Competition Portugal
14th edition of the Master of Port
Fabrice Sommier
writes his name on the list of winners
Chairman of the Association 'Lyonnais Rhône-Alpes' and already acclaimed as the Best Craftsmen of France 2007, the Head Sommelier of the Restaurant Georges Blanc, in Vonnas, was hailed in the lounges of the Ambassy of Portugal, in presenced of His Excellency the Ambassador Francisco Seixas da Costa.
The eight candidates selected for the last tests:Jean-Baptiste Klein, Fabrice Sommier, Marianne Monin, Carole Ferron, Philippe Troussard, Yann Satin, Benjamin Roffet and Bertrand Bijasson.
About sixty competitors present during the selection organized by the Association of Great Brands of Porto (SGMP) and eight regional associations of the Union of the French Sommellerie, with the support of the Douro and Porto wines Institute... eight only, gathered in the lounges of a hotel close to the Parisian outskirts... four in finale and only one winner... That is the long way that lead Fabrice Sommier to the title of Master of Port. A contest of which Serge Dubs, in 1988, was the first laureate. The next year, he was consecrated Best Sommelier of the World.
An ideal career which the eight candidates selected had never thought about: Bertrand Bijasson (Hôtel Mercure in Libourne), Carole Ferron (Les Vins Cœurs, in Trions), Jean-Baptiste Klein (Restaurant Régis and Jacques Marcon, in Saint-Bonnet-le-Froid), Marianne Monin (Le Bristol, in Paris), Benjamin Roffet (Gordon Ramsay at Trianon Palace, in Versailles), Yann Satin (Hôtel Westminster, in Le Touquet), Fabrice Sommier (Restaurant Georges Blanc, in Vonnas) and Philippe Troussard (Les Caudalies, in Arbois).
Eliminations in stages
The first to pay the price for a series of eliminatory tests (tasting with written comments, questionnaire) were Bertrand Bijasson and Marianne Monin. For the six still in the race, the practical test combined the choice of a Porto wine, and its justification, to accompany the starter, the main dish or the dessert of a lunch that the members of the jury had in the presence of Claude Brasseur, support of this 2010 edition.
Fatal test for Carole Ferron and Jean-Baptiste Klein.
The finale, in public, with apparently easy workshops, showed once again that the technical committee, under Christian Pechoutre's managing this year, did not lack neither imagination nor subtlety to judge of the quality of the pretenders to the title. Of course, opening a bottle of Porto and serving it has nothing difficult. But when this bottle is stoppered with wax under which is hidden a plastic crown cap, that is another problem!
Tasting five glasses of Porto and identifying them with the bottles presented, decanting a magnum, serving it while proposing a menu matching this wine, plus a diaporama punctuated with ten questions... these were the tests that revealed the great winner of a contest for which they will be numerous within two years to dream once again of success.
The Technical Committee mobilized by the UDSF once again found substance to surprise the finalists.
The new-found taste for competition
Fabrice Sommier found his taste for competition again, as he prepared himself with the sommellerie team of the prestigious restaurant to which he brings a new title after the one of Best Craftsman of France, that he won in Evian, in 2007. “It was not a bet, but it nearly was, he confessed, once the title under his belt. Some were surprised to see me go back to competitions, as they thought that after the MOF, one has nothing left to prove. For me, it was a very passionate way to enjoy myself. And I was motivated by the idea of making discover a product that is known in itself but not as an element of gastronomy.”
Candidate in the end of last April, during the French selection for the next European contest, Fabrice Sommier did not succeed. “It is my objective from now on. This title of Master of Port the year of my 40s is a real source of motivation to get further.”
The unlucky candidates of the day were not decided yet to throw in the sponge. Other deadlines are looming on the horizon and they are well-decided to remember the lessons to show even more competitive in the future.
Jean BERNARD
<< In presence of Serge Dubs, Claude Brasseur gave the prize to Fabrice Sommier.
