Philipp Reinstaller named UK Sommelier of the Year 2024

Philipp Reinstaller, head sommelier at Mauro Colagreco at Raffles London at the OWO & Mauro’s Table, has been crowned UK Sommelier of the Year 2024.

 

Reinstaller (pictured centre) beat finalists Dion Wai (right), wine and bar manager at Raffles London at the OWO, who came runner-up, and Maria Boumpa (left), head sommelier at the two Michelin-starred Da Terra in London’s Bethnal Green.

 

 

The trio took part in a live final held yesterday (15 October) at Christ Church Spitalfields in London, which consisted of six tasks, including a wine list correction, blind tasting, and food and wine pairing.

 

The finalists also had to explain the purpose of a Coravin and serve a non-alcoholic drink.

 

 

The final culminated with the signature Champagne Pour of a magnum bottle of Moët & Chandon Grand Vintage 2013 to 17 glasses in six minutes.

 

Over 140 people attended the event, which also included a wine fair in between judging sessions.

 

 

Judges included last year’s champion Agnieszka Swiecka and 2022 champion Vincenzo Arnese, as well as the likes of Eric Zwiebel, Nina Basset, Romané Basset, Romain Bourger, Nicolas Clerc and Xavier Rousset.

 

Reinstaller told The Caterer: "The competition was very inspiring. Competitions can be nerve-wracking, but hte important thing is to not let it get the better of you. Ultimately, it is what we do daily in the restaurant, you just need to focus on that and it becomes very enjoyable. The whole competition was well organized by the IWSC and the UK Sommelier Academy."

 

The IWSC, which runs the competition, added: “Philipp performed brilliantly in the finals, gliding through the six challenging tasks. What a fantastic achievement, congratulations to Philipp and all of those that took part.”

 

Over 50 candidates applied for the competition this year, who were whittled down to six semi-finalists, listed below:

 

Maria Boumpa, Da Terra

Dion Wai, Raffles London at the OWO

Philipp Reinstaller, Raffles London at the OWO

Luca Bocca, Sketch London

Melania Battiston, Cornus

Beatrice Bessi, Chiltern Firehouse

 

The UK Sommelier of the Year is jointly organised by IWSC and UKSA and recognised by the Association de la Sommellerie Internationale, the event is open to professional sommeliers working in the UK.