What a year for the Institute of Masters of Wine
The Institute of Masters of Wine is unusual this year in celebrating a bumper crop - in this case fifteen new MWs. Of these, three become the first MWs in Asia; one is the first Brazilian to pass; and another the first Spaniard. One is only the second Swede to pass, and we finally have another French MW.
The Institute of Masters of Wine is unusual this year in celebrating a bumper crop - in this case fifteen new MWs. Of these, three become the first MWs in Asia; one is the first Brazilian to pass; and another the first Spaniard. One is only the second Swede to pass, and we finally have another French MW.
The results illustrate how the institute has extended its reach internationally. The trend looks set to continue, with over two-thirds of MW students now from outside the UK.
A lot has changed since I passed the examination in 1990, and since Michael Hill- Smith in Australia became the first non-British MW in 1988 (Patrick Millet preceded him but he is only half French).
The exam is just as challenging - perhaps more so given the more complex wine industry we now work in - and the Institute continues to depend on the voluntary contribution of a large number of MWs. Over a third of the current membership helps with the student programme or examination. So new members are always welcome.
Later this week I will hand over to Dr Josef (Pepi) Schüller, who becomes the first non-British chairman - a milestone in the Institute's 55- year history. His long experience running Austria's leading wine school, with operations in Germany and Switzerland, makes him ideally placed to continue to develop the Institute's role in wine education internationally.
Joanna M Locke MW is chairwoman of the Institute of Masters of Wine
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