The opening day of Dreams presented to a packed auditorium the futuristic vision of a gastronomy that takes advantage of artificial intelligence (AI). ‘It's a creative atomic bomb,’ said master pastry chef Christian Escribà, who uses it to manage his century-old patisserie. Cecilia Tham, from Futurity Systems, focused her presentation on uses such as growing meat inside a tomato or a plant that searches for water and light on its own. Another application is the search for zero waste, which for Albert Franch, chef at Nolla (Helsinki), ‘more than innovation, it is survival’. However, as Pedro Luis Prieto reminded us in his talk, ‘in an ultra-technological world, the most disruptive aspect will be the human aspect’.
Volcanic wines and natural wines at The Wine Edition
Madrid Fusión's wine stage, The Wine Edition Wines from Spain, has offered a journey to volcanic regions such as the Canary Islands, Greece and the Azores, and has done so through the unique character of the wines from these singular territories. Aligoté, the forgotten white variety from French Burgundy, was just as unique, and sommelier Mohamed Benabdallah (Etxebarri*) turned it into the star of a tasting that surprised the attendees.
This first day offered an interesting look at non-alcoholic pairings by Henrietta Lovell, in which tea was proposed as a gastronomic ally, as well as a review of the Finnish culture of red fruit wines.
The most gastronomic note was provided by the chef Rafa Peña (Gresca, Barcelona) and the sommelier and head waiter at Kadeau** (Copenhagen) Alberto Segado, who emphasised natural wines, of which he highlighted that ‘they are artisan wines, less technically adjusted, but very interesting when it comes to creating harmonies’.
