Cork’s MacCurtain Wine Cellar wins Best Sparkling Wine List in Ireland 2024
The Cork wine bar MacCurtain Wine Cellar has been awarded a Gold Star for the Best Sparkling Wine List, at the Star Wine List of the Year Ireland competition for 2024.
The award was presented at a ceremony held during SommiT in Waterford by Martin Richard, on behalf of Piper-Heidsieck, who sponsored the category.
MacCurtain’s owner Sean Gargano accepted the award, saying, “It's lovely because we work really hard at [the sparkling list]. We do only grower Champagne and we do lots of pet-nat and lots of sparkling wine from everywhere, so it's great to be recognised. People are really interested in all the different types, going from pet-nats to Cremant, to Champagne. It's a really exciting time for sparkling wine.
“It means a lot because this is an award from our industry to our industry, and that's a huge thing – that means a lot coming from other sommeliers, to a sommelier; that means something extra than some random person deciding. It's lovely.”
Judge Julie Dupouy-Young praised the way MacCurtain had “embraced the sparkling wine world as a whole. Its love for pet-nat in all colours (including orange and red!) is real, and is complemented by lesser-known traditional method wines as well as a glorious grower Champagne list. Just as importantly, the prices applied are very attractive - this is a bubbly heaven!”
Runners up
Silver Stars for the Best Sparkling Wine List were awarded to:
64 Wine, Glasthule
D'Olier Street Restaurant, Dublin
Dede at Customs House, Baltimore
Monty’s of Kathmandu, Dublin
The Black Pig, Kinsale
Expert jury
The judging panel for Star Wine List of the Year Ireland comprised three international wine experts.
• Reeze Choi, third-best Sommelier of the World 2023 (ASI)
• Julie Dupouy-Young, four-time Best Sommelier of Ireland
• Valeria Gamper, Best Sommelier of the Americas 2022 (ASI)
Categories and criteria
Star Wine List judges the wine lists in several categories such as the Best Sparkling Wine List and Best By the Glass List. These categories are the same across all of the awards. In addition, local categories may be added. We have commercial partners for certain categories, such as the Best Austrian Wine List, presented by Austrian Wine. The commercial partners are, however, never involved in the selections of finalists or winners — that is completely up to our independent jury panel.
The criteria for the jury are straightforward but not simple: vote for the most exciting wine list representing the category.
The winners in the international categories will qualify for our International Final in June 2025, where they will face off with the category winners from other countries and continents.
Read about the terms and how Star Wine List judges the wine lists here.
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