On 20 January 2025, the Gelato Festival World Masters, with partners Carpigiani and Sigep – Italian Exhibition Group, held the German final at Sigep in Rimini, the 46th international trade fair for artisan gelato, pastry, bakery and coffee. Fifteen German gelato makers took part and were judged on flavour, structure, creativity and aesthetic presentation.

The top three

1. Thomas Micolino of Eiscafé by Rino, Rottenburg am Neckar, with “Kamelatte”, a camel milk gelato with a faintly salty finish. Almonds and pistachios marinated in sugar are folded in, flavoured with orange and lemon zest, cinnamon and vanilla, and the gelato is covered with date paste.
2. Rino Bernardi of Gran Café by Rino, Ochsenhausen, with “Red King”, a pomegranate sorbet combined with a cream and honey gelato.
3. Enrico Piccin of Artigiani, Berlin, with “Mediterraneo”, a milk gelato with olive oil and an infusion of rosemary and lemon peel.

The three winners will compete in the World Final, to be held in 2026.

Jury and other participants

The jury was Cinzia Otri (gelato master), Andrea Soban (master of arts and crafts) and Gerhard Schenk (President of the German Confectioners’ Association). The other participants, in starting order:

• Loreen Herrmann, Honest Ice Cream, Nuthe-Urstromtal: “Macadamia Salted Caramel – Tonka Chunk Swirl”
• Giovanni Finamore, Eiscafé Finamore, Duderstadt: “Skyr-Kaki-Lime”
• Giovanni Talo, Puzzles Café & Gelateria, Osnabrück: “Lemon Cheesecake”
• Santo Palamara, Zio Santo, Munich: “Sfizio calabro”
• Adriano Di Stasio, La Dolce Vita Abensberg, Abensberg: “Sole Mio”
• Ivan Farlocchetti, Eiscafé Palermo, Dessau-Roßlau: “Bonet”
• Alessandro Lewis Danieli, Danieli Feines Eis, Apolda: “Mango-Jogo Chilli Variegato Limetta-Menta”
• Renato Dal Cin, Eiscafé Dal Cin, Mellendorf-Wedemark: “Jolly ice cream”
• Giuseppe Cimino, Eis Rimini, Rastatt: a salad gelato with yoghurt dressing
• Waseem Matthaus, House of Gelato, Gerbrunn: “Sachertorte”
• Mehdi Abedini, Milo Melo, Delmenhorst: “Saffron”
• Arno Zambon, Zambon Gelato Naturale, Lohr am Main: “Sorbetto Siciliano”

The 2022-2025 edition is the sixteenth year of the Gelato Festival World Masters. It began in Florence in 2010, expanded through Italy and Europe, and reached the United States in 2017. Since the 2018-2021 edition it has run worldwide, with more than 3,500 gelato artisans in the last edition.

What this means for gelato makers in New Zealand

Competitions like this show how far a well-balanced recipe, good technique and a confident story can take a gelato maker. If you are building your own flavour range, the right artisan gelato machines and a solid grounding from Carpigiani Gelato University are the place to start, and Majors Group can help with both in New Zealand. Our team can also talk you through Rubicone ingredients for your next signature flavour.

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