I was very lucky to be able to attend the student seminar in January last year, just before the world shut down and such things as travel became impossible. It is a week of intensive study for MW students, held at several locations worldwide. I went to the European seminar, which is in Rust, Austria.

At the departure lounge in Heathrow (anybody remember airports?) I had my eyes peeled for anyone who looked like they were headed to the same seminar. Essentially, my red-trouser alert level was set to high. But while nobody in the lounge quite fitted into the full wine-trade-stereotype mould, I did see a group of nervously chatting people – and then the ultimate clue – one of them was holding a copy of The Concise Guide to Wine and Blind Tasting.

By the time we had made our way to the hotel, I was happily ensconced in a group of women. This was a novelty for me, as I am very much used to being in a minority in the wine business. We were a varied group working in many different areas of the trade (in order to study the MW course you must work in the wine industry) – education, production, distribution, retail and marketing to name but a few. As we sat down together for a glass of wine, I felt a happy glow. I was excited for week to come, but more than that, I felt like I really belonged – like I had found my tribe!

The week that followed included a vast amount of learning. It was fantastic. We learned how to taste like an MW. How to discern variety, origin, production techniques and more from a single 50ml of wine. There were fascinating lectures on such topics as ‘The Evolution of Oak Usage in Red Winemaking’, ‘Systembologet – The Swedish Monopoly’, and ‘The Wonder of Sherry.’ A real pinch-yourself-perfect moment came when Christian Seely, Managing Director of AXA Millesime (a real wine trade celebrity and total gentleman) led us through a vertical tasting of eight vintages of Bordeaux 2eme Cru Classé Château Pichon Baron.

The Masters of Wine who led us through the seminar were some of the most impressive people I have ever met. Incredibly knowledgeable, but with the confidence to wear it lightly. You are repeatedly told throughout the programme that the way to pass the exams is to demonstrate mastery of the subject. This is something that I hadn’t fully understood until I spent a week with ten or so MWs. They made it seem perfectly easy and absolutely impossible all at once!

We worked HARD during seminar week. We also had a lot of fun. I don’t think the phrase burning the candle at both ends has ever been more appropriate. More on that in the next instalment.