Bay of Plenty baker a four-time winner

JOHN SELKIRK

PIE TIME: Rotorua judge Brian Wilmshurst doing the taste test on a rhubarb pie part of the fruit pie category.

FOUR-TIME WINNER: Pat Lam, of Gold Star Patrick's Pies in Rotorua.

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Bay of Plenty baker Pat Lam has underlined his reputation as a champion pie maker by taking out the Bakel Supreme Pie Award for the fourth time in the competition's 14-year history.

His bacon-and-egg special was last night named the best of the record 4336 entries this year.

Lam, of Gold Star Patrick's Pies in Rotorua, won the supreme award in 2003 with a mince and cheese pie, and in 2004 and again last year with a gourmet meat pie.

Chief judge Dennis Kirkpatrick described Lam's feat as "testimony to an outstanding baker."

"To take out this coveted award four times is quite exceptional," he said.

"A completely different configuration of judges from other years and he does it again."

The fact that the number of the entries, which came from 386 bakeries, was the highest ever added weight to the achievement.

The entries were initially judged according to 11 categories, and Lam also won silver in gourmet fruit and bronze in gourmet meat.

Other family members also got among the accolades.

One brother, Lam Ho, won two golds; his other brother, Mark Lam, got a bronze; while sister-in-law Fiona Duong ended up with a gold and a bronze.

In all, Asian bakeries, which contributed 70 percent of the entries, won 80 percent of the awards.

- NZPA