Anatomy of a Sommpetition

Welcome to this running diary of the 5th Best Young Sommelier Competition held on November 22, 2019 at Kyperounda Winery, way up in the heart of the Troodos mountain range!

9:30 am: I park across the street from Kyperounda Winery, the best halloumopitta on The Rock warming my lap and innards following a brief stop in Astromeritis' Ste-Ma Bakery, as they set up the winery's reception area for the sommpetition.

There are three separate tables of judges consisting of the crème de la crème of The Rock's wine and food world. There is Andreas Kyprianou of Vinocultura, Paola Papacosta of Cypriot & Proud, CySomm's trio of Georges (Kassianos, Loukakis & Zacharoglou), Vassos Manoli of Pralina Experience, Stalo Arambantzi of Four Seasons, Charis Stylianides of O'Vrakas Taverna, Minas Mina of Kyperounda Winery, Teddy Kandylis of 67 Pall Mall in London and countless others. Serving as Master of Ceremonies, Sotiris Neophytides, now Head Sommelier at Amara in Limassol. Just as in the case of the annual Cyprus Wine Competition, if the soirée had been somewhat less sophisticated and legitimate, I might have been invited as a judge to muddle things up.

We're informed that 3 of the 9 sommeliers move on to the final where they will go through a blind tasting of wines and spirits and a serving component while being bombarded with questions by the judging panel who pretend to be not-so-petulant customers at a high-end restaurant.

10:00 am: To avoid any biases, all judgments are done blindly. Hence, each participant is donned with a unique number and the judges do not know what number is assigned to whom. If only justice out in the real world were this straightforward and transparent.

MC Neo starts rifling out numbers like a race caller at the Kentucky Derby. 306! 482! 920! I'm waiting for an excited octogenarian with bad hips, a flowered ankle-length dress and patchouli-scented perfume to yell out "Bingo!" and jump on stage to claim her prize. What does she win? A  camouflage crock pot, of course.

The deserving finalists!

Jessica-Stella Thoma of Parklane Resort and Spa in Limassol, Adrian Andronache of Rous Restaurant in Nicosia, and Konstantinos Grigoriou of Fereos Fourpoint Distribution are the designated finalists.

10:40 am: More numbers are barked out; this time to determine the order of the proceedings. To my disappointment, no one yells out "Bingo!" Adrian goes first, followed by Konstantinos and then Jessica. Game on, somms.

“I'm excited. It's the first time I manage to reach the final. I'm glad to be here, everything is a plus from this moment on,” Adrian tells MC Neo.

Each table before the somm poses a set of specific challenges. Table 1 orders two glasses of Commandaria (one on the rocks) and an ice cold Cypriot beer. Table 2 is looking to pair a set menu designed by the executive chef of Pralina Experience in Nicosia with individual wines. Table 3 requests a bottle of red wine, which the somm has to properly decant and serve, and a chilled shot of Cypriot firewater. Each table has to be cleared in six, seven (with one minute to look over the menu) and seven minutes, respectively. About the time it takes me to write half a sentence for this post while Little Miss Muse chooses to go out boozing with her girlfriends and leaves me stranded on the deserted island of ineptitude.

Adrian's somm style is obvious from the get-go. He is super chatty, delivering plenty of information to his clients and offering up suggestions, many times at a supersonic (give me gin n' tonic) speed. When Stalo asks for an ice cube in her Commandaria, Adrian brings up dilution, talks about the Cypriot landmark wine being better as a digestif and suggests instead serving her a sparkler, G&T or other cocktail. Besides being accommodating, Rous' somm is also very thorough in providing extra information on the drinks requested, from the aging process for Kyperounda Winery's Commandaria to the history behind Leon, The Rock's first beer.

The menu for Table 2 (as we later find out) consists of actual dishes served at an event hosted by the Cypriot President for foreign dignitaries.

For the sake of simplicity and as a tribute to my past life as a number cruncher for an energy consulting firm, I'm going to break out a table to summarize this portion of the event.

Some observations from Press Row, the best seat in the house:

• A relative dearth of red wines are selected, which is understandable considering the menu. My one question mark would be Konstantinos' choice of Yiannoudi to match the grouper.
• Kyperounda Winery's Chardonnays, which I love, got mentioned more than Donald Trump tweets. Maybe the somms thought said choice would endear them to the judges and the event's official sponsors?
• I appreciate the sommeliers' efforts to (almost exclusively) list Cypriot wines for each dish.
• Commandaria is king, queen, prince and princess of this wine court.

Now back to your regular programming.

Table 3 involves serving a red wine and zivania. A quick play-by-play analysis of Adrian's "performance" offers beginners like myself a good introduction to the world of wine service.

Adrian Andronache

Adrian sets up a wine basket with a napkin and towel and checks each single glass to make sure they are not smudged with magenta lipstick or suspicious fingerprints or streaks of lamb grease before setting them on a tray and distributing them among the judges. He lights a candle. Gently, with nary a sound, he uncorks the bottle of Kyperounda's Andessitis he's picked for the guests. He asks who would like to taste the wine and makes sure the cork is in good condition. He pours himself a glass, swirls it in the decanter and returns it to his glass. Takes a whiff and tastes the wine to make sure it does not smell/taste like wet cardboard or rotten eggs or [insert wine fault of your choice]. Then he decants the bottle over the candle to make sure there's no sediment being transferred into the receptacle. Serves a glass for the table's designated taster. Adrian wraps up by offering a pairing for the wine of choice, asks to remove the cork and pops out a fancy gold gadget—it looks like a mini bell or a thimble attached to a rod—to tactfully burn out the candle. Personally, I would have gone the licked fingers or birthday cake blowout route. Andreas Kyprianou probably trained him well.

11:00 am: Now we enter what's probably the toughest part of any wine competition or certification—the blind tasting (or random guessing game if you have the level of training of an Ecuadorian wine blogger).

There are six black glasses with spirits that must be identified correctly, and one glass of wine that must be described in great detail (think a three-minute run-on sentence on your favorite beverage). Of course, the candidate must also venture a guess based on their sensorial talents.

Again, to cut through my wordiness, here's a table summarizing the candidates' tasting notes and guesstimates.

More observations from Press Row, the best seat in the house:

• From where I sit, the three seem to do a decent job describing the wine, despite their guesses being all over the place. They move from point to point quite quickly and offer enough detail for the audience to get an idea of what they were experiencing.
• Considering that the event is sponsored by Kyperounda Winery and Photos Photiades Ltd., I wonder whether the candidates studied the company's wine portfolio ahead of time. As a participant, I might have assumed that the wine before me was one provided to the competition by the sponsors.
• The wine is the 2018  Roxani Matsa Estate Malagouzia from Attica in Greece. Yes, imported to The Rock by Photos Photiades Ltd. [Editor's Note: Insert your favorite smart-ass GIF].

Finally, the six black glasses are a combination of Commandaria (fortified and non-fortified), Zivania (oaked and unoaked) and citrus liqueurs, a selection that didn't pose too many challenges to the participants.

11:20 am: – Konstantinos is up next.

“As expected. Stressed,” he tells MC Neo.

Konstantinos Grigoriou

As soon as he gets started with Table 1, it becomes quite apparent that Konstantinos' style is the polar opposite of Adrian's. There is hardly an introduction and very little talking and information shared. He jumps straight into the serving, pouring the couple glasses of Commandaria, setting a glass with ice next to them, and offering up a Carlsberg, which, if we're being honest, wouldn't fly had I ordered a Cypriot beer. There's little flare to his presentation; Konstantinos works his way through the challenge, seemingly more focused on getting the job done in a fast, efficient and satisfactory manner rather than charming his customers or offering them interesting insights into their selections.

Once he hits Table 3, his nerves are rather visible. The wine glasses rattle on the tray as he places them on the table. Konstantinos says the wine he has picked does not necessarily need decanting but he will do as the client wishes. He cracks a joke about the candle also offering ambiance and uses his fingers (unless I imagined it) to burn it out once it's done romancing the room. Then, he runs out of time while suggesting a beef filet to pair with the wine.

12:05 pm: Last but not least, it's time for Jessica's shot at the title.

“Where’s the exit?” she quips.

Jessica-Stella Thoma

She follows in the same style established by Konstantinos. There's no small talk or introduction or second-guessing the judges. Jessica asks the judges if they want to try the Commandaria and what beer they'd prefer—Carlsberg or Leon. [Editor's Note: Leon. Duh.] Like Konstantinos, she seems nervous and doubts some of her moves.

This pattern continues onto Table 3 where again there is hardly any chitchat or questions to the judges. She stumbles while trying to light the candle, asks a judge whether she should try the wine for him, presents the table the cork and wraps up her waltz by suggesting braised veal cheeks as the perfect accompaniment to the red wine she has decanted.

She recovers following a shaky start and bumps Konstantinos off second place in my final podium predictions.

12:40 pm: Oh! A surprise! We love surprises!

The candidates are asked to identify the grapes behind some of the world's most famous labels, a few more obscure than others but an entertaining exercise nevertheless. Each bottle is flashed on a screen for 10 seconds and the somms have to write out the grape on their flip chart.

Of course, I decide to play along and make a fool of myself. From 1 to 10, here are my guesses: Merlot & Cabernet Franc, Shiraz (GSM), Sangiovese, can’t see (squinting), Shiraz, my eyes fail me again, Nebbiolo, Riesling, Sauvignon Blanc (?) (stop blaming your poor eyesight) and Malbec.

Did I get any right? I doubt it. Now back to my cave.

 

Wine Scribble was there too & here's plenty of footage better than my writing.

12:50 pm: What's a sommpetition without wine for the attendees? We are handed glasses of Kyperounda Winery's 2018 Akti Rosé, its Provence-style, coral-toned blush rendering the overcast and cold morning forgotten.

13:15 pm: It's finally time. The scores have been tallied and the results are in.

Press Row, the best seat in the house.

Pralina Experience's Vassos Manoli thanks Kyperounda Winery and Photos Photiades Ltd., for hosting the event and reminds us we have a date come November 2020 for the Association de la Sommellerie Internationale's (ASI) Contest for the Best Sommelier of Europe & Africa that will be hosted in Limassol. [Editor's Note: This was pre-COVID-19 so things are now up in the air. Bonus question: If Coronavirus were a grape variety, what would it be? We vote for Zinfandel. Wait, should I duck or are we all in agreement?]

Drum roll please.

In third place, Konstantinos Grigoriou. Second place to Jessica-Stella Thoma. And this year's grand winner is Adrian Andronache. As I had *cough, cough* predicted.

A few final observations from Press Row, the best seat in the house:

I believe a huge part of a sommelier's job involves charisma. Personalities, however, vary to large degrees. Some are more personable and engaging while others are more reserved and strictly focus on efficiently serving customers without any unnecessary interruptions or fanfare. Both of these personalities were on display during this competition, and I guess a customer's preference ultimately depends on his or her own personality and needs. Of course, proper etiquette, wine connoisseurship and respecting your cash-carrying customers are non-negotiable.

In any case, all three candidates, despite the understandable nerves amassed by performing as young professionals on a big stage before peers and fanboys like myself, did admirably well and have bright futures in the hospitality sector on The Rock.

Congratulations to all three and until next year!

An (Almost) Case of Questions with Sotiris Neophytides, Sommelier, Parklane Luxury Collection Resort & Spa

Sommeliers on The Rock have started to gain plenty of local and international recognition.

One of these young up-and-comers is Sotiris Neophytides, who currently plies his vinous trade as a Somm at Limassol's swanky Parklane Luxury Resort & Spa.


Sotiris, who has won the Cypriot title for Best Young Sommelier three years running (2017 to 2019), is also the second Cypriot (after Andreas Kyprianou of Vinocultura in Nicosia) to receive the Advanced Sommelier Certificate by the Court of Master Sommeliers following his first crack at the exam.


As usual, we sat down with Sotiris to pick his brain on all-things wine!

Why wine?

As part of our culture and religion, Cyprus has a long history of winemaking with its most famous wine being Commandaria. Moreover, in each glass of wine there is magic, especially when you try it blind and you have to discover all of its aromas and flavors in order to identify its region, something that we call terroir. This is why I fell in love with wine.

First wine that really captured your attention? How old were you?

The first wine that captured my attention was a wine that comes from Greece. It is called Museum and Domaine Gerovasiliou in Epanomi near Thessaloniki makes it. This wine had a powerful structure on the palate with a very long finish that has remained in my memory up until today. I was 24 years old when I tried it.

All-time favorite bottle of wine?

My favorite bottle of wine that I would like to enjoy is La Tâche by Domaine de la Romanée Conti in Burgundy, France. [Editor’s Note: Wouldn’t we all?]

Favorite wine-producing region? Why?

One of my favorite wine regions is Piedmont in northern Italy, especially Barolo. The reason I chose this region is that Barolos have both the character and temperament. They are high in acid and their tannins make the wines powerful but elegant at the same time.

Your favorite food-and-wine pairing?

I would pair a beautiful Wagyu beef with an Australian Shiraz. Shiraz has the structure and tannins to match the richness of the beef and its weight.

With Master Sommeliers Demetri Mensard (L) & Ronan Sayburn (R)

What is Cyprus missing when it comes to wine?

Promotion and positioning in the market at an international level. We do promote Cypriot wine but in very small steps.

What do you foresee for Cyprus’s wine industry?

Cypriot wines and winemaking have developed a lot during the last five-to-ten years. Therefore, I expect more experimentation from local winemakers. Moreover, Cypriot winemakers will look for more elegant styles of wines, and vines will be planted at higher altitudes. Seeing the industry’s huge improvement, new wineries will be built and, therefore, there will be greater competition between the wineries aiming to achieve a higher quality each year.

What do you enjoy most about your work in the food & wine world?

The diversity of the guests’ needs with certain food and wine pairings and of course their satisfaction at the end of the service are my favorite parts of the job. Basically, keeping the guests happy and providing them with a memorable experience through my wine list.

Who is your favorite wine personality? Why?

My favorite wine personality is Arvid Rosengren, who won the award for Best Sommelier in the World in 2016. He shows how genuine and elegant we need to be towards our guests.

Any embarrassing episodes involving spilled wine, corkscrews, sommeliers or drunken behavior?

At the beginning of my career as a sommelier I went to a table to open a bottle of Prosecco. The cork was so tight that I could not open it. At a certain point, as I was holding it, it popped out and I had a wonderful bath of Prosecco.

Of course, your all-time favorite island wine?

This is a beautiful question for which I could write in many of my favorite wines. Each winemaker has a different philosophy and winemaking style. Therefore, some of my favourite producers, I would say, are Tsiakkas, Vlassides, Argyrides, Zambartas, Vassiliades Expressions, Kyperounda, Ezousa and many more.

A Case of Questions with Mike Veseth, Wine Economist

Last year, prior to the annual Cyprus Wine Competition (my invitation was probably stolen by a stray cat), the Ministry of Agriculture's Viticultural Section organized a local wine industry conference with Mike Veseth, a professor emeritus of International Political Economy at the University of Puget Sound, as one of its guests of honour. Professor Veseth, who's an authority on the global wine economy and has written several books on vinous matters, spent several days on The Rock where he tasted our best, spoke to the winemakers and delivered plenty of insightful thoughts on the state of Cyprus' wine sector. Goes without saying, the blog reached out and here are his answers to our Case of Questions!

Why wine?

Mike Veseth (MV): My new book, Around the World in Eighty Wines: Exploring Wine One Country at a Time, was released in November 2017 and the central question is “Why wine?” Why has wine fascinated us for all these centuries? Why do winemakers go to such extremes to produce wine? Why has wine and the traditions that surround it endured? I think I have found the answer, but I don’t want to spoil my book’s ending. You’ll have to read Around the World in Eighty Wines to find out! 

How did you get started writing about wine and the wine business?

MV: I wrote about this in my 2011 book, Wine Wars: The Curse of the Blue Nun, the Miracle of Two Buck Chuck, and the Revenge of the Terroirists. We were visiting Napa Valley years ago and talking with a winemaker. When he learned I was an Economics Professor he became quite intense and asked many questions because what happened to the economy affected his ability to make and sell the best wines. He taught me that wine is a business as well as an art and a science and that the insights that economists may offer can be important. My 2005 book, Globaloney: Unraveling the Myths of Globalization, explored a number of case studies of how global markets evolve and adapt. One of the chapters examined the global wine market and there was so much interest that I decided to specialize in wine economics. 

Your blog is called The Wine Economist. What do you write about and who are your readers?

MV: Most professors write academic papers that are read by other professors and no one else. I decided that I wanted to reach a broader audience that includes wine industry and trade readers as well as academics and consumers, too. I started The Wine Economist as a way to work out my thoughts about wine market issues in public where I can get feedback from my global wine readership. It has been very successful both in terms of the ideas it has helped generate and in the public reception. The Wine Economist won the 2015 Gourmand International award for best wine blog. Who knew that so many people would want to read about wine business!

You have written four books on wine. What are they about?

MV: Wine Wars: The Curse of the Blue Nun, the Miracle of Two Buck Chuck, and the Revenge of the Terroirists (2011) examined wine market dynamics as the interaction of three strong forces: globalization, commodification, and “the revenge of the terroirists,” which is the thirst for authenticity in wine and in life more generally. Each of these forces has grown stronger since I wrote Wine Wars so this analysis remains relevant and continues to shape my thinking about wine. ExtremeWine: Searching the World for the Best, the Worst, the Outrageously Cheap, the Insanely Overpriced, and the Undiscovered (2013) tries to understand where wine is going by looking at the extremes of the market where change is most pronounced. Money, Taste, and Wine: It’s Complicated (2015) examined the many ways that money affects wine – what is produced and where, what we buy and even how good (or bad) the wine tastes to us. This book received the 2016 Gourmand International award for best wine writing.

Now, as I said earlier, Around the World in Eighty Wines has been recently released. Taking inspiration from Jules Verne’s famous novel, it circles the globe seeking great wines, great wine stories, and insights into why wine is such an enduring part of life. 

What brought you to Cyprus? 

MV: I was invited by the Cyprus Tourism Organization. Dr. Maria Socratous heard me speak at the First United Nations World Tourism Organization Wine Tourism conference in Tbilisi, Georgia last year and arranged for my wife Sue and I to visit Cyprus to learn about its wine and wine tourism possibilities. While in Paphos, I also spoke at a Cyprus wine industry conference. It was a great experience – I wish I could have visited before I finished Around the World in Eighty Wines because I tasted some wines that I could have included in my book. Next time!

What was your favourite wine-related moment during your visit to Cyprus?

MV: There were many fine moments, but the one I like best was a lunch with journalists, judges from the Cyprus Wine Competition, and members of the Kyriakides family at their fabulous Vouni Panayia Winery. Beautiful view, wonderful food that Mrs. Kyriakides prepared for us, great wine of course, and lively conversation. It was the complete wine experience and a great memory of our short visit to Cyprus.

Anyone up for lunch at Vouni Panayia? Next weekend work?

What do you foresee for Cyprus’s wine industry?

MV: I wrote about this question on The Wine Economist. Cyprus is making the same sort of transition today that New Zealand made in the 1980s and 1990s, when it began to focus intensely on rising quality and broader markets. This is the right strategy for today’s global market, so I am very optimistic about the future of Cypriot wine. 

What is Cyprus missing when it comes to wine?

MV: Cyprus has all the important elements needed to move up to the next level in the world of wine – stunning vineyards, talented winemakers, distinctive indigenous grape varieties.  I would like to see the domestic wine market develop a greater focus on quality Cypriot wines (as opposed to less expensive imports) and a rising international profile. This will take teamwork, which is something I talked about at the Cyprus wine industry conference in Paphos. I think everyone knows that this is an area that can be improved and I was glad to see so many people willing to help build a stronger Team Cyprus Wine to achieve these goals.

Should Cyprus focus on Commandaria or is dry wine a better route moving forward?

MV: Why does it have to be either/or? Commandaria tells the story of Cyprus’s great wine history, which will open doors. But the market for wines of this type is relatively small and highly competitive. The contemporary dry wines, especially Xynisteri, could appeal to a broader audience. They are both part of the story of Cypriot wine today. Why not feature them both and use them to tantalize consumers about the range of possibilities that Cyprus and its wines can offer?

What do you enjoy most about your work in the food & wine world?

MV: Our friends think it must be the great food and fine wine we are served, but the best part is that we get to meet such fascinating people! We met many wonderful people during our short stay in Cyprus.

What is your favorite wine? 

MV: People often ask about my favorite wine. While it is true that I am particularly fond of Pinot Noir and Riesling because of their almost infinite variations, it is more generally true that the wines I like best are the ones that tell a good story, especially if the story involves friends.

Of course, your favorite island (and Cyprus) wine? 

MV: There is a chapter in my 2013 book Extreme Wine called “Desert Island Wines.” What wine would you choose as your only beverage if you were going to be stranded on a desert island for several months? The chapter is inspired by the BBC Radio 4 program Desert Island Discs. We tasted many wonderful wines during our visit to Cyprus (and I was able to write about a few of them on The Wine Economist). All the wines would be welcome on a desert island, but I guess my desert island wine from Cyprus would have to be Commandaria. What a treat! 

You can reach Mike Veseth on his website, Linkedin, Facebook and Twitter. He penned the four blog posts on Cyprus wines listed below:

When is a Wine Tourist Not a Wine Tourist? Lessons from Cyprus

The Next New Zealand? Reflections on Cyprus Wine Industry in Transition 

Look Through the Rainbow: Cyprus Wine’s History of Boom and Bust
Back to the Future? First Impressions of Wine and Wine Tourism in Cyprus

On Commandaria and Camaraderie

George Kassianos in Action!

Competition can sometimes suck the life out of a room. Drop a dozen egotistical, competitive Alpha males  in a six-by-six meter caged ring and you end up with ripped designer suits, bloody and bruised noses and a prohibitively expensive visit to both a dentist and personal injury lawyer. Case in point, the US's pathetic Republican Party, which is sinking faster than it takes me to spell out Gewürztraminer. [Editor's Note on 11/9/16: Oops?]

Nowadays, competition is absolutely necessary. It weeds out the weak, strokes the strong and motivates the mediocre (like myself) to try harder to break through. If it were up to me, though, I'd pack competition's heavy baggage and book it a one-way ticket to Taft and the lower bunk in Rudy Kurniawan's cell where they could both braid each others locks and get drunk on Faux-Brion. Unfortunately, I'm as afraid of competition as I'm of Burgundy, Naoussa and Barolo being set ablaze by the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse.

Half of the Team Behind Ayia Mavri

My usual diatribe brings me to a private reception and dinner hosted back in May by the Cyprus Wineries Association at The Powerhouse in Old Nicosia. Many of the island's winemakers were in attendance alongside journalists, bloggers, sommeliers and other wine personalities, to present little known varieties and break bread together.

I made my rounds, tasting and chatting the night away, making a mental note of those somewhat rare wines that left an impression and deserve a repeat visit. KEO's 2011 Yiannoudi, a recent release by the Cypriot wine giant, and Tsiakkas' selection were both promising renditions of The Rock's new darling of the local red varieties. KEO also introduced an off-dry 2015 Altesse, a French variety who some experts claim originated in Cyprus and I found interesting as a digestif. Zambartas was there with his now sophisticated Single Vineyard Xynisteri, a wine that does a good job showcasing the variety's potential. Finally, Aphrodite Constanti of Vassilikon Winery poured samples of their recent work with Maratheftiko, a wine that if I recall correctly (take notes next time, moron!) had a noticeable and lovely herbal character.

Birds on a Wire

As the night slipped away in a haze of laughter and wine, I was amazed at the camaraderie on display by the winemakers present. They all cherished each other's company, talking and exchanging tastes of their wines, without any competitive urges springing forth and souring the soiree. I'm clueless as to whether or not this is generally the case, but for an outsider like myself it was refreshing to see such high levels of respect and support shown by individuals with similar products competing in a rather minuscule market. Then again, since The Rock is like a small neighbourhood where everyone knows everyone (and everything about everyone), it is only natural for camaraderie to develop as a healthier and more sustainable option to strengthening an industry than playing hardball and always going for the jugular.

Nothing struck me as a greater show of camaraderie than when one of Cyprus' most talented oenologists announced to our table that KEO had brought along a 1984 Saint John Commandaria and a few minutes later showed up with the open bottle and served the forty-plus invitees. This is the only way forward, Cyprus wine, and I certainly hope this spirit stays strong.

2000 Etko Centurion Commandaria - Deep enveloping aromas of brown sugar, coffee, toffee, cinnamon, vanilla, dried prunes, apricots and dates. A really interesting white chocolate note running throughout. 92/100.

1984 KEO Saint John Commandaria - Fully developed, complex, great interplay between sweet and savoury. Dark chocolate, coffee beans, smoke, raisins and other dried fruit, leather and good gaminess on the palate.  My new thirty-two year-old mistress. 95/100.