Search begins for the UK’s top Sherry-inspired
sommelier and chef teams with the launch of Copa Jerez 2021
Chefs and sommeliers at restaurants across the UK are putting their heads together and combining their skills to create an inventive Sherry-themed menu that will catch the judges’ eyes at the UK heat of the 2021 Copa Jerez.
The bi-annual competition, which is now in its ninth edition, is organised by Sherry Wines, and invites chef and sommelier teams from the UK to devise a three-course meal that will complement and showcase Sherry wines' versatility. The only proviso is that Sherry must feature as the paired wine for each course and as an ingredient in at least one course, although past contestants have taken the theme much further.
All entries will be evaluated by a panel of leading food and wine experts, with the three top teams invited to take part in the ‘live’ Copa Jerez UK Final, which is being held in the new Cord Restaurant by Le Cordon Bleu in central London, on Monday 17 May, 2021. Here, the teams will be required to cook their Sherry-inspired menu in front of a panel of judges and a selected audience.
The winning team will receive a £500 cash prize, an all-expenses paid trip to the Sherry region of Jerez, and will represent the UK at the International Competition of Gastronomy and Sherry Pairing, to be held in Jerez de la Frontera, Spain in 2021, where they will compete alongside other finalists from Belgium, Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands, the United States, Russia and Spain.
The international champions in 2019 were from Danish Restaurant Clou* consisting of sommelier Jonathan K Bernsten and chef Martin G Sørensen who were proclaimed the winners of the VIII edition of the international gastronomic event in Jerez. No fewer than eight Michelin stars competed in this spectacular live cooking event in which seven international teams presented their menus paired with Sherry.
Commenting on this year’s search to find the UK’s best Sherry and food pairing menu, international chair-judge César Saldaña, president of the Consejo Regulador de Jerez y Sanlúcar de Barrameda, said: “Gastronomy in the UK today represents some of the most exciting in the world, which is why each year we receive entries from some outstanding restaurants, many of Michelin star quality. This year we are searching for the UK team who can go forward to the international final to compete with top chefs and sommeliers from seven other countries and triumph to bring home the trophy for the UK. It is a serious competition but we know the UK has a competitive streak and can rise to the challenge.”
