The 15th edition of Sherbeth Festival, the world’s leading event dedicated to artisan gelato, crowned its champions in Palermo, Sicily. Winning the prestigious Procopio Cutò Award was the Belgian duo Fabio Marasti and Laetitia Joiris of La Gourmand'Ice in Verviers, Belgium, with their extraordinary flavor “Xocolatl – At the Origins of Chocolate.”
Their creation—made from artisan Belgian cocoa mass, sweetened with coconut sugar, honey, and oabika (a concentrated cocoa fruit juice), and spiced with pepper, chili, and cinnamon—stood out for its authenticity and innovation. The gelato was enriched with a gel of oabika and Oko 73% chocolate, crafted from unpeeled cocoa beans, raw sugar, and cocoa butter.
🥈🥉 Second and Third Place
- Second Place: Alessandro Cesari from Gelateria Sablè in Bologna with his flavor “Wild Almond”, made with stone-ground Avola almonds, lacto-fermented lemon zest, salt, and Icelandic lichen.
- Third Place: Stefano Cecconi from Gelateria Cecconi in Arezzo, who competed with “La Vita è Bella”, a rice cream gelato sweetened with wildflower honey and flavored with Sicilian orange zest and house-made Avola almond paste. The rice base was made in-house using water, fresh cream, salt, and Strega liqueur.
🏆 “An Unforgettable Emotion”
“It was an indescribable emotion to win Sherbeth,” said the winning couple. “We’re proud to bring our vision of chocolate to Italy. This festival is highly regarded among Europe’s top gelato artisans. We're also thrilled that our flavor highlights an eco-conscious approach: by using cocoa mucilage, we reduce cocoa waste by over 40%.”
🌟 Special Mentions
As per tradition, Sherbeth 2023 also honored outstanding talents with special awards:
- “Santo Musumeci” Award for Local Ingredient Valorization:
- Chiara Soffioti (Granitiamo, Palmi, RC) – “Radici d’autunno”
- Francesca Dassogno (Fattoria Dassogno, Rogeno, LC) – “Fico di seta”
- Silvia Duranti (Qualcosa di Buono, Moneglia, GE) – “Nocciola misto Chiavari”
- “Luca Caviezel” Innovation Award:
- Pierpaolo Portogallo, a young artisan from Gelateria David (Florence), for “A Serena”
- Best Naming & Storytelling:
- Alessandro Zoli, Peace e Cream (Faenza, RA), with “Amlou (Da Ba Dee)”, a playful tribute to Eiffel 65 and a personal reflection post-flood.
- Best Attention to Detail – “Carlo Pozzi” Award:
- Stefano Cecconi (La Vita è Bella)
- Alessandro Cesari (Wild Almond)
- Youngest Master Gelato Artisan:
- Alessia Palmitessa, age 22, Gelateria Banchini (Parma)
- Audience Favorite Award:
🍨 Sherbeth 2023: Flavors, Stories, and Traditions
This year’s edition brought unforgettable stories and unique flavors to the streets of Palermo. From “Amlou (Da Ba Dee)”, created after the devastating flood in Faenza, to “Latte di Puglia” by the all-women team Latteria del Ringo of Martina Franca—Sherbeth once again proved to be a celebration of creativity and resilience.
Classic favorites like almond, pistachio, vanilla, gianduia, and chocolate were joined by dozens of innovative flavors, including:
- “Festa Patronale” – panna cotta, honey, caramelized almonds
- “Caterina de Medici” – milk, cream, and honey, evoking Renaissance simplicity
- “Stracciatella” – with dark cocoa nibs and lemon verbena liqueur extract
- “Nettuno” – with Cervia sea salt, Madagascar vanilla, lemon zest, and almond brittle
- “Crema Antica” – milk, eggs, sugar, cream, vanilla bean, and lemon zest
- “Lavanda Pura” – water-based with lavender infusion
- “Strudel” – a gelato reinterpretation of the classic dessert
- “Dark Chocolate with Marsala Salt”
- “White Coffee with Coffee Sauce”
👏 A Sweet Success in Palermo
As expected, Sherbeth’s public reopening was a resounding success, drawing thousands of visitors over the weekend. Piazza Castelnuovo buzzed with gelato lovers eager to explore the finest artisan creations from around the world.