42 SAVOUR MANITOBA | SUMMER 24
In the Community cont.
D
omer Rafael is the national president of
CAPS, past president and founding member
of CAPS Manitoba. He explains that there
are a handful of sommeliers "working the
floor" in Manitoba restaurants and many more in
private wine stores or working as agents or educators.
In May, CAPS Manitoba hosted the second annual
live cocktail competition, In Good Spirits, at the Fort
Garry Hotel. Eighteen of Winnipeg's best bartenders
were assigned a product and tasked with creating a
signature cocktail. e cocktails were revealed live at the
event, presented to a panel of judges and sampled by
the ticket holders to vote on.
"As a sommelier, you're not only limited to knowing
about wine. At the competition level a big component
is creating cocktails, knowing that Rolodex. ere are
also other components like pairing food, coffee, tea and
cigars," explains Rafael. "ere used to be a national
competition that would bring bartenders to compete in
the city, but that ended several years ago. I wanted to
bring back that vibe, that energy and bring together the
bartenders again. It's pretty much the same format as
the old competition but now it's local, and all the funds
go back to the community."
(TOP) CHEF BEN KRAMER ACCEPTS A CHEQUE FOR
THE PROCEEDS OF HIS MADE WITH LOVE INITIATIVE;
(ABOVE LEFT) LEO LU WINS FIRST PRIZE FOR HIS
DON PAPA RUM COCKTAIL; (RIGHT) SAVOUR'S
EXPERT SOMMELIER ALEX ALLARDYCE WAS THE
OFFICIAL TIME KEEPER FOR THE EVENT.
PHOTOS BY SAM STEGGER PHOTOGRAPHY
