Best sommeliers for German wines awarded in China

19.08.2021

Yingxia Hu, Fengzhi Zhang and Jie Shen won the 2nd 'Best Sommelier Competition of German Wine' in China. It took place at Hongkou Sheraton Hotel, Shanghai on August 16th, 2021. This annual event gets organized by the German Wine Institute.

The winners and their respective work places

1. Yingxia Hu (Cassie) from Wine Universe By Little Somms Chengdu
2. Fengzhi Zhang (Felix) from Hakkasan Shanghai
3. Jie Shen (Brunson) from Wine Universe By Little Somms Shanghai

All three winners convinced the jury with outstanding performances.

Professional jury, 114 applicants, 11 finalists

The competition was judged by the world's first Chinese Master Sommelier Mr Yang Lu MS, Certified Consultant for German Wines Ms Rachel Wang, and representative of the German glassware brand Zwiesel Glas Mr Robert Tang. The preliminary competition attracted 114 sommeliers from Shanghai, Beijing, Chengdu and Guangzhou to register. After the preliminary contest on July 20th, 11 candidates achieved the top scores and were qualified for the finals on August 16th.

The finalist's shortlist:

Huaizhe Chen (Danny), LE JARDIN de JR, Shanghai
Xiaoran Chen (Sean), Restaurant Emmelyn, Guangzhou
Yingxia Hu (Cassie), Wine Universe By Little Somms, Chengdu
Lechen Li, Restaurant Baoshi, Shanghai
Xiaolong Li, Yinyi Sommelier Studio, Beijing
Jie Shen (Brunson), Wine Universe By Little Somms, Shanghai
Tuoyuan Wang (Thomas), Wine Universe By Little Somms, Shanghai
Yedong Xu (Jason), Shanghai Tang, Shanghai
Peishan Yang, OTTiMO, Shanghai
Fengzhi Zhang (Felix), Hakkasan, Shanghai
Huiwen Zhang (Windy), Wine Universe By Little Somms, Chengdu

Outstanding service skills and German wine knowledge

The final competition consisted of semi-finals during the morning and the final tastings during the afternoon. The 11 finalists competed on blind tastings and oral theory exams in front of the professional judges. Sommeliers with the highest total scores reached the finals.

During the final contest in the afternoon, 3 sommeliers showcased their outstanding service skills and German wine knowledge in front of the professional judges and an audience of 80 experts. All contenstants completed questionnaires and tests including food and wine pairings, table services, false wine list corrections, blind tasting and quick questions.

Ultimate contest of top Chinese sommeliers

The finals can be best described as an ultimate contest of top Chinese sommelier’s presentation skills and German wine knowledge. The entire contest lasted for almost 3 hours, presenting a wonderful performance to the judges and the audience. In the end, Yingxia Hu (Cassie), who got the highest total scores in the afternoon final, won the 2021 China’s Best Sommelier Competition of German Wine.

The top three winners all received a cash prize and gift sponsored by Zwiesel Glas. The three professional judges gave high recognition and praise to them and also expressed sincere wishes for the development of German wine and the sommelier’s profession in China.

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The jury with the three winners, from left to right: Robert Tang, jury member; Rachel Wang, jury member; Fengzhi Zhang; Yingxia Hu; Jie Shen; Jeuce Huang, Wines of Germany China; Yang Lu MS, head of the jury.