By Bryle B. Suralta
Nobody becomes a wine connoisseur overnight. It take years (and sometimes a few levels of course accreditation) to master the art of drinking wines and spirits the right way. Most people don’t even know where and how to start. Fortunately, one of the most respected wine and spirits qualification institutions in the world, Wine & Spirit Education Trust (WSET), launched the first-ever global “Wine Eduction Week” in the Philippines to show you the way.
Held from Sept. 9 to 15, as part of WSET’s 50th anniversary campaign, Wine Education Week was exclusively brought to the Philippines by Wine Story Academy.
“Wine Education Week is an inspiring initiative that promotes WSET’s mission to inspire and educate wine consumers as well as trade professionals,” said WSET CEO Ian Harris. “It is reaching out worldwide through our network of course providers to engage with consumers across every continent, from New Zealand to Thailand to Mexico. I can’t think of a better way to celebrate WSET’s 50th anniversary and to demonstrate the progress we have made with wine education over the last 50 years.”
Wine Education Week was created to engage with the growing population of wine consumers worldwide. To date, WSET has worked with various organizations and partners in 45 countries, hosting more than 450 educational events around the world to encourage consumers to learn more about wine and to learn how to “drink better.”
Wine Story Academy, Manila’s first “Approved Programme Provider” of WSET qualifications, meanwhile, held a series of wine events at Shangri-La Plaza Mall in Mandaluyong City to celebrate with WSET.
With introductory sessions, ranging from “Finding the Perfect Match” to “World Wine Monopoly” to “Mastering Maturation,” the regionally themed classes and events were also designed to “increase wine literacy in an emerging Filipino wine market.”
Wine Story Academy even invited WSET-certified educator Jason Willis to lead the “Tour de France,” a walk-around tasting of the famous French wine regions of Bordeaux, Champagne, Burgundy, Alsace and the Rhone Valley at the Wine Story Academy branch at Shangri-La Plaza last Sept. 13.
Jason is the Business Development Advisor (Asia) at the WSET Asia-Pacific office based in Hong Kong. Originally from Canada, he has lived in the Asia-Pacific region for over 30 years, with most of those years spent in Hong Kong, and is currently studying a master’s degree in International Wine Management.
In the Philippines, Jason thinks the Filipino wine market is still in its developmental phase as an industry, and needs to be accessible to more demographics. “Early days,” he says. “There are only several sommeliers. There are people who have very strong wine knowledge. The high-end of the market seems to be established. Ideally, from an industry perspective, there should be growth from the low to middle range of the wines.”
Import taxes are a big hurdle, as well. “This is an issue that faces many countries in the region as a whole–it’s very expensive to bring wine into this country. When you buy wine, you’re paying a lot more than what its value should be,” adds Jason.
Wine production in the Philippines is also fairly limited and challenging, considering the weather and the kind of soil tropical most countries have. Grapes are a real challenge for growers. Thus, the limited crop. Yes, a homegrown industry would certainly help, but, to Jason’s point, a great deal of the success depends not only on market penetration, but on actual volume of production.
Aside from the “Tour de France,” wine-related career discussions were facilitated by a panel of accomplished professionals from various fields such as culinary, sommelierie, media, education and retail. The event also hosted interactive wine games and activities.
Yes, Wine Education Week might be over. But that doesn’t mean the learning has to stop. You can still take classes with WSET (it has branches all over the world, after all). But more important, according to Jason, it all boils down to understanding what you want to get out of your glass.
“Are they drinking to get the buzz or are they drinking for enjoyment?” Jason asks. Only people who are serious about their wines can answer that.
For additional information on wine classes, news and stories, visit the Wine Story Academy website at www.winestory.com.ph or WSET at www.wsetglobal.com.
