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IWA Winner’s Night at Sofitel promises to be Exciting

Posted: Wednesday, 19 April 2017 13:40

 

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IWA Winner’s Night at Sofitel promises to be Exciting

April 19: After 2 days of intense judging by a dozen jurors tasting a total of 301 wines including about 90 labels entered for pairing specifically with six Indian dishes, and re-tasting of about 70 wines for the trophy winners, stage is set to recognise and reward the winners in the Silver, Gold and Diamond categories and declare the Best in Class Trophy, followed by Revelry with Award winning and wines entered at the India Wine Awards Winners’ Night at the venue partner Sofitel Mumbai BKC, writes Subhash Arora, Vice Chairman of the Jury and one of 3 Founder Directors of the Awards

Click For Large ViewFour panels of 3 judges (12 each) worked diligently on April 14, Good Friday, to taste around 210 wines- both Indian and imported. The following day saw over 90 wines paired with 6 different Indian dishes, with 3 panels of 4 regrouped judges given 2 dishes each-one vegetarian and one non vegetarian dish with each panel.

This was a day of reckoning for the plebeian baingan ka bhartha which joined Veg Biryani and Kerala Stew; none of these dishes would have imagined they would ever get so much importance in the gastronomical hierarchy. Although the mutton Seekh kebabs were the most popular dish for pairing with different wines, butter chicken was not far behind- both ahead of the patrani fish (baked in leaves) that was paired with different wines entered in the competition.

As it happens at the Hong Kong International Wine and Spirits Competition (HKIWSC) where Arora has been judging since the inception and has also introduced different Indian dishes during the last 3 editions, the judges found this very interesting, with many debating animatedly whether to eat the morsel and then sip and spit the wine or put both in the mouth and spit together. A couple of judges turned out to be vegetarians and hence had to be relocated!

For restaurateur Gauri Devidayal, Founder of The Table Restaurant & Magazine Street Kitchen, this was the favourite part of the blind tasting. ‘This is the first time such a category of awards is being hosted in India; is extremely important for wines being introduced in India and for restaurateurs. Overall a much needed and long overdue initiative for the hospitality industry, and very professionally organised" she remarked. Gauri Devidayal was one of the 12 judges.

Jury Panellists

Click For Large ViewIt was very important to have a jury that was professional, dedicated to the cause of wine in the Indian gastronomy and represented both the wine and hospitality industry and Retail. The 12 jurors who worked diligently on both days were Sonal Holland (Chairman), Subhash Arora (Vice-Chairman), Rojita Tiwari (journalist), Pratik Angre (Sommelier), Shagun Mehra (Goa), Alok Chandra (Consultant and journalist from Bangalore), Jasjit Singh Assi (GM Four Seasons), Shahrom  Oshtori (F & B Director Sofitel), Rahul Akerkar (founder of Indigo chain), Gauri Devidayal (The Table), Satyam Savla (Juben Wines) and  Bhisham Mansukhani (journalist). The organisers had taken great pain to see that the qualified experts connected with the importers or producers were not included despite the international practice in a majority of cases to avoid any seemingly conflict of interest.

The main objective of the Award was nicely summed up by one of the judges. An educator and consultant in Goa , Shagun Mehra is Director of Food Design Studio in Goa is a WSET Level 3 qualified professional and a culinary expert trained at Le Cordon Bleu, Paris. She said, "India Wine Awards gives the consumer full knowledge on the quality of the wines behind the labels. Not just going for the big brands, but an opportunity to discover some interesting wines that are delicious in the glass."

All the hard work by her and other jurors would have come to a naught if there were any discrepancy in serving correct wines blind or any error or manipulation in tabulation. The Awards made sure that the wines Click For Large Viewwere coded properly and served at the proper temperatures. Rishi Vohra, CSW with years of event management experience, who was entrusted the job of ensuring the seamless and proper serving of wines, handled it with aplomb. To ensure there were no errors in tabulating, Sourish Bhattacharyya, Director of the India Wine Awards was entrusted the important job of tabulating the results with the help of two experienced accountants who matched each result manually and on the computer, ensuring a complete transparency and integrity.

Trophies to be Awarded

India Wine Awards promised ‘Uncorking the Best’ and choosing the Best of the Best in each of the category announced. Trophies will be given out at the Awards Ceremony following the Welcome Wines starting at 6:30 pm. Based on various categories of entries the following  22 Trophies will be awarded at the Awards Ceremony:

Indian and Imported Wines

Best Indian Budget Wine

Best Indian Superior Wine

Best Indian Premium Wine

Best Indian Super Premium Wine

Best International Budget Wine

Best International Superior Wine

Best International Premium Wine

Best International Super Premium Wine

Best Indian Sparkling Wine

Best Indian White Wine

Best Indian Rose Wine

Best Indian Red Wine

Best International Sparkling Wine

Best International White Wine

Best International Rose Wine

Best International Red Wine

Wine and Food Pairing

Baingan Bhartha

Veg Biryani

Veg Kerala Stew

Butter Chicken

Mutton Seekh Kebabs

Patrani Fish

Welcome Wines

Click For Large ViewBesides the Award Winning wines which will be on display and available for tasting after the award ceremony, there will be wines galore to taste from our domestic producers at a stand manned by Four Seasons, Fratelli Vineyards, Good Drop Wine Cellars, Grover Zampa, Reveilo, Soma Vine Village and Sula Vineyards.

For tasting imported wines, head towards the tables manned by Ace Beverages, Aspri Spirits and Wines, Berkmann Cellars India, Fratelli, Gusto Imports, Hema Connoisseurs and Prestige. Due to limited space more could not be accommodated although the hotel is trying to allocate some extra space and one may be able to taste from more producers and importers.

These wines will also form the backbone of the Revelry promised at the end of the formal programme. The hotel has promised a lavish spread that will make you salivate and enjoy with multiple wines.

The tickets for the evening have been kept very low at Rs.2500, considering the amount and variety available for tasting and the excellent food to match. Who’s who of wine industry and the hospitality industry are expected to attend the event. The venue hospitality partners Sofitel Mumbai BKC did a tremendous job ensuring that the blind tasting over 2 days was smooth, seamless and a pleasurable experience. One can be sure of another class act from them at the India Wine Awards Winners’ night.

For online booking click https://www.instamojo.com/ Seats for the consumers are limited..

If there is any difficulty in registering, contact delWine@delwine.com

For earlier related Articles, please visit  

Curtain Raiser: India Wine Awards Ready for Judging at Sofitel Mumbai BKC

India Wine Awards to feature unique Food and Wine Match

Subhash Arora

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Comments:

 

Subhash Arora Says:

 

Please go to our website www.indianwineacademy.com . On top right corner there is an icon for the award. Click it. Or on the left side where there are red buttons, there is one with India Wine Awards 2017 Results. Click it. Or read the article (Medals Galore at India Wine Awards at Sofitel here willl be article on results announced that you posted on 22nd night) So there are 3 options.

Posted @ April 27, 2017 13:40

 

UMESH NILE Says:

Hi can u please share entire list of labels won the awards on 22nd apr 17?? I tired searching across web i could not get full list

Posted @ April 27, 2017 11:20

 
       

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