30 April 2024
The Awards Ceremony, held in Budapest on the evening of 27 April 2024, was opened by Dr. Tamás Sulyok, President of the Republic of Hungary, and the event's patron. The exclusive event was attended by ministers, state secretaries, diplomats, opinion leaders from the economic and cultural world, as well as the nominated and winning winemakers. It was also addressed by Pál Rókusfalvy, Government Commissioner for National Wine Marketing and founder of the award.
During the festive event, Sarolta Bárdos was elected the 18th Winemaker of the Winemakers, and the special Friend of the Winemakers Award was presented together with the announcement of the Future Winemaker Scholarship’s winner. For the first time in the history of the award, the Friend of the Winemakers Award was given to two deserving personalities.
Winemaker of the Winemakers:
Sarolta Bárdos
Friend of the Winemakers:
Lajos Ambrus and Wojciech Bońkowski
Future Winemaker Scholarship Winner:
Miklós Kota
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The list of the 50 best Hungarian winemakers was compiled according to precise rules by the winners of previous years. Fifty of them became the nominees for Winemaker of the Winemakers award. Subsequently, the decision-making process was handed over to the Fifty, who selected the final winner from among themselves in two rounds of voting. After the first round, the final five nominees were determined:
In the second round, the Fifty also had the right to vote, but they were required to choose from the five finalists. Sarolta Bárdos was chosen as the 18th Winemaker of the Winemakers and will be honoured with the 18th star on the Walk of Stars in the center of Budapest, located on Zrínyi Street. The unveiling ceremony, accompanied by a toast will take place on 10 May at 11.00 am. For further details, please follow the Winemaker of the Winemakers Facebook page (facebook.com/Boraszokborasza) for details.
The Winemakers of the Winemakers not only recognize the achievements of their colleagues, but also honor the Friend of the Winemakers and the Future Winemaker. Launched in 2012, the Friend of the Winemakers Award is bestowed upon a personality who has made an outstanding contribution to the interests of Hungarian wine and greatly supported the work of Hungarian winemakers. This year, two wine professionals were deemed worthy of the award by the jury: Lajos Ambrus, a József Attila Prize-winning writer, vineyard owner and guest author of Food&Wine; and Wojciech Bońkowski Master of Wine and Tokaj expert. Both were elected as Friends of the Winemakers in 2024.
The Friend of the Winemakers, who receives a bottle of wine from each of the 50 nominees, is always a welcomed guest at wineries.
For the eighth time, the Vinum Praemium Foundation, which is responsible for the award, announced the winner of the Future Winemaker Scholarship, open to winemaking students. The winner, Miklós Kota, received, among other prizes, 1,000,000 HUF for an internship abroad. His prize includes the following opportunities:
- Holding the title of "Future Winemaker" for a year.
- Financial support of HUF 1.000.000,- for a six-month internship abroad.
- Participating in a harvest at either a Winemaker of the Winemakers or a candidate Winemaker of the Winemakers.
- Receiving an honorary ticket to the Wine Conference.
- Being invited to the Winemaker of the Winemakers' Award Ceremony.
The next call for entries will be available soon. It is worth visiting the Winemaker of the Winemakers website for details. Regarding the timing, it follows the usual schedule, with a deadline of November 15 to apply for the next Future Winemaker Scholarship, focusing on a wine, viticulture, or wine marketing themes.
Further information, interviews:
info@boraszokborasza.hu;
produkcio@roxer.hu;
www.boraszokborasza.hu;
www.facebook.com/boraszokborasza
