I’m often asked ‘what is this with me and wine’ ?
Well, I’m currently enrolled in wine studies at WSET for Level 4 Diploma (graduation due 2020, with a final exam in 2019) at the WSET School in London. I’ve passed so far Unit 1 (Business of Wine), Unit 2 (Viticulture & Vinification), Unit 4 (Fortified wines), Unit 5 (Sparkling wines), Unit 6 (Spirits). All that is left is Unit 3 (Still wines of the world), the hardest bit ! I’ve used extra help in Theory from online courses from Napa Valley Wine Academy (Italian courses - graduated with Honours), and Rachel von Sturmer DipWSET prep courses (Coralie Strong DipWSET is also putting together a nice site! TippleTips was also recommended but I had no time to review it). I also recommended the preparation notes from Marion Barral. For Tasting, I regularly practiced with a group under Nicolas Fouilleroux DipWSET in Paris, and did 2 days in London with Jim Gore DipWSET ’s Global Wine Academy. I highly recommend all these. I have yet to take the Wine Scholar Guild classes for Spain, France and Italy for extra-polish. A Coravin has been a great help for tasting many bottles regularly for this course.
Graduated with Distinction from WSET Level 3 (2016), and with Distinction from WSET Level 2 (2016). For these 2 levels, I studied in Paris at Académie du Vin.
I’m speaking at wine conferences now : MUST (3rd Edition) in Cascais, Portugal in June 2019 on Wine & technology (press release); and at Wine2wine in Verona, Italy on Blockchain, AI and Wine in November 2019 (press release). I’m also a member of wine think tank (FM4FW) which assembled in Champagne in 2018 and again in Bordeaux in 2019. You can find me now and then at a wine club in London, 67 Pall Mall where I’m a foreign member or at the Confrérie des Chevaliers du Clos-Vougeot in Burgundy where I’m a Chevalier. I loved attending the last 9th International MW Symposium in Logroño, Spain.
Back in 2015, I interviewed Greg Lambrecht, founder of Coravin on stage at a conference in New York City.
I find so many parallels with the wine world and my original world of technology ! Passion, enthusiasm, global reach, innovation, etc. in addition to a breeze of fresh air from all the history, geography, chemistry, physics, marketing, salesmanship involved !
Below are a few of my past winery visits (haven’t had time to publish all pictures unfortunately. These visits started over 20 years ago.
Bordeaux Primeurs - Pessac-Léognan / St-Julien / Margaux, France - Apr'18
Big Basin Vineyards - Santa Cruz Mountains, California, USA - Feb'18
Ridge Vineyards - Santa Cruz Mountains, California, USA - Feb'18
Mestres - Sant Sadurni d'Anoia, Catalunya, Spain - Jan'18
Recaredo - Sant Sadurni d'Anoia, Catalunya, Spain - Jan'18
Gramona - Sant Sadurni d'Anoia, Catalunya, Spain - Jan'18
