Bruce Wallner wins top prize at Ontario sommelier competition

Bruce Wallner wins top prize at Ontario sommelier competition

(Image: Shannon Hamilton)

Toronto master sommelier Bruce Wallner (Paese, Mideastro) took first place at the Best Ontario Sommelier Competition at The Fifth Grill and Terrace on Sunday. Wallner beat out 15 other wine experts in the competition, which consisted of a written theory test and a blind tasting in front of a live audience. Waller will now go on and represent Ontario at the national competition in Halifax on September 17 and 18, where he’ll be competing alongside Will Predhomme of Canoe, who won the 2010 competition. Apart from the “Best Ontario Sommelier” title, Wallner also walked away with trips to Germany, Napa and Argentina. We hear they’ve got some pretty decent wine there.