Over three heats across London, Manchester and Hereford, 23 finalists ‘wowed’ judges with their best gelato dishes. The gelato chefs presented an array of creative and delicious artisan gelato dishes to a panel of industry experts who critiqued the taste, structure, creativity and overall presentation of the gelato entry.

The winners were:

• Jon Adams of Gelato Gusto in Chichester with the flavour Liquorice & salted caramel (London)
• Samantha Cunliffe of Bene Gelateria in Frodsham with the flavour Chocolate Orange Cocco Crunch (Manchester)
• Daniele Panunzio of Panunzio’s Kitchen Gelati Italiani in Bristol with the flavour Monte Bianco (Hereford)

Jon Adams, Samantha Cunliffe and Daniele Panunzio will now go on to compete in the European finals of the Gelato Festival World Masters in Italy, in 2025. The competition will see the UK finalists compete against more than 40 gelato chefs from across the globe! Dates for the competition will be announced next year.

Carpigiani UK’s managing director Paul Ingram said: “The entire Carpigiani team – from the UK to Italy – has been bowled over by the sheer talent of all the gelato chefs in the UK challenge. Across the three heats in London, Manchester, and Hereford the quality, creativity and professionalism have been phenomenal – the judges were certainly put through their paces.

“On behalf of Carpigiani UK, I want to thank every finalist who competed in the UK finals of the Gelato Festival World Masters. We’re looking forward to cheering on Jon, Samantha and Daniele as they move on to the European finals in Italy next year. This is a huge achievement for our all finalists but also fantastic recognition of the growing artisan gelato scene in the UK.”