Every year, the amount of sparkling wines that the average Dutch person drinks increases. Prosecco is the leader in this, but sparkling wines from Spain like Cava are catching up fast. Especially in restaurants, we see more and more sparkling wines from Spain being served as aperitifs. Due to the traditional process of making Cava, for example, which is similar to Champagne, the wine has more flavour, is drier and especially gourmet. Often, in the better restaurants, delicious amuses are served with the aperitif to whet the senses and appetite in any way.
To find the ultimate combination of amuse and sparkling wine, the first Gramona Amuse Competition was launched four years ago in the Netherlands and this year also in Switzerland. In this, any restaurant of any level can compete by creating a perfect amuse with one of Spain's best-known sparkling wines from top house Gramona, the Gramona 'Imperial' Corpinnat Método Tradicional Brut. Every year, more than 50 restaurants from all over the Netherlands, with and without a Michelin star, enter this competition with the grand prize being a long weekend in Barcelona including dinner at the famous 3-star restaurant El Celler de Can Roca and a visit to the Gramona winery.
Gramona has always been an exceptionally good producer of Cava. For example, it was the first producer ever to achieve the highest score of 99 points in the leading wine guide Peñin Guide with the 2001 Gramona Gran Reserva Enoteca Brut Nature and was also named as Spain's best wine in 2017.
Perhaps the word 'been' is already an indication that Gramona has changed direction. Since this year, Xavier Gramona, along with eight other top Cava producers, has separated from the DOP Cava, or in other words appellation Cava, and set up the Corpinnat organisation. This is to allow consumers to learn the difference between low-priced, mass-produced Cava and the higher-quality sparkling wines from the heart of the Cava producing area namely the hills located just behind the city of Barcelona. All Corpinnat wines are organically produced from hand-picked fruit with the wine aged in bottle for a minimum of three years. Great, complex wines from the region where it all began.
Last Monday, the finals of the fourth edition of the Gramona Amuse Competition were held at RAI Amsterdam. This year's theme was 'Earth' as a nod to the biodynamic production of their land, grapes and wines.
In this, the 10 finalists had to serve their amuse for the judges and audience with the 2014 Gramona 'Imperial' Corpinnat Método Tradicional Brut. Each finalist was given 30 minutes to prepare the amuses and for the sommeliers to serve the wine at the right temperature in the right glass.
The expert jury consisted of Sommelier & SVH Wine Master Noël Vanwittenbergh (Ciel Bleu**, Amsterdam), Chef de Cuisine Thorvald de Winter (Restaurant Apicius*, Bakkum), Sommelier & SVH Wine Master Ronald Opten (Restaurant La Rive/Amstel Hotel, Amsterdam), Sommelier (Lex Deelder (Bridges Dining*, Amsterdam), Jan van Lissum (owner The Wine & Food Association) and also Xavier Gramona, who came over from Barcelona especially for the final.
The winner was Restaurant Basiliek from Harderwijk with their delicious amuse made of green olive, chorizo, smoked almond, avocado and Pimientos de Padron. The Basiliek team described their amuse to the judges as follows: "A sorbet made green olive and Pimientos de Padron. Under the ice cream we made a crumble of black olive. On top of the sorbet is a savoury meringue of smoked almond topped with a cream of Pimientos de Padron. Next to the ice cream several preparations of chorizo sausage including a cremeaux and a cream. The last thing we added was a ball of avocado and a gel of citrus." In the photo above, on the left, Xavier Gramona with then tYornie van Dijk and Michelle Grashuis of Basilica Restaurant. In 2nd place came restaurant Lucas Rive* from Hoorn with an earthy amuse consisting of different textures and preparations of Jerusalem artichoke, peanut and mushroom. In 3rd place finally came Restaurant Plantage 87 from Oude Wetering with their fresh amuse of a panna cotta of yoghurt with preparations of tomato and lovage.
More information on this largest wine and food competition in the Netherlands and Switzerland can be found at www.gramonaamuse.com. Gramona's sparkling wines are only available in the Netherlands through its website www.qvselect.nl, part of the specialist wine importer for the on-trade Wijnimport J. Bart, which is organising the competition together with Gramona.
Text: Roderick Ros
Photos: Fielde Food Photography
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