The Court of Master Sommeliers Australia under the auspices of The Court of Master Sommeliers Europe has announced the results of its introductory, certified and advanced examinations held in Sydney this June, with 41 students achieving the title of introductory sommelier, 28 students achieving the title of certified sommelier and 11 students achieving the title of advanced sommelier.
Since its first Australian course in 2008, 982 sommeliers have participated in the examinations resulting in 620 introductory sommelier graduates, 273 certified sommelier graduates, 11 advanced sommeliers and three who have attained the title of Master Sommelier: Franck Moreau MS (Merivale), Sebastian Crowther MS (Rockpool Dining Group) and Benjamin Hasko MS (Bootleggers). Worldwide there are currently just 236 Sommeliers who have gained the title of Master Sommelier.
“This is the most successful year yet for The Court of Master Sommeliers in Australia, with record enrolment numbers and extensive waitlists for introductory and certified levels. Increasingly, sommeliers and beverage professionals are seeing the benefits of CMS accreditation and employers are viewing CMS certification as an essential qualification when seeking to recruit staff,” said Moreau.
The 2017 Australian Riedel Certified Sommelier Dux was awarded to Andres Perez (Trippas White Group), while the 2017 Australian Riedel Advanced Sommelier Dux was awarded to Christian Baeppler (Jonah’s).
“This is the tenth year that The Court of Master Sommeliers Europe have offered its professional accreditation programme in Australia. We’re thrilled to have seen students attending The CMS programme this year from New South Wales, Victoria, Queensland, Western Australia and South Australia; as well as Singapore and Malaysia,” said Crowther.
The Court of Master Sommeliers was established in 1977 to promote excellence in hotel and restaurant beverage services. The intensive education and examination programme guides aspiring masters through four increasingly rigorous levels of coursework and examination, culminating in the Master Sommelier Diploma Examination.
“With 3 Master Sommeliers residing in Australia, The CMS programme is a wonderful opportunity to learn from some of Australia’s best sommeliers and beverage professionals. The calibre and preparedness of students attending the courses continues to improve each year. This is great for both the individual in terms of career progression and Australia’s hospitality and tourism industries as a whole,” said Hasko.
Master sommelier and CEO of The Court, Brian Julyan added: “Over the past ten years The Court of Master Sommeliers Europe has seen an explosion of interest in their Australian Sommelier programmes. Originally running just the introductory sommelier certificate in Australia, we have now progressed to running introductory, certified and advanced; with 10 candidates planning to sit the Master Sommelier Diploma in London this year.”