Radomil Baloun gains THREE diamond stars at the “Vins de Gastronomie“ competition in Paris

The contest was inaugurated in 2012 in Nice, during the 25th edition of the oeno-gastronomic biennial trade fair AGECOTEL - NICE CÔTE D'AZUR. Last year it moved to nearby Antibes and the salon LE CARRÉ DES VIGNERONNES organised by the Rotary Club Antibes Azur Riviera and this year the contest was staged in the surroundings of the innovative EAT INTUITION restaurant in the heart of Paris (www.eatintuition.com). This compact establishment is owned and run by Isabela Losada de Armas, whose creative cuisine represents a fusion between tradition and innovation.

The Concours International des Vins de Gastronomie ™ competition is the brainchild of Régine Le Coz, the indefatigable oenologist and founder of the highly respected Mondial du Rosé wine contest that takes place annually in Cannes, as well as Femmes et Vins du Monde of Monte-Carlo and Concours International des Vins de Terroir of Provence.

Most of the wines entered for the third edition of this Vins de Gastronomie competition were from traditional wine-producing nations such as France, Italy, Spain and Portugal, so it was a great surprise to see among the nine top-rated Diamond Star wines three samples from the Moravian Baloun winery and one from the monastery winery of Srebrna Góra in Cracow, where the flying winemaker is Agnieszka Wyrobek-Rousseau.

The juries were made up of oenologists, restaurateurs, wine writers and wine importers, coming from France, Spain, Great Britain, Sweden, Taiwan, Venezuela and the Czech Republic, with the brief to judge wines in the context of their food-matchability.

The Diamond Star awards were bestowed on the following nine wines (with the highest score first):

• Clos Cavenac 2006 (red), AOP Côte du Marmandais, France
• Domaine Cabasse Casa Bassa 2011 (red), AOP Côte du Rhône Villages-Séguret, France
• Cuvée Baloun 2006 (red), Vinařství Baloun, Velké Pavlovice, Czech Republic
• Hibernal 2011 (white), Vinařství Baloun, Velké Pavlovice, Czech Republic
• Cuvée Millesimato Al Canevon 2013, DOCG Prosecco di Valdobbiadene Superiore, Italy
• Château Le Grand Moulin 2012 (red), AOP Blaye Côte de Bordeaux, France
• La Syrah de Clos Cavenac 2012 (red), IGP de l’Agenais, France
• Regent niefiltrowane 2013 (red), Winnica Srebrna Góra, Poland
• Děvín 2013 (white), Vinařství Baloun, Velké Pavlovice, Czech Republic
• Apart from the above-mentioned three-diamond awards the Baloun winery brings home from Paris also two silver medals for Kerner and Sylvaner, while the Winnica Srebrna Góra from Poland gets one silver award for their Cabernet Cortis (all from the 2013 vintage).

“It was a pleasure to find that Radomil Baloun once again took home plaudits, especially in view of the fact that Radomil visited me with his family in our Chai des Templiers in Brignoles whilst holidaying on the French Riviera last summer, so I can, after almost 10 years, put a face to the name, as it were,” said Régine le Coz, after announcing the medal winners. “I note his wines always excel in all our competitions, due to their distinct drinkability, and in this case the ease with which they can be matched with a range of dishes, which is the aim of this particular contest,” she added. (Note: Apart from The Concours International des Vins de Gastronomie Régine Le Coz is also the powerhouse behind Femmes et Vins du Monde as well as Concours des Vins de Terroir competitions. Earlier this year she also launched Le GIVRé-E – Guide International du Vin Rosé Electronique.)

Further information and full results: www.civg-igwc.fr

Helena Baker AIWS

member of the jury