business Media Ltd. have over three decades of history in the United Kingdom, gaining enormous prestige among wine producers and wine industry professionals everywhere.
The IWC UK Merchant Awards were launched 25 years ago as a distinctive way to acknowledge outstanding trade, commerce and wine distribution initiatives while maintaining the same level of rigour and credibility enjoyed by the IWC wine awards. The most prestigious award of its kind, the IWC Merchant Awards are considered an excellent marketing platform and an efficient sales positioning reference in the UK.
The jury is chaired by Master of Wine, Pedro Ballesteros who, together with other leading wine experts like Charles Metcalfe (co-founder of the International Wine Challenge UK), Angela Mount (wine writer, expert and journalist), Fernando Mora MW, Ángel Riesgo (former CEO of DDB Spain and DDB Latina), Ferrán Centelles (former sommelier at El Bulli and Jancis Robinson’s wine critic for Spain), José Luis Benítez (Director General of the Spanish Wine Federation – FEV), Benjamin Lana (Head of the Gastronomy Division of the Vocento group), Fran Ramírez (sommelier and owner of Amano) and Oscar Marcos (sommelier and head maitre at Alabaster, an award-winning restaurant recognised by the specialised media, including the IWC Award for Best Restaurant Wine List in 2016).
For more information, contact:
QMS Comunicación, (+34) 91 3431286 / 87
Claudia Estrella: claudiaestrella@qmscomunicacion.com, (+34) 699 670 893
Saray Alonso: sarayalonso@qmscomunicacion.com, (+34) 689 064 573
