Certification???

Well hello! I know it has been forever but there has been a subject nagging me somewhat recently that I feel merits a post. The subject is wine knowledge certification. Let me start at the beginning and how I got into wine. Ever since I can remember I have loved food and cooking. My grandmother gave me a picture showing me stirring a pot at the tender age of 4. While other kids were watching cartoons, I was watching cooking shows on PBS. I was convinced (as was pretty much everyone who knew me) that I would become a chef. But something happened along the way. My parents developed a deeper interest in wine and started taking my brothers and I along on wine tasting trips to Napa. I was enthralled by the landscape. I couldn't imagine a setting more beautiful or magical. The vines wound their way around my heart and I was convinced that I had to learn more. I was only 16 so this would have to wait a few years. I mulled over several options; mostly winemaking. But around the time I turned 23 not much had changed. I hadn't pursued either of my great loves and was simply grinding it out at various jobs; pretty much choosing the most lucrative position regardless of whether or not I liked it or whether it fit within my master plan. I remember one night after partying with one of my best friends he advised me to stop wasting my time and go for it. He said, "you should be a sommelier." Now its not like I grew up surrounded by service professionals, my mother is an architect and my step-father is an engineer. The moment the suggestion came out of his mouth it was like gospel to me. I became instantly convinced that he was right and that I indeed needed to become a sommelier. But how? I had no restaurant experience but I just had this feeling that I would be good at it. Surprisingly no one wants to hire someone who has a hunch they will be good at something. Frustration, again. One of my dear friends, who is sadly no longer with us, came to the rescue. He mentioned knowing a sommelier at a prominent restaurant in San Francisco and that he was eager to set up a meeting. Not only did we meet but I had the pleasure of shadowing him one night during dinner service. He gave me two bits of advice: get a restaurant job and start out with the Introductory Course through the Court of Master Sommeliers. The next day I went and bought The Sotheby's Wine Encyclopedia and signed up for the next Introductory course offered in San Francisco. It was just my luck that I caught a cold before the 2-day course but I would not be deterred. I was hooked to every word as the Master Sommelier's spoke and imparted their wisdom upon us eager newbies. At that moment I thought I want to go the whole way...all the way to Master level. That would mean, first and foremost, passing the Intro level then Certified, Advanced, and being invited for Master. Well I did pass the Intro level and I felt so tied to my conviction. I studied, read, drank with purpose. I even quit my job, pursuing a position in the hospitality industry. The following year I signed up for the Certified exam in San Francisco. Now what I am about to say is something that until recently I couldn't even talk about without feeling sick to my stomach: I failed. The saddest part is that even before the announcement I knew it. The service portion killed me. I never worked truly as a server so when the questions about cocktails started flying I choked. I realized how out of my depth I was. I felt so crushed; after all this was supposed to be my birthday gift to myself since the exam cost $325. All I can remember is my feeling on the way home. I cried and cried and cursed myself for being so stupid. I vowed not to let it beat me and that I would retake as soon as possible.

Fast forward 2 years and I am still not a Certified Sommelier. Funny thing is that now I don't know if I even want to be. Don't get me wrong I still love wine. I think about it all the time. In fact, I study now more than ever. But something inside me has changed or maybe I just remembered what brought me to wine in the first place: the love of discovery. Each bottle opened is like a mini voyage. The enjoyment of a bottle of wine with my husband or friends always warms my heart. I think about these places I may have never been to and what it must be like there. I get to time travel as well, regretfully not much due to my limited budget. Wine is much more than a beverage and I am thankful for the experiences I get to have with it.

This all brings me back to my title question: why certification? Do I need to prove to the world that I can memorize all the grand crus in Burgundy? I can be a competitive person and the fact that I failed this test seemed unfathomable to me at first. Now when I think about it I realize how much my experience with wine is not an academic one and that's ok. Many people advocate continuing down the path of higher certifications to gain more clout in the workplace and make more money. A lot of people just love the build-up for a test and there is nothing wrong with that. My biggest takeaway from this argument is that there are many paths and mine is not one that involves pins or certificates. I study and drink because I like it and I don't need to be able to identify wines blind when there is so much more to be gained from enjoying them within their context.