Star Wine List of the Year returns to the UAE this December - here are the judges

By Rachel Fellows

Published 13-October-2024

News / United Arab Emirates

On 9 December 2024, Star Wine List of the Year will come to the UAE for the second time, with an awards ceremony at The Lana, Dubai. The winners will qualify for the International final in June 2025, where they will meet winners from around the world.

This invite-only event promises to be quite the party, with finalists, jury members, press and sponsors gathering to celebrate the best wine lists in the country. If you’d like to be one of those finalists, then you have until Sunday, 20 October to nominate your restaurant or wine bar; entries are free of charge.

And as we bring the competition back to the UAE, we are joined by a stellar panel of wine experts including Ferran Centelles, renowned sommelier formerly of El Bulli, Nina Jensen, 2019 and 2023’s Second-Best Sommelier in the World, and Stephen Wong MW.

We are also pleased to announce local wine expert and educator Vince Truong as our regional representative. Originally from Vietnam, Vince grew up in California and has been living in Dubai for over 15 years. His insight into the quality of wine offerings across the region adds a hugely valuable dimension to our competition.

“It's very important to me to support local restaurants,” says Vince, “especially those who are serious about their wine offering. So I'm hoping that the Star Wine List will benefit the businesses and overall wine and food experience in Dubai.

“Things I would look for [among winners] include the quality of the wines offered, the quality-to-price ratio (because we pay a huge premium for wine in a Muslim country), breadth of selection across regions and wine types, uniqueness, and appropriateness of the wines for the restaurant's target patron.”

Find out more about Star Wine List of the Year UAE, here.