Final 12 sommeliers chosen to battle it out for Moët UK Sommelier of the Year 2014

By Richard Siddle

Published: 09 May, 2014

The 12 semi-finalists of the Moët UK Sommelier of the Year 2014, organised by the Academy of Food & Wine Service, have been announced who will now battle it out to go through to the grand final.

The selected semi-finalists had to go through a series of regional finals held earlier this week in Bristol, London and Stafford.

The 2014 semi-finalists are:

Loic Avril, The Fat Duck, Bray

Romain Bourger, The Vineyard at Stockcross, Newbury

Lukasz Kolodziejczyk, Pollen Street Social, London W1

Olivier Marie, Coq d'Argent, London EC2

Stefan Neumann, Dinner by Heston Blumenthal, London SW1

Adam Pawlowski, Northcote, Blackburn

Emanuel Pesqueira, Summer Lodge, Dorchester

Damien Trinquel, Lucknam Park Hotel & Spa, Chippenham

Roberto Zanca, Hotel du Vin, Cheltenham

They will be joined by Tobias Brauweiler, The Ritz, London W1 (2013 runner-up), Kathrine Larsen (2013 Young Sommelier of the Year), and Tanguy Martin, Hotel TerraVina, Southampton (winner of 2014 Chaînes des Rôtisseurs Young Sommelier of the Year).

The 12 sommeliers will now go head to head at London's Mandarin Oriental, Hyde Park on June 12 to see which three go through to the final which will be held in the afternoon in front of an audience of invited guests.

This year's event is the third year it has been sponsored by Moët & Chandon and it has agreed to take all 12 semi-finalists to its cellars in Epernay for tour and tasting of vintages with Chef de Cave Benoît Gouez. All the sommeliers who entered this year's Moët UK Sommelier of the Year have been invited to a lunch hosted by the London Wine Fair at Olympia on June 2.

Elsa Cornibeau, Moët & Chandon's marketing, said: "The standard of this year's regional finalists was extremely high and we are particularly pleased to welcome back some of last year's entrants, but it's also rewarding to see some new sommeliers coming through as they start to climb the ranks of their profession."

The panel of judges at the semi-finals and final will be chaired by Gerard Bassett OBE, MS, MW, MBA and winner of Best Sommelier in the World 2010 .

The competition is now in its 35th year and looks to reward the best wine waiter or sommelier based on their wine and spirits expertise, ability to deal with customers under pressure, and front of house beverage service skills. Last year's winner was Clement Robert, head sommelier at Medlar Restaurant, London.

The Moët UK Sommelier of the Year 2014 will receive an all-expenses paid trip to Maison Moët & Chandon to taste the Grand Vintage collections with chef de cave Benoît Gouez. The winner also receives the Boutinot bursary, which this year includes a study visit to Piedmonte in Italy accompanied by Clement Robert and Boutinot's master sommelier Nigel Wilkinson.

All three finalists will be given a 12-month complimentary membership of The Wine Guild of the United Kingdom, including an invitation to its annual winter banquet held at Vintners' Hall in London.

Other partners of the competiion include: Riedel; The Westbury Hotel, London; Hotel du Vin, Bristol; and the Moat House, Stafford.

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