Benanti Winery, drinking one of my favorite white Pietra Marina 2013.
The wine industry needs knowledgeable people.The more knowledge you have,
the more powerful you become, in terms of increasing your chances of leaving
a mark on this planet that can inspire and change the lives of many.
After three years of working in the wine industry in London, I moved back to
Italy and found a big difference in what is considered the level of expertise
required to work in the wine world here.
I realized how much more I could have improved if I had been more aware of
the wine world that was right under my nose in London. I was too young, too
focused on myself, instead of focusing on others who could have helped me
grow much more. Don’t get me wrong, I am proud of myself, I worked in one of
best hotel in London, testing amazing wines, and today I work in one of the
best restaurants in Italy, I still taste wonderful wines on a daily basis. But I
changed the way I look at wine, I’ve evolved and grown wiser. Sometimes,
though, I wonder: Should I have done more?
We can always do more, but the key is not to regret what we’ve done. Instead,
we should focus on the next challenge, rather than complaining. After moving to Milan, I decided to enroll in the Diploma program because I needed to stay
connected to the academic side of the wine world. Wine is not only about
serving it’s about finding new pride in what we can do.
There are fewer professional sommeliers in Italy than there are in all of London,
and that’s what I miss most: the opportunity to share knowledge and improve
with less effort, because true enrichment comes from connecting with others in
your field.
Great professionals in Italy but lower possibility to connect for all of us.
The wine world in Italy needs to be enriched with more knowledge, and little by
little, each of us can contribute. Wine the Mind is my contribution.
Thank you for reading, and don’t forget to Wine your Mind!