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Wine Terms

The Work of a Sommelier

by Patricia Fioriello on December 29, 2009

The Work of a Sommelier

While browsing through the pages of the wine making ebooks, you might have come across a term, that you could not figure out the meaning of and it is sommelier.

What is a sommelier?

The term sommelier refers to the knowledgeable wine professional who usually works in the restaurants and is specialized in all sorts of wine services including pairing the wines with the most suitable foods. The wine making ebooks are incomplete without the contribution and expert advice of the sommeliers, which are also referred to as the wine stewards.

In addition to advising and sometimes creating their own wine making ebooks, sommeliers also work in the purchase sections, store houses and in wine cellar rotation along with advising customers on the purchase of the best wine. Usually, sommeliers work in harmony with the culinary department of a restaurant and create the appropriate combination of the wines with the suitable dishes.

Some wine making ebooks also feature sommelier’s knife as the recognition of their excellence in the world of wine. Undoubtedly, sommeliers have to have a very sharp taste sense that may need them to taste and categorize hundreds of wines on a single day. You can get a detailed idea of the large range of wines from the wine making ebooks.  Nowadays, most often, sommeliers’ role extends to services related to beer, spirits, cocktails, soft drinks, tobacco items and even mineral water from being restricted only to wines.

Professional training and education

Very few wine making ebooks will give you the details regarding the qualification and certification of a sommelier, if you aspire to be one. The very first thing that you need to be an established sommelier is the love for wines. Although anyone with a passion for wines can opt for the job of a sommelier, a professional education including classes and an assessment is required for this. The basic training requires from $800 to $3,750 for a six months’ course. The examining body is The Court of Master Sommeliers that gives the Master Sommelier diploma.

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Patricia Fioriello

Patricia Fioriello has 66 posts at Really Red Wine

How to Read a Wine Label

August 20, 2009 by Patricia Fioriello

Suppose you are standing in a wine store and you wish to buy something different.  You do not know anything outside of the label.
What does the label have to do with the wine?
Recently I was asked this question by Karen Cole on NPR’s and then I realized that I had never come across this question [...]

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The Basics Behind a Glass of Red Wine

July 14, 2009 by Patricia Fioriello

Red wine is made by growing and processing red (or black) grapes. The end result varies greatly, depending not only upon the type of grape grown, but several other factors.
Basic terms used for describing red wine are the color, aroma, bouquet, and flavors of the wine.
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