A wine consultant sommelier is a person who uses their expertise in hospitality and the subject of wine to improve the quality of consumer experiences in several different ways. Many wine professionals seek clarity on what exactly this role comprises so that they can consider it as a viable career option.
According to the India Wine Insider report, the wine industry has been growing at the rate of 14 percent for the past five years, making it the fastest growing alcohol beverage in our country. With the expansion of the wine market in India, the scope of opportunities for hospitality and retail professionals in this sector is increasing rapidly as well. Most hotels and restaurants in India serve wine today and they want to employ staff with a certain level of wine knowledge. At luxury hotels and fine dining restaurants, there is a surging demand for highly trained wine professionals whose role goes beyond providing table-side service and that’s exactly where a wine consultant sommelier comes in.
What Does A Wine Consultant Sommelier Do?
At restaurants and bars, you’ll be responsible for curating the bar program as a wine consultant sommelier. You will work alongside chefs to ensure exceptional food and wine pairings and supervise the floor staff and wait staff on storage and service of wine to guests. Due to your wine knowledge and service experience, your employer may also expect you to educate the staff on proper wine service etiquette.
Apart from the service aspect, you will also look after the management of the establishment’s wine cellar and its restocking, assessing it on a regular basis to decide which wines are ready to be served and which ones have ageing potential. You will also have to ensure that a wine doesn’t go past its prime while lying in storage.
This role also demands you to have great wine communication skills so that you can discuss different styles of wines with the guests, understand their requirements, taste and preferences and make recommendations accordingly.
You can also work as a wine consultant sommelier for wine collectors, offering them consultancy services on maintaining and updating their cellar on a regular basis. The client may also expect you to strategise and execute wine purchases on their behalf.
How To Become A Wine Consultant Sommelier?
Your journey to becoming a wine consultant sommelier should start with pursuing wine education. Based on your current level of knowledge, you should enrol for a WSET Level 1 or WSET Level 2 Award in Wine. You can follow it up with an advanced level WSET Level 3 Award in Wine or you can also earn industry experience to have wine knowledge that is at par with the said qualification. For those who want to study further, you can pursue The Court of Master Sommeliers’ Introductory Sommelier Certificate and then proceed to take the institute’s Certified Sommelier exam.
Indian wine consultants will also benefit from Sonal Holland Wine Academy’s Wine Service Professional course, a specialised certification for wine industry professionals and aspiring sommeliers that helps them develop vocational competencies to sell and serve wine with confidence. However, expertise in theoretical knowledge is not enough and we would highly recommend gaining work experience to hone your application and aptitude skills.
Start your journey to become a wine consultant sommelier by gaining your WSET accreditations with Sonal Holland Wine Academy. You can learn from your home with our online classes or you can come down to our state-of-the-art academy in Mumbai. Either way, you’ll get invaluable guidance from our highly trained and experienced educators who will also answer any career related-queries that you may have.
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