The winner is Italo-Swiss, Paolo Basso , but in second position is Véronique Rivest, the first woman to have ever got onto the world Sommelier podium

Véronique Rivest and the other best sommerlier in the world

Read for you by Donatella Cinelli Colombini

The XIV edition of the world championship took place in Tokyo, in the Japan where some Sommeliers – real or cartoon – are acclaimed by hoards of enthusiastic fans as if they were film stars. It was organized by the Association de la Sommelerie Internationale which groups together 60 international organizations of professionals.
Veronique took part as shed had been elected Best Sommelier of the Americas 2012.
For the first selection on March 27th, 54 candidates took part with written and service trials.

The Doc Orcia is maybe the most beautiful areas in the world and one of the youngest and smallest but it has great expectations.

Donatella Cinelli Colombini holding Sangiovese

Donatella Cinelli Colombini has been called upon as President practically by popular acclaim by the producers who see in her a person who can bring about changes in this wine denomination. <<The esteem proven by my colleagues moves me deeply. I will really do my upmost to succeed in this very difficult challenge>> To understand the situation it is sufficient to say that for the 10 positions on the board there were not enough candidates, in other words the consorzio has little funds and many expectations.
<< The wines are really good and express all the effort and passion of the producers who in the majority of cases in their estates do everything themselves: from the vineyard to sales>> In other words in a globalized world in the Doc Orcia area the wine is still a family product even though there are excellent agronomists and wine makers as consultants.

Finally Violante can consider her dream come true and she is at last head of sales of the 170.000 bottles produced at Casato Prime Donne and at Fattoria del Colle

Violante Gardini col depliant in cinese

A small production of prestigious wines which are already today sold in restaurants and wine stores in 31 nations around the world. Violante Gardini, the Cinellicolombini Jr , faces this new challenge full of enthusiasm. She has waited nearly 10 years for this moment, preparing herself with a degree in business economics in Florence, work experience for the Movimento Turismo del vino National office, under the watchful eye of Chiara Lungarotti and most importantly the Master OIV which, for a whole year, has taken her to the universities, to the wine producing regions and to the wine markets that are most important all over the world.

Top of the list of preferences for foreign wedding couplet are Tuscany (43% ) and villas, such as Fattoria del Colle, to celebrate their Vip weddings

Wedding at Fattoria del Colle

A small army of 6.000 couples arriving from the UK, USA, Russia, Japan and Saudi Arabia. With them are guests and families who create more than 1 million nights stay and business in total of about 300 million Euros.
Italy is the Romantic nation where getting married here means framing the most beautiful day of your life with works of art, splendid landscapes but also celebrating it by dining with delicious food. Top of the preferences is Tuscany (43%) followed by the Amalfi coast, Umbria and Veneto (all below 10%).While regarding locations, the Hotel is still the preferred, followed by villas and castles.
The marriage of a foreign wedding couple in Italy is consequently the crowning of a romantic dream (25%) which often is very expensive. According to Massimo Feruzzi JFC, author of a study regarding this new type of tourism, the average cost is 51.000€.

Brazilian sommeliers together with Roberto Rabachino, and wine lovers from Germany together with the 1998 world champion and Master of Wine Markus Del Monego

Casato Prime Donne in Montalcino Donatella and Brazialian women in wine

Among the Brazilians who visited us there were some super VIP’s who had arrived with their own private jet such as Deunir Luiz Argenta owner of the first winery and the most beautiful cellars in Brazil “Argenta”. Guided by Roberto Rabachino and his wife Gladys Torres, two forces of nature, able to divulge the wine culture and spread enthusiasm. Rabachino teaches, for the Università di Torino, these aspiring Brazilian tasters. He is one of the great thinking minds of FISAR an association of sommeliers that in the Siena region has one of the “Historical leaders “  Nicola Masielllo. FISAR sommeliers served, with their usual elegance, the wines during the tasting and a light faming-style snack served in the Casato Prime Donne hall. A wonderful meeting for the making of new friends and the final promise of a” wine makers Exchange” between Violante Gardini, the Cinellicolombini Jr, and a contemporary Brazilian producer who will each spend some time in the others winery.