The Three Best Czech Gelato Artisans of 2024

The Gelato Festival World Masters returned to the Czech Republic for the third stop on its four-year calendar. After last year’s challenge, the third national competition took place in Prague on 3 December 2024, with 18 Czech gelato makers taking part. It was organised with the country’s Carpigiani distributor.

The three winners

The jury ranked three gelato makers to compete in the 2025 Czech Finals of the world championship, run with Carpigiani and Sigep – Italian Exhibition Group as strategic partners.

1. Vít Obrdlík of Snová zmrzlina, Jihlava, with “Maková s povidly”, a gelato of ground poppy seeds, plum jam, rum and cinnamon.
2. Martin Strnad of Zigolo Gelato, Plzen, with a “Pavlova” gelato made with cream, egg, mascarpone and strawberries.
3. Filip Knotek of Filipovo Gelato, Prague, with “Almond Fusion”, an almond gelato with tonka bean and vanilla.

Judging and other participants

Flavour, structure, creativity and the verbal and aesthetic presentation were the four criteria. These rewarded ingredient choice, skill in developing and describing the recipe, and the overall result on sight, taste and smell. The jury:

• Šárka Divácká, head pastry chef and co-founder of Sorry – We Bake Differently, and winner of the Gourmet Pastry Brno 2023 category
• Tomáš Popp, chef and manager of the AKC ČR national team of chefs and pastry chefs
• Magdalena Murínová, pastry chef and teacher at HF-pastry Academy, national team member and bronze medallist at the European Grand Prix 2023

The other participants were:

• Dagmar Válová, Merhautovo pekařství, Benátky nad Jizerou: “Pumpkin”
• Jiří Suchan, Vanille, Prague: soured cream with maple syrup and nuts
• Zdeněk Pavlis, Zmrzlina z Kunětic, Kunětice: “Pumpkin Seed Velvet”
• Filip Havlíček, Fammi Gelato, Příbram: “Oriental Essence”
• Jindřich Vojnar, ICEKRAM, Náchod: “Krtkův dor”
• Martin Bulva, Zmrzka z hor, Vrchlabi: “Creme Brulè”
• Václav Mencl, Zmrzlina Dolní Podluží, Dolní Podluží: “Mossy Dream”
• Dušan Breicha, Budějcký vejminek, Budějovice: “Citrus Love”
• Lukáš Taschner, PRAGELINA, Prague: “Luisa”
• Vladimír Nikodém, Flora Gelato, Františkovy Lázně: “Spiced Pear”
• Lukáš Schneider, U Zmrzlináře, Valtice: “Creamy Ruby chocolate with Raspberries”
• Jaroslav Šabat, Šabatovo zmrzlinářství, Týnec nad Sázavou: “Explosive Pistachio”
• Jan Moučka, Cukrárna u Moučků, Strančice: “Royal Chantilly alla prugna”
• Radek Pincel, Valgelato, Valtice: “Hezky česky”
• Eva Rezková, Adriagold, Nivnice: “Croissant Pistachio”

The 2022-2025 edition marks the fifteenth year of the Gelato Festival World Masters. It debuted in Florence in 2010, inspired by the first gelato recipe created by the architect Bernardo Buontalenti in 1559, then expanded across Italy and Europe and, from 2017, to the United States. It became a worldwide championship with more than 3,500 gelato makers 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.