The “Christmas Cake Contest,” held every year by the Hyogo Confectionery Association, took place again this year in Kobe on November 14.
Every year, many people from businesses in Nishinomiya also submit entries.
So this time, we headed out of Nishinomiya and went to “Kitano Meister Garden” in Kobe!!
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What the Venue Looked Like
The contest and public exhibition of the works are being held on the 3rd floor of “Kitano Meister Garden.”
I went a little before 3 p.m. on the 14th, and it looked like the awards ceremony was just about to begin.
I headed straight up to the 3rd-floor venue.
The judging had already finished, and the awards ceremony was about to start.
There were so many submitted works lined up.
These are the judges.
The name of Chef Kakita from “Elberun,” who served as MC at the recent “Nishinomiya Confectionery Garden Party,” is also listed.
The awards ceremony was underway on stage.
Many people from businesses in Nishinomiya won prizes, so I’ll introduce them later.
Representing the judges, Chef Iwasa of “Cake House Tsumagari” gave the judges’ comments.
A group photo of the winners, judges, officers, and guests.
Introducing the Award-Winning Works from Nishinomiya
Now, let’s introduce the award-winning works.
The contest is divided into Sections 1 through 5, and there were winners from Nishinomiya businesses in Sections 1 and 3.
For details such as contest rules and judging criteria, please see the official website below↓
Hyogo Confectionery Association Official Website
Section 1: Decoration Cake Division A (5 or More Years of Experience)
・1st Place / Hyogo Prefecture Governor’s Award / Grand Prize
Cake House Tsumagari
Akiko Hirai
・2nd Place / Kobe Mayor’s Award / Excellence Award
Cake House Tsumagari
Norio Umeda
A one-two finish for Tsumagari. As expected……
These works are made entirely from confectionery ingredients, including the adhesive and coloring.
On a base made by covering sponge cake with marzipan and coating it in white chocolate, pieces made from marzipan, pastillage, and other ingredients are arranged on top. It seems that sugar candy work is not allowed.
The judging is comprehensive, covering technical skill and modeling, of course, as well as the shape and shine of the base, the balance of overall color and size, the beauty of the piping line work, originality, theme, and more.
Section 1: Decoration Cake Division B (Less Than 5 Years of Experience)
・1st Place / Hyogo Prefecture Governor’s Award / Grand Prize
Cake House Tsumagari
Chiori Minagawa
・2nd Place / Kobe Mayor’s Award / Excellence Award
Cake House Tsumagari
Ken Ota
・5th Place / Hyogo Prefecture Skilled Workers’ Association Federation Chairman’s Award / Merit Award
Cake House Tsumagari
Haruka Tobita
・8th Place / Hyogo Confectionery Association Chairman’s Award / Merit Award
Elberun
Suzu Umemoto
・9th Place / Hyogo Confectionery Association Chairman’s Award / Merit Award
Elberun
Moeko Tanaka
・One-Point Beautiful Award
Bern Co., Ltd.
Wakana Oishi
・One-Point Beautiful Award
Elberun
Ria Kamada
・One-Point Beautiful Award
Elberun
Mirai Tsumura
Amazingly, Tsumagari also took first and second place in this division.
The basic rules and judging criteria are the same as Division A (5 or more years of experience), but in Division B (less than 5 years of experience), it seems that buttercream piping around the edge is required.
Maybe that’s because it’s one of the fundamental techniques in Western confectionery.
Of course, the beauty and balance of the piping are also judged, and every top-ranking work has beautiful piping.
The One-Point Beautiful Award is apparently given to works that narrowly missed out on placing but had something outstanding in at least one part.
Section 3: Candy Art Division
・1st Place / Hyogo Prefecture Governor’s Award / Grand Prize
Cake House Tsumagari
Shoko Morita
・2nd Place / Kobe Mayor’s Award / Excellence Award
Cake House Tsumagari
Junichi Abe
・4th Place / Runner-Up
Studio Suzette Co., Ltd.
Hinako Nozue
Unbelievably, Tsumagari took first and second place here too!!
That really is shocking……
This Candy Art Division is for sugar candy work.
Artists color candy made by boiling down sugar, then pour it into molds to harden or pull it by hand into various shapes to create their works.
In particular, candy work made by pulling it by hand, called pulled sugar, develops tiny air bubbles as it is pulled repeatedly, creating a distinctive shine that is part of its beauty.
It looks easy when you watch, but the candy is extremely hot, it hardens as it cools, and once it hardens, it breaks. Handling candy exactly the way you want is truly difficult.
Candy art is the star of Western confectionery techniques, where artisans can really show their skill.
Please see below for the other winners and rankings↓
The Award-Winning Patissiers and Patissières from Nishinomiya
When I went to cover the event, it happened to be right during the awards ceremony, so I was able to photograph the winners afterward.
I couldn’t photograph every winner, but since I had the chance, I’d like to introduce them.
The cakes you buy at these shops may have been made by these very people.
This is Ms. Hirai of Tsumagari, who won the Grand Prize in Decoration Cake Division A.
Sun TV was there covering the event, and she was interviewed on a live broadcast.
I took this photo after her live TV appearance.
These are also members of Tsumagari.
In the center is Ms. Morita, who won the Grand Prize in the Candy Art Division; on the right is Ms. Minagawa, who won the Grand Prize in Decoration Cake Division B; and on the left is Ms. Tobita, who won a Merit Award.
This is Mr. Abe of Tsumagari, who won the Excellence Award in the Candy Art Division.
This is Mr. Ota of Tsumagari, who won the Excellence Award in Decoration Cake Division B.
These are the members of Elberun.
They are Ms. Umemoto and Ms. Tanaka, who won Merit Awards in Decoration Cake Division B, and Ms. Kamada and Ms. Tsumura, who won One-Point Beautiful Awards.
This is Ms. Oishi of Bern, who won a One-Point Beautiful Award in Decoration Cake Division B.
Apparently, Ms. Oishi was the only entrant from Bern.
She fought on her own and earned a wonderful award.
By the way, Ms. Oishi works at the Kotoen branch.
Finally
First of all, congratulations to all the winners!!
We sincerely wish you all continued success!!
I think contests like this help pass down the many techniques used in Western confectionery and raise the level even higher as participants learn from one another.
But the contest itself is not part of the regular work of a pastry shop.
Those who submit entries to the contest are probably making their pieces and practicing their techniques after finishing their daily work.
The willingness to take on a contest that is difficult even just to enter must come down to the spirit of these artisans, though of course the understanding and cooperation of their workplaces also matter.
It’s something we can be happy about that Nishinomiya has so many artisans like this.
Nishi2 will continue supporting Nishinomiya’s young artisans!!
The contest works are on public display at “Kitano Meister Garden” in Kobe until 4 p.m. on Sunday the 17th.
If you’re interested, please go and take a look.
