Blindfolded and Without Any Aid
The 16th edition of the International Habanosommelier Contest has yielded the finalists as the preliminary rounds came to a close.
It was all about a blindfolded tasting session that brought about the deluxe trio -Italy’s Andrea Balzani, UK’s Slavomir Marek Bielicki and Chile’s Felipe Rojas- who will square off for the title the closing day of the 19th Habano Festival.
According to experts and members of the jury, the competition was always on a high note and the contenders stood up for their pairing offers gallantly and wisely.
“Quality was high every step of the way, but the blindfolded tasting session was the game changer here. The contenders had to identify unbanded cigars of different kinds that were supposed to be matched with different spirits. They were put through their paces as far as knowledge and expertise are concerned,” said Juan Jesus Machin, a juror and Habanosommelier champion of the 2016 Habano Festival.
The jury also picked the two best pairings -one classic and one innovative- and the winners in this category were Cuba’s Jesus E. Chacon, and Krystian Hordejuk, from the United Arab Emirates. The grand finale is slated for this Friday at 9:00am.
