In this article, ASI has a ‘Nat Chat’ with Pascaline Lepeltier MS (Meilleur Ouvrier de France en Sommellerie, Best French Sommelier 2018, 4th place ASI Contest Best Sommelier of the World 2023, co-owner, Chambers, New York City), Joseph DiGrigoli (Wine…
There is a moment in every emerging sommelier culture when imitation gives way to identity. For Taiwan, that moment is not approaching. It is already underway. Speaking with Howard Hao-Chun Hsia, President of the Taiwan Sommelier Association, one quickly understands…
In my glass today are wines that even just fifteen years ago I might have dismissed without trying, or certainly sipped with a hint of hesitation and mistrust. I came of age in a wine world defined by certainty. The…
Will sommeliers see Michelin's foray into winery rankings as clear sailing or muddying the waters of wine ratings?
India has long been described as a sleeping giant in the world of wine. That framing feels increasingly outdated. What is unfolding today is not a market waiting to be awakened, but one that is already on an upward trajectory,…
Originally recorded for A Sommelier’s Insight, the official podcast of the Association de la Sommellerie Internationale in collaboration with ASI Magazine, a recent conversation with Harry Symington and Maria Boumpa offered a timely reminder that the making of a great…
Since the launch of the ASI Diploma in 2012, the Association de la Sommellerie Internationale has steadily built one of the wine and hospitality world’s most inclusive and globally relevant systems of professional benchmarking. What began as a top-level qualification…
Benjamin Hasko and Doug Frost are 2 of 5 people ever to achieve both the titles of Master Sommelier and Master of Wine,
A conversation with Jenny Hemmer, Executive Director of GuildSomm Wine education is in the midst of a quiet but profound transformation. Once centred around a small number of traditional institutions and geographic hubs, learning today is increasingly global, digital, and…
When Sofia Salvador joined ViniPortugal nearly 14 years ago, the world of Portuguese wine was already rich with tradition and diversity. Yet despite this, there was no consistent, structured approach to wine education. Today, as Head Educator of the Wines…
The life, legacy, and enduring humanity of Gérard Basset Few figures in modern wine have combined technical mastery, competitive excellence, mentorship, and humility like Gérard Basset. For an entire generation of sommeliers, he has represented both the summit of achievement…
Rediscovering Persian wine culture with Samira Kakh Samira Kakh was born and raised in Iran, a country where the culture of wine is ancient, complex, and largely unspoken in modern life. Today, she is building a future in wine in…
