Grégory Mio is the head sommelier of the Place d’Armes hotel. He chooses the wines for the different menus of the Cristallerie, the Plëss, the Café de Paris or the Bar 18. On the 28th of November, he won the competition for Best Sommelier of Luxembourg. Portrait.
It has been less than a year since Grégory Mio moved to Luxembourg. This 38 year old Frenchman, originally from Bordeaux, has been working for more than fifteen years in some of the most beautiful hotels in Switzerland, the Charente and now in the Grand Duchy.
It is at Place d’Armes that he has chosen to share his experience in December 2021. “I had been a sommelier at the Chais Monnet, a 5-star establishment in Cognac, for four years. But I had the impression that I had done my duty, I wanted a change. Mr d’Amman (the general manager of Place d’Armes, editor’s note) contacted me because he was looking for a new sommelier. I came to the Cristallerie for a trial run one day at lunchtime and I liked it. So did the city.”
Best Sommelier of Luxembourg
Since then, the head sommelier has shown his worth in the Grand Duchy: on the 28th of November, he won the competition for Best Sommelier of Luxembourg organised by the Grand Duchy’s Sommelier Association. “In Switzerland and also in France, I was a member of this association of professionals. It seemed normal to me to join it here too. I have already taken part in several competitions without really getting any results, except for a semi-final at the Master of Port, a competition based on port wines. For me, it’s always very interesting to take part in these competitions, because it makes us review a lot of theory that we forget over the years.”
Encountering the terroir
So, to prepare this competition, which took place between the premises of the Institut vini-viticole and Expogast, he spent time meeting Luxembourgish winemakers. “I was starting from a blank page, I didn’t know the wines of the region at all. I learned and discovered the vineyards, the terroir, by going to visit numerous wineries.”
This discovery is completely in line with his new position at Place d’Armes: “In the Relais&Châteaux philosophy, sustainable development has its place. Also, offering a beautiful wine list of the region was a priority”, explains the head sommelier of the Place d’Armes hotel. Since joining the hotel, Grégory Mio has put new Grand Duchy wines and crémants back on the menu, but has also diversified the range of foreign wines on offer: here, you will obviously find Italian and Spanish wines, but also German and Swiss ones!
A role as ambassador
“I now have the role of ambassador for the local winegrowers. In fact, at the Cristallerie, I offer a food and wine pairing composed exclusively of products from the luxembourgish vineyards. There is a big demand for this from foreign customers. And I am happy to be able to promote the Grand Duchy’s terroir.”
The favourite Luxembourgish wine of the Grand Duchy’s best sommelier? Auxerrois, “a very beautiful grape variety”. To be enjoyed with his wife, Jun Ruan, wine expert and sommelier at La Provençale and bronze medal winner of the competition! Prost!
Edit – September 2023 : Gregory Mio is now working at Come à la Maison / Come à la Cave.