PRESS RELEASE – 06.04.2018

OPEN CHATEAU PIRON

 KEDGE wins the Grandes Ecoles Challenge 

KEDGE students topped the tables at this wine-tasting tournament as part of the 2018 OPEN organised by Château Piron on March 24th. The tournament featured around sixty teams composed of amateurs and professionals. Kedgers won six prizes, including first place in the Grandes Ecoles Challenge and second place in the general grand final for this 5th edition.

“This success at the Château Piron Open is an evidence of the mastery of the technique, the talent of our students and the expertise passed on through the Wine & Spirits Academy,” declared Jacques-Olivier Pesme, Director of KEDGE’s Wine & Spirits Academy. “We are happy with the partnership we have established with Château Piron which gives our students the opportunity to meet industry professionals, in an original and fun setting.”

This competition, held at Château Piron in the Graves region, is organised like a sports tournament with 60 teams, referees, time limits, etc. Each team, consisting of two tasters, has to blindly identify wines by regions, AOC and vintages during qualifiers. The grand final features some of France’s fine wines and Grands Crus Classés. Each team tastes between 6 and 21 wines depending on how far they get in the competition.

This year’s jury at the Château Piron Open was chaired by the chef David Delieuvin from Darroze restaurant. The sommeliers Alexandre Morin and Jean-Pascal Paubert also attended as facilitators for the tournament.

KEDGE was represented by students of the Wine & Spirits Management MSc and the Grande Ecole Programme involved in the AOC association. All of KEDGE’s awards at this 2018 OPEN:

  • 1st and 3rd places in the Grandes Ecoles Challenge against Bordeaux Sciences Agro, IPC and INSEEC
  • 2nd place in the grand final against professionals
  • 2nd place in the amateur category
  • Prize for best tasters of red
  • Prize for best tasters of white

Four of KEDGE’s six prizes were won by the students Yann Delbarre and Albane Crozet including 1st place in the Grandes Ecoles Challenge, 2nd place in the general category and amateur category.

The winners of each category were rewarded with invitations to Michelin starred restaurants in Bordeaux. All the teams that made the podium in one of the four categories also received bottles and magnums of Château Piron.

The KEDGE Wine & Spirits Academy is based in Bordeaux, worldwide capital of wine. With a presence at the heart of the various bodies of the wine-producing industry, relaying information and influence, the Wine & Spirits Academy not only has the aim of training managers in the wine and spirits sector but also of supporting changes in the industry by offering help in decision-making, by developing local & international projects to provide economic support to stakeholders and by channelling momentum.
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About KEDGE Business School:
KEDGE is a leading French business school with four campuses in France (Paris, Bordeaux, Marseilles and Toulon), three abroad (Shanghai, Suzhou and Dakar) and three partner campuses (Avignon, Bastia and Bayonne). The KEDGE community is made up of 12,600 students (including 25% coming from abroad), 183 professors (including 44% coming from abroad), 275 international academic partners and 57,000 alumni around the world. KEDGE offers 36 programmes in management, designed for students and industry professionals. It also provides taylor made educational programmes for businesses at national and international levels. KEDGE Business School is AACSB, EQUIS and AMBA-accredited, and is a member of the Conférence des Grandes Ecoles. It is also recognised by the French government, with labelised programmes, and has obtained the EESPIG label. KEDGE was ranked 40th by the Financial Times in the European Business School ranking and 37th globally in its Executive MBA ranking.
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Press Contacts: 
Julien RAVIER Tel. +33 (0) 671 535 161 / julien.ravier@kedgebs.com
Boris GALINAT Tel. +33 (0) 786 234 079 / boris.galinat@kedgebs.com