Connoisseurs of industry awards ceremonies will recall with relish last year's Cellars in the Sky contest in which 20 airlines walked off with a magnificent 44 This year a fiendish restructuring has actually got the number of awards up to 63. But astoundingly the number of winning airlines is down to 18. In part that's due to the dominance of Lufthansa, which does at least have the merit of being an industry metaphor.
And there were still thrills to be had. OK, a thrill to be had. We are
unlikely to forget the neck-and-neck battle for fourth best First
Class White which saw the judges unable to separate TAM's Selback-Oster
Wehlner Sonnenuhr Reisling Kabinett 2004 from American Airlines'
Wegeler Bernkasteler Doctor Reisling Spatlese 2005. After two days of
trying! Decisions, decisions...
Anyway, Lufthansa is the star of the event, winning Best First Class Cellar and Best Consistency of Wines Across Business and First Class. And that's even though it didn't make the top five in Best Business Class, won by KLM. Meanwhile Air New Zealand won Most Informative Wine List again.
This year, as part of the general category inflation, there was a category for alliances, won by Star Alliance. Skyteam came third, possibly due to the complete absence of Air France from the winners' lists and I rather suspect from the entrants' list.
A trying time for Skyteam's Delta Air Lines in particular, whose entire medal haul consisted of: Fifth Best Fortified Wine in Business Class. A very rainy night in Georgia when the news was flashed back I suspect.
Full winners list here. Pix here.
Anyway, Lufthansa is the star of the event, winning Best First Class Cellar and Best Consistency of Wines Across Business and First Class. And that's even though it didn't make the top five in Best Business Class, won by KLM. Meanwhile Air New Zealand won Most Informative Wine List again.
This year, as part of the general category inflation, there was a category for alliances, won by Star Alliance. Skyteam came third, possibly due to the complete absence of Air France from the winners' lists and I rather suspect from the entrants' list.
A trying time for Skyteam's Delta Air Lines in particular, whose entire medal haul consisted of: Fifth Best Fortified Wine in Business Class. A very rainy night in Georgia when the news was flashed back I suspect.
Full winners list here. Pix here.
on October 5, 2010 11:40 AM | Reply
How weird, Air France is third in first class red wine but french wines scores almost everywhere. Quite an irony I suppose. I wonder if there's such events for food or cheese, etc.