PRESS RELEASE
報道関係者各位

京阪ホテルズ＆リゾーツ株式会社
THE THOUSAND KYOTO＜ザ・サウザンド京都＞

2024 年 3 月 21 日

Reliving Asia’s Top Sommelier Competition on the World Stage
Reeze Choi × Chef Sommelier Wataru Iwata
Pairing Dinner for One Night Only
The Keihan Group’s flagship hotel, THE THOUSAND KYOTO (Shimogyo-ku, Kyoto City; Miwa
Sakurai, General Manager), invites Reeze Choi Kam Fung, the third-place winner at the ASI Best
Sommelier of the World 2023 competition, to collaborate with Chef Sommelier Wataru Iwata forthe pairing dinner served for one night only on Wednesday, April 24, 2024.
Mr. Choi gained experience at Michelin-starred restaurants and was selected as the bestsommelier in Greater China four times since 2016. He placed second in the 4th ASI Best Sommelierof Asia & Oceania 2018 competition, which Iwata won, and third in the 17th ASI Best Sommelierof the World 2023 competition in which they competed together. He is attracting worldwide
attention as one of Asia’s top sommeliers.
At this collaboration, the two good friends and rivals reunite in Kyoto to present their pairings
with the course dinner at their “third” match. Our five head chefs prepare an eclectic Japanese- andWestern-style course dinner with recipes created just for the event. Look forward to a one-nightonly collaboration by two seasoned sommeliers with global careers and their unique wine pairings.

■A One-Night-Only Pairing Dinner with Asia’s Top Competing Sommeliers[ D a t e ] April 24 (Wednesday), 2024 *Book by 3:00 p.m. one day before[Venue ] Italian Restaurant SCALAE (THE THOUSAND KYOTO 2nd Floor)[ H o u r s ] 6:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. Doors open at 6:00 p.m.
[ P r i c e ] 40,000 yen per guest[Capacity] 40 guests *Reception ends once maximum capacity is reached.
[Inquiries] TEL +81(0)75-351-0700 (Restaurant Reception 10:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m.)[ W e b s i t e ] https://www.keihanhotels-resorts.co.jp/the-thousand-kyoto/plan/restaurant/pairingdinner0424.html (Japanese page)*The price above includes a 13% service charge and consumption tax.
*Menus contents and production sites may change due to availability.
*Hours and other details may change without notice. Please see details on the official website.
*Available to guests at least 20 years of age. Guests may not be accompanied by those under 20 years old.
*All photos are for illustrative purposes. *Stay packages are also available. Please contact us for details.

■Choi, Kam Fung Reeze
Reeze Choi is the founder of a sommelier services and wine consultancy
company, Somm's Philosophy. He is an Advanced Sommelier of The Countof Master Sommeliers, holder of A.S.I diploma – Gold, WSET Level ThreeAward in Wines, and the Certified Specialist of Wine Certification. He isalso a WSET educator.
◆Major Awards Received
2018 4th ASI Best Sommelier of Asia & Oceania competition; 2nd2016, 2017, 2020, 2022
The Best Sommelier Greater China
2023 17th ASI Best Sommelier of the World competition
Represented China and advanced to the finals; 3rd in the world■Wataru Iwata
Born in Aichi prefecture in 1989. While attending university, became
fascinated with wine while studying abroad in New Zealand and devoted
four years to studying wine. After graduating, acquired his sommelier
certification in 2014. Was posted the same year as the sommelier at
Kyoto’s wine bar Cave de K. Assumed his current position as THE
THOUSAND KYOTO chef sommelier in September 2019.
◆Major Awards Received
2017 8th All-Japan Best Sommelier Competition winner2018 4th ASI Best Sommelier of Asia & Oceania competition winner2019 16th ASI Best Sommelier of the World competition in Belgium
Represented Asia and Oceania and advanced to the semi-finals
2020 Gault & Millau 2020 Best Sommelier Award
2021 Ruinart Sommelier Challenge 2021 winner2023 17th ASI Best Sommelier of the World competition
Represented Japan and advanced to the semi-finals; 5th in the world■Italian Restaurant SCALAE (THE THOUSAND KYOTO 2nd Floor)[ O p e n ] Sun, Mon, Tue, Thu, Fri, Sat, Holidays (Closed on Wed)
[ H o u r s ] Breakfast – 7:00 a.m. to 10:00 a.m.
Lunch – 11:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. (Food L.O. 2:30 p.m.)
Dinner – 5:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. (Food L.O. 8:30 p.m.)[ S e a t s ] 110 seats, 3 private rooms[Inquiries] +81(0)75-351-0700 (Restaurant Reception 10:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m.)[Website] https://www.keihanhotels-resorts.co.jp/the-thousand-kyoto/en/restaurants/scalae/■THE THOUSAND KYOTO[Address] 570 Higashi Shiokoji-cho, Shimogyo-ku, Kyoto City 600-8216[ A c c e s s ] About 2 minutes on foot east from JR Kyoto Station[Opening] January 29, 2019
[ F l o o r s ] 1 floor underground, 9 floors above ground
Guest rooms: Floors 3 to 9 / 222 rooms[Website] https://www.keihanhotels-resorts.co.jp/the-thousand-kyoto/en/＜Inquiries regarding this release/coverage＞
Keihan Hotels & Resorts Co., Ltd.
THE THOUSAND KYOTO PR／Brand marketing
TEL：075-351-0337

FAX：075-343-3722 Email：press@keihanhotels-resorts.co.jp