WORLD’S BEST WINE LISTS 2014
Welcome to the inaugural World’s Best Wine Lists. Over 4,000 restaurants from around the globe were judged for the awards.
Chaired by WFW editor Neil Beckett, the distinguished panel of judges comprised, along with WFW contributing editor Andrew Jefford: the World’s Best Sommelier 2010 Gerard Basset MS MW OBE; WFW columnist and food editor Francis Percival; author and wine and spirits columnist for Bloomberg News Elin McCoy; publisher of The Singapore Wine Review and wine columnist for Singapore’s largest circulation Chinese newspaper, the Lianhe Zaobao, Ch’ng Poh Tiong; and author and globally respected Champagne expert Tom Stevenson.
The judges awarded 750 restaurants from around the world a one-, two-, or three-star award, only 225 wine lists making it into the top three-star category. The judges also identified, region by region and for the world as a whole, the most exciting lists in five categories – Best Overall Wine List, Best Champagne & Sparkling Wine List, Best Dessert & Fortified Wine List, Best By-the-Glass Wine List, and Best Short Wine List. Finally, the judges recognized with a special Jury Prize several lists that showed distinctive character and flair or were particularly strong in a specific wine style.
Union Square Cafe
The relaxed ambience and modern American cooking based on seasonal ingredients that was pioneered by Danny Meyer at the Union Square Cafe has made the restaurant one of New York’s most influential, earning a hatful of awards since it first opened in 1985. With the kitchen now in the hands of executive chef and partner Carmen Quagliata, USC has remained at the forefront of the New York culinary scene, serving Italian-influenced dishes such as pan-roasted chicken, Parmigiano bread pudding, balsamic cipollini; and crispy soft shell crabs spicy tomato sauce, zucchini, basil, lemon aioli.
As with all of Meyer’s ventures—from World’s Best Wine List Jury Prize-winning Gramercy Tavern to the (now-sold) Eleven Madison Park—wine has always played a central role at Union Square. Today’s list continues to excite: whether it’s celebrating (in multiple vintages) the work of top Amarone producer Quintarelli, offering a range of mature Madeira by the glass, or cherry-picking the best of Burgundy and the Jura, it’s unfailingly creative, interesting, and fairly priced.
Restaurant Contact Details
Wine Director: Michael Scaffidi
Head Chef: Carmen Quagliata
Address: 21 E 16th St, New York, NY 10003, United States of America
Website Address: www.unionsquarecafe.com
Gramercy Tavern
World’s Best Wine Lists Jury Prize
Sometimes a restaurant just gets it. Take New York City’s Gramercy Tavern. Now in its 21st year, Danny Meyer’s restaurant has been a pioneer in what its publicity material calls, in a nice turn of phrase, the “fierce seasonality” that is current chef-partner Michael Anthony’s stock in trade, and which has since been so widely imitated. This is a place where the local ingredient is king, but where it is presented with style.
It’s an ethos that won over our judges, who loved the “fair pricing, accessibility and sheer democratic glamour” of a wine list that fits so precisely with Anthony’s menu—earning Gramercy Tavern a special Jury Award.
As with all the best places, the wonderfully diverse by-the-glass menu offers a microcosm of the approach: a 3oz taste of rising-star Patagonian Pinot Noir producer Bodega Chacra will set you back $6.50; Thivin’s excellent Côtes de Brouilly, $6.75. But the rest of the list, which includes section headings such as Grüner Veltliner and Gamay, as well as Burgundy and Bordeaux, is unfailingly funky and fun, the fruit of a particular palate with a taste for the best of modern wines with an accent on elegance.
Restaurant Contact Details
Wine Director: Juliette Pope
Head Chef: Michael Anthony
Address: 42 E 20th St, New York, NY 10003, United States of America
Website Address: www.gramercytavern.com
(ORIGINAL ARTICLE)
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