The ZuckerBäckerball, with its over 3,000 international guests, is a magnificent setting for the awarding of the coveted titles of "Vienna Cakemaster 2024" and "Vienna Junior Cakemaster 2024" for apprentices. The Zuckerbäcker Awards – the Confectioner Awards – were held for the 14th time this year.

Confectioners and apprentices had the opportunity to present themselves to a wide international audience and to put themselves and their delicious craft in the right light.

Indeed, the most talented confectioners and apprentices in the country showed off their impressive craftsmanship at the ZuckerBäckerball. Their artful cakes were displayed at the ball as part of the "Zuckerbäcker Award" cake show in the Hofburg foyer - a highlight that is very popular with the guests of the ZuckerBäckerball. Not a few people's mouths water as they marvel at the mouth-watering and spectacular finale of the cake competition.

The Competition

The judging was carried out anonymously using the candidate's participant number. The following main criteria were established as the basis for judging by the jury: compliance with the tender, creativity (artistic implementation), processing of materials, implementation of the theme "Underwater World - Life in the Sea" and the difficulty level of the showpiece.

The Winners

In the course of the midnight performance of the ball, the winners were announced, and the titles were awarded in the Festsaal of the Hofburg: The winner of the Apprentice Award will now hold the title "Vienna Junior Cakemaster 2024" for a year, the winner of the confectioners may be called "Vienna Cakemaster 2024" for a year.

Both for the confectioners and in the apprentice category, it was necessary to produce a showpiece including a cake made of any freely chosen edible material in any colour, with a total height of 40 to 100 cm and a maximum base area of 50 x 50 cm.

Anna Saurer of the Viennese Cafe Central was able to repeat her victory from the previous year in a brilliant manner. After winning in 2023 at the 120th ball with the motto "The Kingdom of Plants and Flowers," the talented cake artist was able to convince the jury again this year and was deservedly named Vienna Cakemaster 2024.

It is also worth mentioning the consistency in the high quality of the Café Central, which has now won the third consecutive victory. In 2020, their confectioner Veronika Schmidt took first place with the motto "Comics."

The shooting star of Austrian cake art, Valentina Otzelberger of Viennese Oberlaa Süßwarenproduktion GmbH, landed in second place. In the previous year, she had competed in the apprentice competition and won the title Vienna Junior Cakemaster 2023 with a fantastic cake.

This year, she made her debut in the main competition and immediately came in second place, right behind the defending champion. One can look forward to Otzelberger's future works.

Rosalie Gürtler of the Pflege- und Betreuungszentrum Tulln, a confectioner who evokes fond memories, also landed in third place. At the penultimate award in 2020 on the theme of "Comics," Gürtler, who was then still working for Landtmann's Feine Patisserie in Vienna, won a confident second place.

The much-acclaimed title Vienna Junior Cakemaster 2024 went to the up-and-coming Carina Andress of Gregors Konditorei in the apprentice competition. Second and third place went, as in the previous year, to representatives of the Andaz Vienna am Belvedere and the Hotel Sacher, both from Vienna. Rosa Luna Schnetzer in second place and Lisa Franziska Strehler in third place impressively showed how great their talent is.

Planning for the 122nd ZuckerBäckerball has already begun, and we look forward to a wonderful ball night in January 2025.