VERONA, Italy, Nov. 8, 2019 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- On
Thursday November 7th, 2019, in the
Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre, the Vinitaly
International Academy welcomed 14 newly-certified Italian Wine
Ambassadors and 1 Expert into its global community. The Ambassadors
and Expert operate in a variety of international markets including
China, Japan, Singapore, Hong
Kong, Australia,
Thailand, Hungary, Kazakhstan, the
United States, and Italy.
The majority are wine educators but also work in marketing and
sales, import/export, restaurants, and consultancy. Here is the
full list:
VIA Italian Wine Expert
- Irving So, Wine Educator, Japan
VIA Italian Wine Ambassadors
- Jue Li, Wine Educator,
China
- Heming Huang, Importer, China
- Asami Yoshikawa, Wine Educator,
Japan
- Artem Lebedev, Wine Educator,
Kazakistan
- Andrea Agnelli, Marketing &
Sales, Singapore
- Davy Leung, Wine Consultant, Hong
Kong, China
- Giovanni Aiello, Sommelier,
Australia
- Sariya Kampanathsanyakorn, Wine Educator, Thailand
- Anthony Grourke, Sommelier,
United States
- Jacopo Fanciulli, Wine
Consultant, Italy
- Elmar Hofer, Sommelier,
Hungary
- Yvonne Ou, Wine Educator, Hong
Kong,China
- Bizhen Chen, Wine Educator,
China
- Justin Chen, Wine Educator,
Hong Kong, China
The 2019 Hong Kong edition of the Ambassador certification
course marked the one-year anniversary since the launch of the
reformatted, tasting-intensive program that was inaugurated in
Hong Kong in November 2018. In Spring 2018, moreover, VIA
entered a new phase of expansion with the appointment of the new
Chief Scientist Prof. Attilio
Scienza, a new Institutional Advisory Board comprising 4
major national trade associations (Federvini, Federdoc, Unione
Italiana Vini, and Federazione Italiana Vignaioli Indipendenti), 2
new Faculty members (Sarah Heller MW and Henry Davar) and a network of local trade
associations such as wine consortiums acting as official
Supporters. With new players aboard, VIA worked on reformatting its
curriculum, as well as on enhancing and standardizing the tasting
component.
The Ambassador course now features theory lectures on all the
Italian wine regions, thematic theory sessions on hot topics in
Italian wine culture (e.g. Barolo or Italian sparkling wines),
guided tastings and additional tasting labs with additional wines
organized in collaboration with VIA Supporters. The reformatted
exam also tests a wider variety of skills and includes a written
paper (multiple-choice and open-ended questions as well as a short
essay), a practicum (blind tasting) and a group project
(storytelling video). VIA Faculty member Sarah Heller MW commented
on the progress made in one year since the new format was
implemented: "This year's edition of VIA in Hong Kong marks a year of the new version of
VIA and we couldn't be prouder of the progress that has been made
on both the course development, organizational, and institutional
end but also the knowledge level and dedication of our student
community. We were thrilled to be able to welcome a new Italian
Wine Expert, and overall the strong performance, particularly on
the tasting and short essay portions of the exam, is a testament to
the fact that the new VIA is going from strength to strength here
in Asia and worldwide."
Hong Kong candidates
appreciated the in-depth learning experience of the VIA Ambassador
course as well as its comprehensiveness, despite the obvious
challenges of the new training program and the vastness of the
subject. Irving So, wine educator based in Japan, on his proclamation as Italian Wine
Expert commented: "I am really happy I finally passed, it's been a
really exciting four days of deepening my Italian wine knowledge. I
want to thank Stevie and the team and Sarah and Henry. It's a great
course, getting deeper and deeper, very comprehensive. We don't
just look at grape varieties, we look at where they are grown, how
they are being grown, the differences they express, the terroir of
the region. It's a very deep course." VIA Italian Wine Ambassador
Justin Chen who works in
Hong Kong as a wine educator,
added: "It's been an amazing experience for me since it's the first
time that I take the course. I really think this is the best
Italian wine course in the market. I think If you like Italian
wines, this course does not only tell you about the wines and the
grapes, it also tells you about the history, viticulture, the soil,
and the food. It's a bit overwhelming, but really comprehensive. If
you like Italian wine, you should definitely consider taking the
course."
Highlights of the 2019 Hong Kong Ambassador course included
'Warm-up' sessions on iconic wines from the South of Italy such as Etna and Aglianico and a
thematic focus on Italian sparkling wines. VIA Faculty member
Henry Davar explained the rationale
behind these sessions in the Hong
Kong curriculum: "The VIA Ambassador certification course
continues to evolve, and Hong Kong
is once again the first city to see this progress. This year, we've
added two new 'Warm-up' sessions—deep dives into some of
Italy's great grapes and terroirs.
The original ones on Nebbiolo and Sangiovese didn't go away, they
just got folded into their respective regional sessions, in effect
making those sections that much richer. This week, we premiered the
Warm-ups on the wines of Mount Etna and on the various expressions
of Aglianico in Campania and
Basilicata. Based on how the
candidates performed on the exam, it seems they've embraced the new
materials. Look for VIA to continue to grow in this way."
The Tasting Labs in Hong Kong
were offered by the VIA Supporters such as Italian Signature Wines
Academy, Italia del Vino, Famiglie del Vino, the consortiums
Vini del Trentino, Sicilia DOC,
Franciacorta, Vini d'Abruzzo, Wi-Fi Wine from Irpinia, Primitivo di Manduria. Thanks to the
VIA Supporters, candidates now are able to taste and learn much
more about the Italian wines available in the market. In
particular, in the Guided Tastings and Tasting Labs more than 200
wines overall were tasted throughout the week in Hong Kong.
The VIA Hong Kong class of 2019 together with VIA Faculty and
VIA Founder Stevie Kim continued to
celebrate the end of the course by tasting Italian wines and
meeting Italian wine producers present at the Vinitaly Hong Kong
expo (part of the Hong Kong International Wine & Spirits Fair)
in full swing until Saturday November 9th,
2019. The VIA team is already forging ahead for its flagship
VIA Italian Wine Ambassador course in Verona, Italy, in 2020, and applications are currently
being received.
About: Vinitaly International Academy (VIA) aims to be the gold
standard of Italian wine education. It offers a complete
educational path with standardized courses that will teach
professionals and educators to master the diversity of Italian wine
in a rigorous, organized manner. VIA's main objective is to foster
a global network of highly qualified professionals such as Italian
Wine Ambassadors and Italian Wine Experts: in turn, they will
support and promote Italian wine throughout the world. VIA was
founded by Stevie Kim, Managing
Director of Vinitaly International. The new VIA ecosystem avails of
the guidance of Italian trade associations Federdoc, Federvini,
Vignaioli Indipendenti FIVI, and Unione Italiana Vini as members of
the Institutional Advisory Board. Italian vine genetics scholar,
Prof. Attilio Scienza, oversees
VIA's scientific and educational direction as the Chief Scientist.
VIA Faculty Sarah Heller MW and Henry
Davar teach the flagship Italian Wine Ambassador course. The
following trade associations in the Italian wine industry have also
joined as VIA Supporters: Italia del Vino; Italian Signature Wines
Academy; Le Famiglie del Vino, Wi-Fi Wine from Irpinia, Consorzio di Tutela Vini del
Trentino; Consorzio di Tutela Sicilia DOC; Franciacorta; Consorzio
di Tutela Vini d'Abruzzo, Consorzio Primitivo di Manduria. To date
the VIA community comprises 215 certified Italian Wine Ambassadors
and 15 Italian Wine Experts. Since its foundation in 2014, over 560
candidates from all over the world have taken VIA's courses.
SOURCE Vinitaly International