AND THE BOLLINGER EXCEPTIONAL WINE SERVICE
AWARD 2013 GOES TO…….
KAYETAN MEISSNER
At an exclusive
Champagne event at the Queen Victoria Hotel at the V&A Waterfront on
Thursday 31st October, Kayetan Meissner was announced as the
winner of the The Bollinger Exceptional Wine Service Award 2013.
Kayetan, Sommelier at Bosman’s Restaurant at the Grande Roche Hotel
in Paarl, received the Riedel Glass Trophy and a trip to France
including a visit to the prestigious Champagne House
of Bollinger. The prize includes airfare and accommodation in Champagne.
After a testing morning of written
exams and a blind tasting at the Finals on 9th October at Ellerman
House in Bantry Bay, the three finalists: Kayetan
Meissner, Barry Scholfield, Assistant
Sommelier at Rust en Vrede Restaurant in Stellenbosch, and Xolani Mancotywa,
previously Sommelier at the Saxon Boutique Hotel in Johannesburg and now
Sommelier at Capital Club Dubai, were faced with a rigorous practical assessment. This year’s task was to
pour a magnum of bubbly evenly into 16 glasses and serve these to a table of
diners and their guests. Whilst performing this challenging exercise, the
candidate had to answer a number of questions from the judges as well as
respond appropriately in a few tricky moments.
Kayetan Meissner was The
Bollinger Exceptional Wine Service Award runner-up in 2012 when he was
Sommelier at the Saxon Boutique Hotel in Sandhurst, Johannesburg. The Bollinger
Exceptional Wine Service Award runner-up this year is Xolani Mancotywa, who recently
took up the position of Sommelier at Capital Club Dubai.
Ginette de Fleuriot, Cape Wine
Master, The Bollinger Exceptional Wine Service Award organiser and one of the
judges, is very pleased with the overall results, “As runner-up in 2012,
Kayetan was given a taste of what the competition is all about. He clearly took
on the challenge to hone his skills so that this year he performed even better
and was a clear winner.”
Kayetan graduated with a Hotel
School Diploma from Varsity College, a course affiliated to the International
Hotel School of Adelaide, Australia. Whilst working as a Sommelier on board the
MS Seabourn Sun and the MV Crystal Symphony, he had the wonderful opportunity
to visit vineyards across the world including Bordeaux, Tuscany, Napa Valley
and the Maipo Valley in Chile. Subsequently he has worked as a Sommelier at the
Saxon Boutique Hotel in Johannesburg, Beverage Manager at the Metropolitan
Grand in Bur Dubai, and Sommelier at the Sandton Sun. He is currently the
Cellar Master at Bosman’s Restaurant at the Grande Roche Hotel in Paarl and
will be undertaking Certification with the Court of Master Sommeliers in
November this year. His favourite South African wines come from the Swartland,
his choice international wine style is Burgundy and he loves Sparkling Wine and
Champagne. His preferred cuisine is classical French and Italian and his
interests include food and wine, travel, history and fly-fishing.
The Bollinger
Exceptional Wine Service Award is co-sponsored by Riedel Glassware who provide
infrastructural support for the competition, together with Vinimark The Wine
Company, importers of Bollinger Champagne.
The Award was
established in 2011 to bring focus and recognition of achievement to the
growing group of professional wine waiters in South Africa. Judges at all
rounds of the annual competition include internationally trained sommeliers,
Cape Wine Masters, and members of the hospitality trade.
The Judges of the 2013 Finals were:
Ginette de Fleuriot: Organiser of The Bollinger
Exceptional Wine Service Award, a Cape Wine Master and Marketing Manager at
Vinimark The Wine Company.
Neil Grant: Past Chairman of the
South African Sommelier Association (SASA) and Sommelier
and co-owner of Burrata Restaurant in the Old Biscuit Mill, Woodstock, Cape
Town.
Higgo Jacobs: Sommelier and Consultant and a
Senior Judge at the International Wine Challenge (IWC). Higgo also tastes for
various local competitions and publications and is General Secretary and a
founding member of the South African Sommelier Association (SASA).
Kent Scheermeyer: German-trained Sommelier and
founder of KSconsult which services the hospitality industry in wine
procurement, wine list design and training.
The South African
Sommelier Association (SASA) is fully behind The Bollinger Exceptional Wine
Service Award and some of its members are judges at the Semi-Finals and the
Finals. The Association aims to provide training and mentorship to guarantee
the continuous development of professional standards of wine service at the
highest level.
