Thirteen award-winning cheeses, four top chefs and a first for Germany: In Hamburg last night, the Consorzio del Formaggio Parmigiano Reggiano announced that the renowned Casello d’Oro Awards will come to Germany for the first time in 2027. The announcement was made at Hamburg’s Michelin-starred restaurant ZEIK during an evening of fine dining. Selected guests from the culinary and media worlds enjoyed an exceptional tasting that brought all the 2026 winning cheeses together at one table. The evening culminated in a menu in which chefs from Jeunes Restaurateurs presented the award-winning cheeses in surprising newways.
Casello d’Oro Awards to Be Held in Germany for the First Time: The World’s Best Parmigiano Reggiano Cheeses Are Coming to Berlin in 2027
Hamburg, 2 October 2026 – The Casello d’Oro Awards are coming to Germany for the first time: In February 2027, Berlin will host the next edition of the awards honouring outstanding Parmigiano Reggiano. The Consorzio del Formaggio Parmigiano Reggiano made the announcement on Thursday evening at Hamburg’s ZEIK restaurant. There, selected journalists from the food and lifestyle media had a preview of the diversity of the award-winning cheeses and tasted all eleven winners of the 2026 Casello d’Oro Awards together.
A tasting of the world’s finest Parmigiano Reggiano wheels
The cheeses were presented side by side in a horizontal tasting, allowing guests to compare their different maturation profiles, aromas and textures directly. Each wheel comes from a dairy that prevailed at one of the traditional “Palii del Parmigiano Reggiano”. At these competitions, certified tasters assess Parmigiano Reggiano from dairies within the protected area of origin (which includes the provinces of Parma, Reggio Emilia, Modena, Mantua to the right of the Po river, and Bologna to the left of the Reno River). The Casello d’Oro Awards honour the winners of these competitions.
Top German JRE chefs put the winning cheeses in the spotlight
A menu created by four chefs from Jeunes Restaurateurs (JRE) then demonstrated the versatility of the award-winning cheeses in the kitchen. ZEIK head chef Maurizio Oster welcomed guests with finger food and served a course featuring Odefey chicken, mushrooms and 24-month-aged Parmigiano Reggiano from Caseificio 4 Madonne – Lesignana plant. Bastian Ebert of Schlossanger Alp reimagined cheese from Caseificio Colline di Canossa Cigarello as “Allgäu Cheese Bread 2.0”. Alessandro Bellingeri of Osteria Acquarol paired Carnaroli rice with 40-month-aged Parmigiano Reggiano from Caseificio Bucamante, hay, blossoms and mountain pine. Stefan Fäth of Jellyfish dedicated a “herb garden” of herbs, honey and olive to the 24-month-aged cheese from Latteria Sociale La Mezzanese . The ZEIK team added a pre-dessert and dessert to the menu; each course was accompanied by a carefully paired Laurent-Perrier champagne.
With the announcement of Berlin as the next host city, the Consorzio continues the international series of Casello d’Oro Awards. Previous editions have been held in Paris, London and Madrid. Further details of the event, which will take place at Charlottenburg Palace in Berlin in February 2027, will be announced at a later date.
About the Casello d’Oro Awards
The Casello d’Oro Awards honour dairies whose Parmigiano Reggiano has received recognition at the “Palii del Parmigiano Reggiano”. The Palii del Parmigiano Reggiano are competitions that have been held for 14 years in the PDO’s area of origin, in which any member dairy can take part by entering a sample of 24-month-old Parmigiano Reggiano. The cheeses entered in the competition are judged by a panel comprising certified tasters from the APR (Parmigiano Reggiano Tasters’ Association). During the Casello d’Oro Awards’ evening, an international jury awards the 13 winning dairies of the 2025 Palii del Parmigiano Reggiano and awards two special mentions for the Parmigiano Reggiano with the best structure and the one with the best aromatic profile.