Gianluca Di Taranto of the Antwerp star restaurant The Jane has been voted best sommelier in Belgium, it was announced by the Belgian Sommeliers Guild and the Association of Flemish Sommeliers.
A sommelier is a trained wine professional, who specialises in various kinds of wine services, including wine and food pairings.
This year the international jury, composed of sommeliers and press representatives, chose Di Taranto over Dries Corneille from De Jonkman, a restaurant east of Bruges, and Stéphane Dardenne from L'Air du Temps, a restaurant north of Namur, who finished second and third in the competition, the 'Best Sommelier of Belgium 2019-2020', respectively.
Congratulations to the Best Sommelier of Belgium 2019 -2020 is Gianluca di Taranto!! #bsb19 @VVSommeliers pic.twitter.com/RgWYoBKZJp
— Gilde Sommeliers BE (@SommelierGilBE) September 16, 2019
In 2018, Di Taranto finished third in the competition, which has been taking place since 1960.
The finalists of 'Best Sommelier of Belgium 2019-2020' carried out various assignments to assess their knowledge wine and food combinations, decanting a bottle of wine, as well as tasting and recognising wine and other products, reports Nieuwsblad.
The winner may represent Belgium in the international competitions 'Best Sommelier of Europe' and 'Best Sommelier of The World'.
Di Taranto won 'Sommelier of the Year', a competition for the title of best sommelier in the province of Antwerp, in 2015.
Evie McCullough
The Brussels Times