Gelato Festival World Masters held its North America Finals over the Labor Day weekend at Ovation Hollywood. Juan Antonio Coyoli Maciel of Super Creamy Gelato Shop in Mexico City took top prize as Best Flavor North America 2025. The event is run with strategic partners Carpigiani and SIGEP by Italian Exhibition Group.

The winning flavour

His gelato “Lisi” was inspired by the Mexican dessert Dulce de Calabaza, made with Castilla pumpkins. It combines pumpkin gelato with a coffee variegation and caramelised pumpkin seeds.

Advancing to the 2026 World Finals

• Juan Antonio Coyoli Maciel, Super Creamy Gelato Shop, Mexico City: “Lisi”.
• Maria Liliana Biondo, uGOgelato, Cincinnati, OH: “Mandorland”, a 100% vegan gelato combining natural, toasted and bitter almond with pieces of 70% dark Venezuelan chocolate, a blood orange glaze, almond nougat and an orange zest spray at serving.
• Francia Magsaysay, Francy’s Artisanal Ice Cream, Bergenfield, NJ: “Passionfruit Yuzu & White Chocolate”, a swirl of passionfruit yuzu gelato and white chocolate gelato, variegated with a passionfruit reduction.

The People’s Choice Award went to Melanie Wolf of Pompelmo Gelateria (Westerly, RI) for “Taste the Tropics Sorbet”, a blend of passionfruit, pineapple and mango with a ginger surprise.

The competition and the festival

As part of a series of competitions in over 20 countries, 10 gelato artisans from the U.S., Canada and Mexico competed on August 30 and 31 for three World Final places. A technical panel judged each entry: Lisa Dahl (Executive Chef and Owner of Dahl Restaurant Group), Andrea Cavaliere (Executive Chef, Soho House), Pawel Petrykowski (Gelato Chef, Paulo Gelateria Chicago) and master gelato maker Sergio Dondoli (Gelateria Dondoli, San Gimignano, Italy). Festival visitors also voted.

Gabriele Poli, Founder of Gelato Festival World Masters, said the level of artistry was inspiring and described the event as a global celebration of tradition, innovation and community.

On Sunday, August 31, Dondoli received a Career Recognition Award, a silver spoon crafted by Florentine master goldsmith Paolo Penko. Over the two days, visitors enjoyed live demonstrations by gelato artisans, interactive tastings and workshops, and samples of the finalist gelatos.

What this means for gelato makers in New Zealand

A vegan almond gelato and a pumpkin gelato with coffee show how much room there is for creativity. If you are developing your own range, see our Carpigiani gelato machines, Rubicone gelato ingredients and Gelato University courses.

Source: Carpigiani news. Rewritten for New Zealand by Majors Group.