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At the end of five days of competition, Raimonds Tomsons, representing Latvia, won the title of Best Sommelier in the World at the Association de la Sommellerie Internationale (ASI) Best Sommelier of the World competition. The Latvian claimed the top spot ahead of the Dane Nina Jensen and Chinese candidate Reeze Choi during the grand final at La Paris Défense Arena on 12 February. The French candidate, Pascaline Lepeltier, unfortunately, couldn’t compete due to illness.
The three finalists went toe to toe on stage for more than four hours during several taste tests, including working with a bartender on cocktails, and wine services.
Each test was punctuated by unforeseen events such as a bottle that was not at the right temperature or the impromptu arrival of guests at a table. The three finalists then had four minutes to identify four white wines, and a minute to connect two types of minerals to two wines they had just tasted.
During another test, chef Anne-Sophie Pic asked the candidates to pair the four wines they had just tasted with four dishes on the menu from her restaurant in Valence. The finalists also had to analyse a wine list in order to identify price, vintage and origin errors, as well as taste and identify the vintage of three wines in front of the public present at the arena. Finally, the three finalists had to identify five wines from a series of images.
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