Meet Joshua Kalinan Sinnathamby, the first Singaporean sommelier to be crowned Sake Sommelier of the Year by the International Sake Sommelier Association
It has been a long journey to success for Joshua Kalinan Sinnathamby. Certainly, when the 52-year-old first joined Singapore Airlines as a flight steward all those years ago—26, to be exact—he would not have guessed that he would represent the airline in one of the world’s most prestigious sake competitions. On 20 May this year, after two prior attempts in 2015 and 2016, Joshua finally took top spot to be crowned the Sake Sommelier of the Year by the International Sake Sommelier Association. The competition was held at the Millennium Hotel in Knightsbridge, London, and pitted him against sake sommeliers around the world on blind tasting, food pairing and of course, service and knowledge.
“I am overjoyed but do not want my success to cloud my mind as I am still learning about sake,” says Joshua modestly. “I am happy to represent Singapore and Singapore Airlines on the world stage. Winning definitely makes me feel recognised for all my hard work and effort.” We’ll kanpai to that!
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