Wine Advisor

Wine Advisor of Consumption/Tasting Rooms/Retail

Take your wine career to the next level! Optimizing Retail and Tasting Rooms

 

Course information

The ideal first step for motivated and career focused wine retail professionals. The Wine Advisor Certificate introduces wine knowledge and improved customer service through lectures and practical exercises. The course will improve confidence, knowledge and presentation skills in the workplace which will lead to increased customer satisfaction and potentially higher sales revenues. The course includes understanding and appreciating wine in a professional capacity with an exam at the end of the day to validate student learning.

 

Course Pre-requisites

Prior wine knowledge is not required at this level as it is included in the course, but a basic knowledge may enhance student’s understanding. Applicants should ideally have at least one year’s experience in a customer facing role in either wine retail, tasting rooms, wine events or similar, to benefit fully from the course. All our courses are delivered in English, every student should have a good written and verbal command of the language.

 

Syllabus

This course begins with an alcohol awareness module, then brief outline of the global history of wine, growing grapes and a basic understanding of how wine is made. There is a focus on the South African climate, main wine styles and key grape varieties to give confidence when speaking with customers about local wines. Students then explore how to deliver high levels of customer service, which includes role play scenarios in an appropriate setting to ensure proper understanding. Students will then learn about presentation and sales skills to accepted standards before being guided through an introduction to wine tasting, ensuring appropriate behavior in the workplace.

 

Outcome

At the end of the training course, a written exam will validate the newly acquired knowledge of the students. Students who successfully pass the exam will receive a certificate and their Wine Advisor label pin to proudly display their achievement in the workplace. The Wine Advisor Certificate is the first step to becoming a valued wine professional and can lead to further qualifications or new career paths in the wine industry.

 

Price

R2690 (R2340 exl VAT) for the full day at our Cape Town, Harare or Johannesburg campuses and includes the final exam. Courses begin at 09.00am promptly and run until approximately 17.00pm.

Session One

Introduction to the course and facilitator

Alcohol awareness

What is a wine advisor?

Global wine industry

History of wine

Geography

Global trade expansion

History of wine in South Africa

Session Two

Why do we use grapes?

Fermentation equation

What is a climate?

Climatic influences

Climatic influences in South Africa

Climatic influence on grapes

In the vineyard

Wine making

White wine making

Red and Rosé wine making

Sparkling wine making

Session Three

Wine of origin scheme

Key wine regions of South Africa

Key grape varieties and their profiles

Where grapes grow

Fortified wine

Session Four

Customer service

Appearance

First impressions

Selling skills

What is selling?

Features and benefits

Understanding needs

Selling solutions

Session Five

Wine with food

Food and wine pairing

Selling and upselling role plays

Establishing need

Upselling

What are they eating

Session Six

Professional wine service

Opening wine

Wine closures

Wine tasting

Why do we taste wine?

Spitting is professional

Tutored wine tasting

Session Seven

                Closing recap

Multiple choice exam