The United States marked a return to major international competitions with the Best USA Sommelier competition that took place on February 4 and 5 in Kansas City, organized by the Best USA Sommelier Association, a non-profit organization led by Doug Frost MS MW. Dustin Chabert, a sommelier at Spiaggia Restaurant, in Chicago, won the contest against three other solid finalists: Jill Zimorski, US specialist for Moet Hennessy’s champagne portfolio and former sommelier at Alinea, Paul Coker, from Beard Award winning Seattle restaurant Canlis, and Maxime Blaise, from New York’s Michelin-starred The Modern. The tests were designed, set up and supervised by a technical committee co-chaired by Doug Frost MW MS and Andrés Rosberg, president of ASI, while an international jury from Canada, the US and Argentina oversaw the finals. Chabert will now take part in the World championship, the first time in many years that a sommelier from the United States will compete at that level.
New best somms: United States
