Now in its twelfth edition, the European Day of Artisanal Gelato, which is celebrated every year on 24 March. Protagonist the Belgium which dedicates the Taste of the Year to one of its most characteristic and appreciated desserts. The announcement at the 63rd MIG at Longarone, where the winners of the Videocontest 2023 organized by Artglace were announced, and two new challenges were launched for the best master gelato makers in Europe.
The curtain rises on the twelfth edition of the European Day of Artisanal Gelato, still the only one dedicated to a food by the European Parliament, which the 24 March Every year it officially inaugurates the season of one of the most popular desserts in the world. An event that has become an unmissable event for gourmands of all ages in Europe (and beyond), as well as an important opportunity to tell and promote artisan knowledge, which has always been an expression of quality, authenticity and territoriality, and to support the quality production of traditional Italian artisanal ice cream.
THE TASTE OF THE YEAR 2024. Each edition of Gelato Day has a protagonist: the Flavour of the Year, selected each year from a different European country. After last year's "Apfelstrudel" chosen by Austria, the Taste of the Year 2024 will be the "Gaufre de Liège", Chosen by Belgium to pay homage to one of its most characteristic and appreciated desserts. The waffle, a sweet waffle that is crunchy on the outside and soft on the inside, similar to waffles, was born in the Middle Ages and immediately spread rapidly, becoming the typical dessert of Candlemas and a symbol of good luck. Initially it was made with honey, then replaced by sugar: tradition has it that, on the occasion of the wedding of the daughter of the Prince of the city of Liège, the court confectioner proposed the waffle, emblem of the city, as a dessert, using, in fact, sugar, a real novelty of that time, instead of honey, obtaining a success that still echoes throughout Belgium today.
It will therefore be the ancient "Gaufre de Liège" the undisputed protagonist as Taste of the Year 2024: it is a neutral-based ice cream flavored with vanilla and cinnamon, variegated with salted butter and accompanied by a waffle of waffles, which on March 24th it will be offered in all the ice cream parlors participating in Gelato Day, in its "original" version, according to the official recipe, or creatively revisited by master ice cream makers in every part of Europe using ingredients and inspirations from their territory.
GELATO DAY AT THE 63RD MIG IN LONGARONE. First appointment with the 2024 edition of Gelato Day at the 63rd MIG – International Exhibition of Artisanal Gelato, in progress at Longarone Fairs Dolomites until 29 November, where you can taste the Taste of the Year and discover the secrets of the sixteenth-century recipe of the Liège waffle. And that's not all. Artglace has proclaimed the winners of the Third edition of the videocontest which in recent months has put master ice cream makers from all over Europe to the test, with numerous contributions from all over the Old Continent: the ice cream artisans, in fact, have tried their hand at making a video in which to tell, with flair and creativity, the making of "Apfelstrudel", the Taste of the Year 2023. The first place was won by the artisanal and natural ice cream parlor "Burrocacao" in Imola of the twins Elisa and Giulia Manara. On the second step of the podium are Gelateria Perlecò in Alassio, Tenuta Chirico in Ascea (Salerno) and Gelateria Mil Sabores in Pontenure (Piacenza); L'Arte del Gelato in Anzio Colonia (RM) and La Sorbettiera in Florence close in third place. The ranking was established by the Technical Jury, made up of five members chosen from among professionals and experts in the artisan ice cream supply chain, who evaluated the videos based on four parameters: originality of the presentation, quality of the video, illustration of the production process of the "Apfelstrudel" flavor, and finally aesthetics and decoration of the tub. The Winners will be awarded at the next edition of SIGEP – The Dolce World Expo scheduled from 20 to 24 January 2024 at the Rimini Exhibition Centre.
THE 2024 CONTESTS. Also from the MIG of Longarone Fiere Dolomiti, Artglace has announced the New Competition “Signature Ice Cream”, which will see Italian gelato makers compete on 22 January 2024 at the Artglace stand at SIGEP in Rimini (free registration, all information and complete regulations will be available from 15 December on the website www.gelato-day.com). Finally, a new edition of the video contest for Gelato Day 2024, which, from 1 February to 30 October 2024, will take the cameras to the laboratories of gelato makers from all over Europe called upon to interpret and tell the Taste of the Year.
"Despite the fact that 2023 was a year of ups and downs, between new difficulties and a long summer season, our master gelato makers continue to demonstrate great resilience and an inexhaustible desire to do and put themselves to the test: it is thanks to them that we can raise the curtain on the new edition of the European Artisan Gelato Day with optimism –Comment Domenico Belmonte, president of Artglace. We invite all the gelato makers in Europe to join us in this new edition that sees Belgium as the protagonist, to promote and celebrate, united as always, all the quality of artisanal ice cream."
All updates on the twelfth edition of Gelato Day are available on the site www.gelato-day.com and on the Gelato Day's official pages on Facebook (@24MarzoEuropeanGelatoDay), Instagram (@Gelato_Day) and YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/c/GelatoDay).
All ice cream parlors in Italy and Europe are invited to join the 2024 edition of Gelato Day by registering on the website www.gelato-day.com and reporting all the initiatives scheduled for March 24, 2024.