Pittsburgh man wins national wine steward competition
Pittsburgh has a new champion, and it’s definitely something to wine about.
Adam Knoerzer, dean of drinking and head of educational programming at Palate Partners & Dreadnought Wines in Lawrenceville, will represent the U.S. in the “Wines of South Africa Sommelier Cup 2019.”
He defeated some California competitors during the national finals Monday in New York City. The competition, which is held every three years, tests sommeliers’ knowledge of South African wine.
He’ll now compete against other finalists in South Africa in September. A sommelier is a wine steward, a trained and knowledgeable wine professional.
“It is really exciting,” he said. “It was so much fun, and I simply enjoyed myself. I wanted to show people there that there is something happening here in Pittsburgh in the wine and food scene. Anywhere I go, I want to highlight some of the good things we are doing here to put the spotlight on us.
I’ve got this championship and now I want to take it international.”
He said for him to do well in the next phase, he needs to continue studying so he can “keep this train rolling.” He will represent the U.S. in Cape Town, South Africa, in September and compete against other nations’ winners, including Canada, Germany, Sweden, the UK, and more.
After a meet and greet on Sunday in New York, the competition began Monday with a written examination. Then, it was on to pizza school, where contestants made a pie to pair with a particular wine. And then there was a blind tasting.
He called his pizza creation “From Bloomfield to Bloemfontein.” The Friendship resident has lived in Bloomfield and Bloemfontein is a city in South Africa.
He incorporated South African jerky with green vegetables, dried oregano, shredded mozzarella with a spicy fennel-based sausage and some fresh cracked black pepper to go with the Oak Lane Shiraz-Cabernet Sauvignon blend.
He was given a pair of pizza earrings and a necklace for the win. He said the other competitors were more credentialed than he, but his passion for South African wines really helped.
When he returned home Tuesday, he and his colleagues at Palate Partners celebrated the victory.
“We had some South African sparkling wine,” said Knoerzer, who will host a South African Wine Safari Cape Town class on Aug. 21.
Cheers!
JoAnne Klimovich Harrop is a TribLive reporter covering the region's diverse culinary scene and unique homes. She writes features about interesting people. The Edward R. Murrow award-winning journalist began her career as a sports reporter. She has been with the Trib for 26 years and is the author of "A Daughter's Promise." She can be reached at jharrop@triblive.com.
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