The Best Fondue in Brazil Competition  awarded first place Raquel Chapchap, secondly Maria Lucilha de Faria and in third place Lucas Edouard Bracale Darbellay. The special category for the best fondue made with beer was won by Gilvonete Vidal, from Re.vivas, in Petrolina-PE.

Rachel She is a multilingual Market Intelligence Executive, with experience at giants like Casas Bahia and Nespresso, and she has translated her analytical precision into excellence in fondue.

 Lucas  é Chef Rouge restaurant chef (Michelin Guide 2025) and Gastronomy student at SENAC, he combined Swiss-Brazilian training and refined technique in the competition. Lucilha She made a truly Brazilian fondue, using lemon to give it a creamy texture and Canastra cheese to complement the Gruyère.

The third edition of the Best Fondue in Brazil Contest It was a joint effort by SerTãoBras and the Guilde Internationale des Fromagers, in partnership with the renowned Mondial de Fondue de Tartegnin in Switzerland, the Academia da Cerveja de São Paulo, and the Swiss Consulate in Brazil, which offered the winner a plane ticket to compete in the World Championship in 2027.

The competition, chaired by Débora Pereira, advisor to SerTãoBras, and Gilberto Tarantino, president of the Brazilian Association of Craft Beer, aimed to promote cheese fondue as a traditional recipe and to elect the grand Brazilian Fondue Champion. The event took place on April 15, 2026, at the Academia da Cerveja (R. Mourato Coelho, 560 – Pinheiros, São Paulo), on an evening reserved for a select group of judges, journalists, and guests.

The recipe had to contain at least 50% Gruyère DOP, aged for at least one year, provided by the judging committee. The other cheeses were at the competitor's discretion, but all had to be grated manually — the use of electric graters was prohibited.

Among the permitted ingredients were wine, beer, cider, lemon juice, kirsch, garlic, potato or corn starch, flour, baking soda, pepper, and mustard. Additives such as citric acid (E 330), sodium citrate (E 331), potassium phosphate (E 340), and polyphosphate (E 452) were expressly prohibited. Other ingredients could be exceptionally authorized by the organization at the time of registration.

On the day of the competition, the contestants presented the printed recipe on the table, with all the ingredients specified and the step-by-step instructions for its execution.

Evaluation and award criteria
The fondues were evaluated according to four criteria:

• Visual

• Taste and aroma

• Consistency and texture (which should be homogeneous)

• Global impression

Raquel Chapchap, The grand winner was announced during a ceremony at the 4th World Cheese Championship of Brazil, on April 17, 2026, in the auditorium of the B32 Theater.

Raquel received a trophy and the opportunity to represent Brazil at the Mondial de Fondue de Tartegnin in Switzerland in 2027, with a direct spot in the final—without needing to go through the qualifying rounds. Travel expenses were the responsibility of the winner.

The 2nd and 3rd place winners received trophies. There was also a special category for the best recipe that used beer in its composition, which was won by... Gilvonete Vidal, from Re.vivas, Cheese producer and cheesemaker in Petrolina-PE.