29/11/2009
Masters of Wine Awarded.....
Chinese Translation : 明年六月，葡萄酒大师峰会驾临波尔多
A PLACE OF HONOUR IN BORDEAUX IN JUNE :
Symposium : Focus on the Masters of Wine, a top class guild of 250 graduates highly esteemed by the English speaking world.
Bordeaux, the world capital of wine : further proof of the fact will be provided this coming June. A high level symposium will take place on the banks of the Garonne River, from the 24th to the 27th June, during the 'Fête du Vin' wine festival, which is attracting more and more wine business professionals. The conference, organised by the Masters of Wine, will give professionals a chance to find out more about these graduates, who are much sought-after on the English-speaking wine buyers circuit(1).
"This symposium is held every four years and Bordeaux will be host in 2010, " explains Jacques Lurton, who owns wineries in Bordeaux and Australia, and who is partly responsible for the weighty organisation of this event which has already been held in Vienna and California. "Round-table conferences on various subjects will be part of the programme, which aims to attract interest from a maximum number of professionals wishing to learn more about the evolutions taking place in the wine world. Although the charge for participants is just under 1000 euros (and there are still seats available), three days of discussion with highly specialised professionals is worth considering. We are hoping for 300 participants," adds Mr.Lurton, who has vinified wines all over the world, but who has not, as yet, managed to obtain his Master of Wine diploma, despite three attempts in the past five years.
Professional gateway :
The Masters of Wine association, which is based in London and run by a permanent staff of four, issues this 'door-opening' diploma, born outside of the usual technical school and university circuits. Inscription requires certain preconditions : five years work experience in the wine business and the training course lasts two years. The written theory examinations deal with viticulture and vinification but also with the wine trade and wine 'philosophy' ; with questions like "What is your opinion on irrigation?". Blind tasting is an important part of the practical exam : on the menu are 12 samples to be tasted and 2/3 right answers are the minimum requirement. Participants are asked to explain their method of sample analysis.
"The diploma requires a great amount of personal study, time and money - between 6000 and 10,000 euros," explains Jacques Lurton. "But it represents a real professional gateway. In Great Britain, for example, most of the influential wine buyers, especially those in distribution channels, are Masters of Wine. The same goes for authorative journalists." There are currently 250 graduates from around the world, including a mere half a dozen French nationals. "Let's just say that it helps to have an 'Anglo-Saxon' frame of mind if you want to succeed. That's something the French don't have much of," says our would-be graduate. A Parisian candidate, who has now given up the challenge, adds, "I tried to obtain the diploma several times without really understanding how we were graded."
PHOTO : (CP) : Jacques Lurton has been working for several months on this symposium.
(1) see www.mastersofwine.org for the programme.
Author:César Compadre
Photo:DR SO
- Translated by : Maxine.Colas TripAdvisor
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11:32 Ecrit par Maxine Colas dans Maxine Wine News | Lien permanent | Commentaires (1) | Envoyer cette note | Tags : masterofwine, bordeaux, lurton, compadre, colas, maxine, master, wine, london, french
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We just had our big wine festival here in Martinborough, New Zealand. It’s called ‘Toast Martinborough.’ I worked at it and had a great time. Maybe I've got a future as a wine bouncer?!
Ecrit par : Moon over Martinborough | 30/11/2009
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