THE STUDY OF WINE

The serious study of wine, undertaken by those in the wine industry or those wishing to become what is known as a Sommelier, is for many a lifelong commitment. Able to be grown in dozens of countries around the world, grapes and the wines made from them have shaped the history and cultures of countless societies. As such, there is so much to learn that many who have studied it for their entire adult lives are still learning more every day. Each variety or species of grape has different soils and climates in which it can grow. Each of the thousands of strains of yeast produce differing outcomes for the wines they ferment. And each country and region has different laws regarding what can or cannot be in the bottle or what had to be done to the wine before it earned a certain title.

Those who form a career out of the study and service of wine are called Sommeliers. The title is actually prestigious enough to be accompanied by its own certification and examination society: The Court of Master Sommeliers (https://www.mastersommeliers.org/). The Court of Master Sommeliers (CMS) has four levels of examination, each divided into three subsections of exams. First, there is the written or oral theory exam. Second, the written or verbal timed tasting exam. Third, the service exam. In each of these different exams, there is a possible place for didactic pedagogy, but none more so than the theory exam.

THEORY

The goal of the CMS is to be able to ascertain the candidate's capability to be able to be "dropped" into any service setting around the world and be capable of working "on the floor" selling wine to tables in a restaurant. Consequently, if you are incapable of looking at a bottle of Gevrey-Chambertin and knowing instantly that it is a bottle of Pinot Noir, then perhaps you should not be in that setting. As such, the goal of the theory portion of the CMS exams is to test your memory for different facts of wine. Below is an example video on a primer for Sherry found on the online learning community of GuildSomm (www.guildsomm.com):

The CMS has four levels of exams, each more difficult than the last. In level 1, this may entail you knowing that all true Sherry is made in the Jerez region of Spain. In level 2, they may want you to know that the vast majority of Sherry is made from the Palomino grape. In level 3, they may want you to be able to recite the minimum and maximum alcohol of Sherry as dictated by Spanish law. In level 4, they will want to know the average age, alcohol content, and soil type for the Amontillado Sherry produced by Bodega Valdespino. All of this is meant so that if you are working in a restaurant which serves Sherry and a table asks you questions about the different ones which you carry, you can answer them immediately and confidently. 

In many instances, didactic pedagogy is utilized best when the subject being taught requires a great deal of rote memorization. An authoritative figure stands at the head of the class and teaches to you about specific facts and figures. In essence, this is exactly what is needed for the study of wine theory. Here are two more examples of facts that need memorization from the forums on GuildSomm:

Region Specific Laws and Requirements for Sherry

All of this information is for one style of wine in one region of one country. Yet, any or all of it may be tested during a CMS exam. In addition, knowing more about the theory behind wines also aids in understanding how and why certain wines taste a distinct way.

TASTING

​The crossroads for theory and practical learning meets in the tasting exam for the CMS. Being able to taste well and with precision is a learned skill, encompassing everything from learning to train your palate to detect tannins to learning to identify specific tastes and aromas. An example from my own experience came in the form of learning the difference between the aromas of peach and lychee. Both of which were very similar to me but indicated different things in the wine. The tasting exams for the CMS are blind tastings. These require you to taste through a flight of wines without knowing what they are and identify them based on the aromas, mouthfeel, color, and taste down to the vintage and the region from which they hail. Not only are you required to be able to accurately taste the wines, but you must know what those tastes mean in terms of grape variety, climate, region, and winemaking style. A wine with a deep purple color, aromas of blackberries, a juicy fruity taste, and vanilla all indicate something about the wine. If you know your varietal characteristics, you know that that wine cannot be Pinot Noir. You can also note the vanilla and reason that the wine spent some time in oak. The juicy characteristic points to a New World style and a warm or hot climate. Blackberry may indicate that it is something like Malbec, Cabernet Sauvignon, or Merlot. Below is a video from GuildSomm where a Master Sommelier (MS) Geoff Kruth asks deductive questions of some of his pupils to ascertain the identity of a wine from their clues:

The act of tasting and training your palate does require a more hands on and experiential approach to learning. However, the theory which drives the final identification of the wine can fall into the realm of appropriate uses for didactic teaching methods.

SERVICE

​Finally, we come to the third part of the CMS exams, service. In this case, the MS which is conducting your exam sits at a table and you have to run through a mock wine service scenario. In this section of the exam, though you have to answer questions from the MS during the service, the majority of the learning required for the exam is obtained through experiential learning and practice. In my Sommelier exam, I was praised by the MS conducting it because he could tell that I was a server and had done the actions of service regularly. Muscle memory plays a big part of smooth service and liberates your mind to think about the questions the MS is posing to you. Constantly practicing proper service is essential to passing this portion of the exam. There are some aspects of service which need to be memorized, but these also become integrated into muscle memory after a time. As an example, in the video below, the presenter speaks of the need during sparkling wine service to keep your thumb over the cork at all times. This is a safety measure which is required to not only pass an exam, but to make sure the guests in your restaurant are safe. It does require you to learn the rules of safe sparkling wine service, but this becomes something you do automatically if you practice enough.

PEDAGOGICAL PRACTICES

In the end, the study of wine, whether for exams or for pleasure, takes a mixture of didactic and experiential pedagogical approaches. Even in the case of online learning, the focus for wine theory is in simply the presentation of information by an authority on the subject. However, when wine tasting and service are included in the learning setting, a different method of learning is required. Local tasting groups, virtual tasting sessions, and getting involved in the industry are all good ways of gaining the experience and practice necessary to obtain the skills needed for wine service proficiency.

REFERENCES

​Court of Master Sommeliers: Americas (2020) https://www.mastersommeliers.org/

The Guild of Sommeliers (2020) https://www.guildsomm.com/