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National Selections : Austria :

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Winner Markus Podzimek and his showpiece 200pix.jpg
Winner Markus Podzimek and his showpiece 200pix.jpg

3rd Pastry Oscar from Vienna – Grand Prix of the Art of Chocolate

Markus Podzimek has won the Austrian selection

“And the Oscar goes to…!”

Delicious chocolate, coffee and Australian/Hungarian flair are the ingredients for the Oskar 2005 in the Grosser Redoutensaal at the Vienna Hofburg. After an exciting competition day a wonderful gala dinner was the venue for the award of the “Patisserie Oskar – the Grand Prix of the Art of Chocolate” on the third of February 2005.

The stars of the third Pastry Oskar were 24 patissiers and confectioners from Austria, Germany and Hungary as well as 18 artistic exhibits made on average with 35 kg of chocolate couverture and the same number of cakes flavoured with Grand Marnier.

The club of Viennese Coffeehouse Owners and master patissier Herwig Gasser as the initiators of the Pastry Oskar, were thrilled with the excellent quality of the exhibits submitted this year focusing on the theme “The Danube”.

The Danube – a river, which links countries and cities
The Danube – a river of myths
The Danube – a river with history

All patissiers and confectioners with a professional qualification as a patissier or confectioner qualified for entry. The prizes were awarded for a self-created Grand Marnier cake made with 100% natural ingredients which was integrated into a chocolate exhibit.

Skill and Capability

“A great deal of skill, capability and creativity is required to express this theme in a chocolate exhibit. The challenges have focused intensively on the topic and a wide range of techniques for processing chocolate for three months of preparation”, emphasized Herwig Gasser.

The third Pastry Oskar was actively backed by Römerquelle from Austria, Barry Callebaut from Belgium (the world’s leading chocolate and cocoa producer), together with Luis Fessler GmbH in Götzis, Vorarlberg and Grand Marnier from France as well as many other sponsors.

The international jury judged the exhibits completely anonymously and in accordance with the following criteria: interpretation of the topic, artistic style, degree of difficulty, processing, taste and compliance with the assignment.

The members of the jury of the third Patisserie Oskar:

Komm.-Rat Dr. Paulus Stuller - Federal Master of the Confectionary Guild of austria
Dietmar Fercher - Fercher café and confectionary
Jean-Pierre Wybauw - Barry Callebaut Belgium
Pierre Garbolino - Grand Marnier
Robert Oppeneder - “sweet ART”
Leopold Forsthofer - Chairman of the jury

“And the Oscar goes to…!”

The six top places were honoured in an exclusive setting at a gala dinner in the Grosser Redoutensaal at the Vienna Hofburg and finally the official ceremony awarding the Pastry Oskar 2005 to the winning competitor was staged.

Komm.Rat Dr. Paulus Stuller handed the winner’s trophy to the deserving victor Markus Podzimek from the Heimann confiserie in Neunkirchen, Germany. Podzimek was pleased to be handed the golden Pastry Oskar, a cheque for 2,000 euros and other attractive prizes.

The Winning Exhibit

The winning exhibit, “The sinful sweet temptation” created by Markus Podzimek: “As once the trading ships from Orient, the waves of the beautiful Danube carry coffee upstream through Budapest to Vienna. A mystic female figure emerges with a strange grace from the reeds on the bank of the river. She is well known to children and sailors, has cast a mysterious spell over many which captivated them, and they were never to be freed again. Nut this evening she only wants to enchant guests … with sinfully sweet temptations of luxury chocolate, juicy oranges and the finest Grand Marnier she has come to cast her spell over the guests – just for one night. The Danube lady.”

The award-winning participants:

1st prize: Markus Podzimek – Confiserie Heimann, Neunkirchen
2nd prize:Gerhard Spreitzer – Romantikhotel Weisses Rössl, St. Wolfgang, Austria
3rd prize: Barbara Nowak – Kurkonditorei Oberla, Vienna, Austria
4th prize: Zsuzsanna Kissné Zombori – Café Gerbeaud, Budapest, Hungary
5th prize: Brigitta Schickmaier – Schickmaier Konditorei der anderen Art, Pettenbach, Austria
6th prize: Christoph Wohlfahrt – Kruck’s Chocolaterie, Berlin, Germany

The showpieces were presented in the evening at the Vienna “Kaffeesiederball” in the foyer of the Hofburg in Vienna, much to the delight of the 5,000 guests at the ball.



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