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IMW names eight new Masters of Wine
The Institute of Masters of Wine has named eight new Masters of Wine, including the first member to come from Turkey.
The new inductees bring the total number of Masters of Wine to 312, in 24 countries. Two of the eight new members work in the US and the other six work in the UK.
The new members are Dilek Caner MW and Amy Christine MW, from the US plus James Davis MW, Barry Dick MW, Matthew Hemming MW, Anne McHale MW, Jon Pepper MW and Demetri Walters MW, all from the UK.
Penny Richards, executive director of the Institute, said: “We are delighted for the new Masters of Wine, and very proud of their achievement. There was a lot of joy and relief – and a few tears – when I called to give them the good news early this morning.
“Ask any Master of Wine and they will tell you that the moment they discovered they had passed is one of life’s highlights. I felt privileged to share that moment with them after all their hard work.”
Caner is a full-time wine educator in Dallas, who is originally from Istanbul and becomes the first Turkish Master of Wine. Her dissertation was titled “Washington State Syrah: US consumer and trade perspectives”.
Christine, who wrote her dissertation on, “The decline of Varietally Labelled US Syrah”, works for a boutique Burgundy and Bordeaux importer in Berkeley and owns and operates artisanal winery Black Sheep Finds.
A senior buyer for brewer Greene King, Davis previously worked as a wine buyer for Costco and Tesco and his dissertation was, “Understanding consumer attitudes to large wine brands as a purchasing cue in the UK multiple on trade: a comparison of value and premium multiple outlets”.
Hemming is the fine wine manager with Averys Wine Merchants in Bristol and his dissertation was entitled, “A survey of UK independent wine merchants to understand current business strategies and trends in the sector”.
A former winner of the UK Circle of Wine Writers’, Young Wine Writer of the Year, McHale is a wine educator with Berry Bros and Rudd and her dissertation was on, “Beaujolais in UK market: UK wine trade attitudes and future prospects”.
Pepper is the managing director of UK importer Buckingham Schenk, where he has worked on developing Argentine brand Viñalba. He used this Argentina experience to write his dissertation, which was titled, “Argentine wine in the UK multiple off trade.”
And finally sales manager for private wine events at Berry Bros & Rudd, Walters wrote his dissertation on the export prospects for Cypriot wine, it was entitled, “Can Cyprus build an export market in the UK with premium red wine, and how important are native grapes to achieving this aim?”
These eight new members plus the three that were named earlier in the year brings the total for 2013 to 11 new Masters of Wine.
It seems to me that the subject matter of these dissertations, can hardly be said to be adding to the body of wine knowledge. They seem largely to be about attitudes: interesting perhaps to certain small groups of people, but not of wide interest or relevance. I remember one a few years ago about ‘The attitude of Californian Sommeliers to the Riesling Grape’ or something very similar. Is it something we really need to know? Is it because all these MWs will be following careers in marketing, or so that they can progress in their current positions? One can understand the interest they might have in a topic because of their job. Or is it because the Institute has a bias towards opinion and behaviour? Surely, there must be areas of factual research remaining that would benefit a wider audience. It seems to me that the Institute should reflect on this, and broaden its horizons. Or perhaps the MW should become Master of Wine Marketing. Nonetheless, I offer my congratulations and utmost respect to those who have succeeded in this arduous examination process.