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Late last Saturday evening in Tallinn at the Vana Tallinn Grand Prix 2010, Kristjan Markii of Estonia was declared the Best Baltic Sommelier. Estonian Kristjan Peäske won second place and Jānis Kaļķis of Latvia came third.

“I have been waiting for the Vana Tallinn Grand Prix victory for a long time! This year was the fifth time that I competed in the final of the Vana Tallinn Grand Prix. My competitors were tough but very pleasant. I would like to thank everyone that supported me,” said the Best Baltic Sommelier Kristjan Markii.

Baltic Sommelier Vana Tallinn Grand Prix 2008, i.e. the competition of the best sommelier of the Baltic States, ended in Vilnius at the late night of 25 October, was won for the second year in a row by the Latvian Raimonds Tomsons from Riga’s restaurant Vincents. The Estonian representative Kristjan Markii from Tallinn restaurant Balthasar won the second place with minimal point difference.

On Saturday, 20 October Baltic Sommelier Vana Tallinn Grand Prix 2007, i.e. the competition of the best Baltic sommeliers was held in Riga which was won by the Latvian Raimonds Tomsons from Riga’s restaurant Vincents. The winner won the wine trip with the cost of 15,000 kroons as a prize and the exclusive decanter. “This is the happiest day of my life without doubt, if not considering my wedding day,” Tomsons said a couple of minutes after the end of competition.

In the evening of October 14th the best sommelier of the Baltic States in 2006 was selected in club Astoria Palace in Tallinn. Urvo Ugandi from the restaurant Balthasar won the high level Sommelier Vana Tallinn Grand Prix contest that was held for the first time. The second place in the contest of the best sommeliers of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania was taken by Gints Sniedzele, a representative of Latvia and the third was Estonian Kristjan Markii.