ECK Restaurant won Best Austrian Wine List in the International Open
On May 6, Star Wine List celebrated the first ever International Open. In the final, where wine lists from no less than 19 countries competed, ECK Restaurant Bratislava, Slovakia, won the category Best Austrian Wine List. The category was presented by Austrian Wine.
"Basically we are walking distance from Austria, if it wasn't for the Danube river. But we have a beautiful view over to Austria. And this our region too, at the end of the day. We see this also as our wines and our terroir," said executive chef Daniel Tilinger at the online event.
“The selection of Austrian wines in this restaurant is impressive, as the list covers multiple styles from different regions and varieties. Apart from the more obvious white wines, the venue has decided to showcase how also red wines of Austria have great ageing potential, so recognizing this trust and enthusiasm for Austrian wines is truly deserved," said jury member Heidi Mäkinen MW about the winning list.
The International Open was held as an online event on May 6. Of the countries in the finals, both Australia and the Netherlands had the most representatives, with 20 restaurants/bars each. USA had 13 and Canada 10 venues shortlisted.
Star Wine List’s highly coveted wine list awards have grown to cover 14 markets around the world - but sommeliers from many more countries have asked to be let in. These awards were therefore created as a way for other markets to be able to join.
The Silver Star winners in the Austrian category were:
Alcron Restaurant, Prague, Czech Republic
Central Park Voorburg, Voorburg, Netherlands
Laura, Melbourne, Australia
Mirali, Kyiv, Ukraine
Mokotowska69, Warsaw, Poland
Remouillage, Amsterdam, Netherlands
Restaurant Le Coureur des Bois, Beloeil, Canada
Restaurant RJ, De Cocksdorp, Netherlands
Ten Minutes by Tractor, Main Ridge, Australia
The Lobby Fizeaustraat, Amsterdam, Netherlands
Zoldering, Amsterdam, Netherlands
THE WORLD-CLASS JURY
The jury for the first International Open consisted of four highly renowned sommeliers:
• Pascaline Lepeltier
• Piotr Pietras MS
• Heidi Mäkinen MW
• Doug Frost MW MS
ECK Restaurant is now qualified for Star Wine List's International Final in Stockholm on June 24.
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.
Read about the terms and how Star Wine List judges the wine lists here.
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Austrian Wine
The Austrian Wine Marketing Board is based in Vienna, and is a national service body for the Austrian wine industry. The aim is to strategically support, coordinate and maintain quality and sales.
