We have all been barraged with article after article about wine consumption in China, their unfathomable potential, and China being the apparent savior of the global wine industry’s glut. Don’t get me wrong, I do buy into the future of BRIC (Brazil, Russia, India, China) being the most substantial part of global economic growth, of which wine is a small but significant piece. But for those that think it’s really further on than it is… well, you need to be patient. Doing business in China is challenging (the running joke in the wine biz is that any exporting company who tells you they are making money in wine in mainland China is lying) and rumors are indeed rampant that the amount of Château Lafite Rothschild, the leading prestige wine and preferred 1^st growth of China, consumed annually in Shanghai and Beijing supersedes production! Nevertheless, and in spite of problems and hiccups, China and specifically Shanghai remain both alluring and ample in opportunity for wine. Continue reading »

Let me start off by saying that I think it is very admirable. I read with great interest about this new food and wine pairing engine developed by the wine retailer Snooth.com for Epicurious, a leading recipe website. You can read about it at SF Gate’s SIP: Software Sommelier. Anything that ultimately helps to demystify wine and food pairing for people is good and, as you know, I have been writing, preaching, and speaking about it for many years. Continue reading »

It has indeed been a busy week in New Zealand with our Master Sommelier programs in both Wellington, the country’s capital, and Auckland, its largest city. The programs were rewarding and energetic and bode well for this nation’s evolution of the ‘métier’ of sommelerie. Tonight we are having dinner with NZ’s first and currently only Master Sommelier, Cameron Douglas, among others of the US team to review the courses, plan for the future and celebrate a week well done. Brian Julyan, the Court’s global CEO based out of the UK, and members of the ‘Team Australia’ contingent, coming off the successful courses in Melbourne and Sydney will join us and debrief the ‘Team NZ” on the results of those sessions. Should prove to be a great evening of shared success and camaraderie with great food and, of course, excellent NZ wines. Continue reading »

I spent some time in Singapore this past month during my ten-day trip to Asia. One of the most important multicultural spots in the world, it was wonderful to be back. The interest in wine in Southeast Asia is explosive and indeed the core reason for this visit was to hold the second annual master sommelier introductory course (as well as a certified sommelier exam for about three dozen candidates who took the level one course last year).

As a board member of the Court of Master Sommeliers driving the international expansion outside of USA and Europe, I have been fortunate enough to teach students from all over as the Court of Master Sommeliers ventures into the Pacific Rim. In addition to Singapore, we are now in our third year in New Zealand, launching Melbourne and Sydney in Australia and will be kicking off Hong Kong in 2009. All very exciting as the world of wine becomes more passionate and more global. Continue reading »

Earlier this month, I got back from a ten-day visit to Asia. I started in Seoul, South Korea, where I was the American judge in the 2008 Korea Wine Challenge. It was a fascinating experience as Korea’s Wine Review magazine hosts its 4th annual international wine competition.

As Jeong Eun Choi, my friend and editor of the wine review puts it, “who would have thought when we began this tasting event a few years ago that it would so quickly become as important to the Korean market as it has. ” And she’s right. I was there just for the finals and there were well in excess of 900 wines from 13 different countries (from the typical France, Italy, USA and Australia to the more obscure Lebanon, Japan, Korea and Uruguay). It was a very formidable showing.
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