The world of wine no longer only exists for those wealthy enough to house a cellar full of priceless bottles of one of nature's most treasured elixirs. Popular movies such as Sideways, Bottle Shock and the Somm series managed to catapult society into both loving to drink wine and the desire to learn more about it.
Wine itself represents life in a glass. We associate wine with friendship, romance and celebrations. For many of us, the more we know about wine, the more we appreciate it. For some, acquiring knowledge about the wine world translates into a passionate hobby, for others it becomes their life's work.
Learning about wine entails much more than the process of growing grapes and making and drinking wine. When you delve into viticulture, you automatically receive an education about history, culture, culinary science, geography, art and creativity, science and health.
People who work in the wine industry may find themselves in one of several vocations:
As the number of people interested in drinking wine continues to grow, so does the number of people wanting to learn about wine. Wishing to become an expert could lead to a career as a Sommelier, or for a few, the prestigious role of Master Sommelier.
Traditionally, the word Sommelier means 'wine steward.' The term, however, continues to gain prestige. Today, when we hear someone referred to as a Sommelier, we expect a certain level of expertise far beyond just being a wine waiter. Becoming a Sommelier takes years of education and experience; it represents knowing about all aspects of wine, how to serve it, its production and history, as well as the art of wine and food pairing. In brief, a Sommelier is a highly knowledgeable and qualified wine professional who typically works in a fine dining establishment.
Becoming a Sommelier opens up all kinds of vocational opportunities, from working at your neighborhood wine shop to owning and managing a winery. Sommelier responsibilities include:
Many of us marvel at the remarkable blind tasting abilities seen in wine documentary films. When a person spends five minutes with a glass of wine and rattles off the notes, the alcohol content, the grape(s), the region, and ultimately the wine producer and vintage year, it seems nothing short of magic.
Blind tasting represents one of the skills required to pass the Master Sommelier exam. However, most Sommeliers do not hold the Master Sommelier title, and they will tell you that neither their employers nor customers require them to perform this amazing feat on a regular basis.
Another misconception is that being a Sommeliers means being a wine snob. Though it takes years of education and experience to become one, the goal of the wine expert doesn't involve bravado or intimidation, instead it's more about getting inside the customer's head to make sure they experience the best wine possible to suit the moment. If a diner insists they don't like red wine, a Sommelier will suggest the best white wine or rosé to go with their steak. Ultimately, the role of the Sommelier comes down to helping the customer enjoy and understand wine.
We've all heard the stories of actors, professional athletes and other celebrities fulfilling a latent life dream and putting their name on a wine bottle or otherwise associating themselves with the world of wine. Those who spent years in other lucrative professions may also take down their attorney or CPA shingle and exchange it for some vines in Napa Valley.
But those of us with more meager means may find ourselves immersed in the wine culture as a hobby, a part-time retail job, or as a freelance writer covering events or submitting newsworthy articles to food and wine publications. Whether you're preparing for your first career or want to direct your energy and passion to a second career in becoming a Sommelier, these are the steps to consider:
If you told someone not familiar with the wine industry that passing the exam to become a Master Sommelier represents much more of a challenge than the Bar or CPA exam, they might not believe you. But, becoming a Master Sommelier requires thousands of hours of study and experience even to take the exam. To pass the exam, you have to pass all three parts: tasting, practical service and theory.
The Master Sommelier exam takes place only once a year, and the location can be just about anywhere on the globe and change from year to year. If you pass part of the exam and fail another, you don't need to retake the part you passed, but you need to wait an entire year before retaking the other portion.
The exam as we know it today started in 1977 with the Court of Master Sommeliers. The organization presently has close to 240 members of Master Sommeliers and typically adds only a few members every year. Roughly eight percent or seven out of 60 Master Sommelier candidates pass this rigorous exam.
The Master Sommelier exam's roots go back to 1363 when one of the top 12 prestigious London companies, The Worshipful Company of Vintners, organized a system to regulate and normalize the sale and importation of wine. Flash forward to 1953, and this same company created an exam for 21 people to make sure of their knowledge in the wine and spirits industry. This exam progressed to an official test for professionals in 1969 and eventually evolved into the Master of Sommelier Exam.
If you're considering a career in wine and want to know how to become a Sommelier or want to pursue the level of Master Sommelier, the steps below may serve as a guideline toward your success: