Mexico’s Top 3 Gelato Artisans Head to the North American Semifinals

The Gelato Festival World Masters, run in partnership with Carpigiani and Sigep – Italian Exhibition Group, made its second Mexican stop on 11 March 2025 in Mexico City. Twelve Mexican gelato artisans competed, and three of them earned a place in the North American Semifinal.

The Mexico City podium

• First place: Irvin Jiménez of Cuina Gelato Shop, Mexico City, with “Bocado de Flores”, a low-sugar natural yoghurt gelato with passion fruit and jasmine green tea.
• Second place: Juan Antonio Coyoli Maciel of Super Creamy Gelato Shop, Mexico City, with “Lisi”, a pumpkin candy gelato with a coffee, cinnamon, butter and rum variegato, finished with pumpkin seeds.
• Third place: María De Los Ángeles Morales of Gelato Shop, Xalapa, with “Besos de fresa”, an oven-roasted strawberry gelato with cardamom and honey and a strawberry, cardamom, honey and Grand Marnier jelly.

The three will advance to the North American Semifinal, scheduled for 2025 in the United States.

How the entries were judged

Each gelato was scored on flavour, texture, creativity and presentation, which rewards smart ingredient choices, craftsmanship and visual impact. The jury was made up of:

• Cristian Melendez Crespo, chef at Par De France
• Sandra Corona P., R&D at Grupo Chedrahui
• Giuliana Arcila Cardona, CEO of GAC

The other nine participants were:

• Francisco Javier Lechuga, Il Favorito Gelato Shop, Mexico City: “Mia y Mío”
• Sebastián Gustavi Demarchi, Due Gelati, Mexico City: “Rosso Mandorlato”
• Ileana Carrasco, Frozzeto, Mexico City: “Crema de nogada”
• Nahomi Barrios Arellano, Sempre Gelato, Mexico City: “Peach Kingdom”
• Mauricio Tomás Gallegos Luna, Gelaxia Helados, Mexico City: “Stella”
• Armando Cruz Ramírez, Flor Del Valle Gelato Shop, Hidalgo: “La Flor del Maguey del Valle”
• Juan Carlos Franco Suaste, Bella Nonna Gelato Shop, Morelos: “Reserva Verde”
• María Andrea Morteo Stocco, Cuore Italiano, Puebla: “Cuore Mediterraneo”
• Eduardo Carrera Lagunas, Heladería y Paletería Lalo, Poza Rica: “Palanqueta”

The 2022-2025 edition marks the sixteenth year of the Gelato Festival World Masters, which debuted in Florence in 2010 and was inspired by the first-ever gelato recipe, created by the architect Bernardo Buontalenti in 1559. Since 2017 it has reached the United States and the rest of the world, and more than 3,500 gelato artisans took part in the 2018-2021 edition.

What this means for gelato makers in Australia

Competitions like this show how far a well-balanced recipe, good technique and a confident story can take a gelato maker. If you are building your own flavour range, the right artisan gelato machines and a solid grounding from Carpigiani Gelato University are the place to start, and Majors Group can help with both in Australia. Our team can also talk you through Rubicone ingredients for your next signature flavour.

Source: Carpigiani news. Rewritten for Australia by Majors Group.