Clara Davidson, from Sydney restaurant ‘Bistrode’ has been awarded the Dux in the second year of the Sommeliers Australia Education Scholarship.

The intensive one-week course gave a select group of just 12 Sommeliers from some of Australia’s top venues an incredible opportunity to further develop their skills, with a view to ‘raising the bar’ and streamlining the accreditation of Australian sommeliers. Sommeliers Australia Co-President, Ben Edwards, noted the level of consideration that went into creating a meaningful and highly relevant program.

“The role of sommelier in Australia is at an incredibly exciting time, with our diners making greater demands on the wine knowledge of restaurant staff. We were keen to up-the-ante of the sommelier professional in Australia, and elevate it to a truly international standard. Already many of our sommeliers are being courted for international posts, and we want to further the reputation of this very important role in the dining experience. This Program consolidates this goal,” noted Ben.

Announced at the Sommeliers Australia Annual Ball in Melbourne, Clara was naturally ecstatic about the accolade. As part of her award she will enjoy a trip to Burgundy, France, with arranged appointments at many of the greatest Burgundy domains. Despite an accomplished collective of students, Clara was the individual that most impressed the panel.

The world-class program combines aspects of Wine & Spirit Education Trust (WSET)*, the Court of Master Sommeliers* and The Len Evans Tutorial* in an unique and distinctly international tasting and benchmarking program that is also very sympathetic to the Australian market.

The Sommeliers Australia Education Course comprises three components deemed critical in the role of the perfect sommelier -
1) THEORY: assessed by completion of WSET Level 2;
2) SERVICE: a focus on inspiring international standards of service (based on the Court of Master Sommeliers program) and defining them to the Australian table, featuring ‘customer communication’, ‘opening wine and service style’ and ‘wine list construction, maintenance, ordering & stock control’
3) TASTING: almost 100 wines representing benchmark styles and varietals from around the world comprised the masked tasting component which tested palate development using the deductive method of tasting, an internationally accepted process. This was an incredibly rare opportunity to sample the most revered wines of the world, creating a tasting component of the highest international standard. Each wine was scored out of 20 (in line with the Australian wine show judging system), and each student was required to present their tasting notes to the panel to showcase their verbal communication ability.

After the coursework, students completed a theoretical and practical examination, with the customer foremost in the judges’ minds. “It was critical that the students answered the questions as they would to a customer – clearly, concisely, with confidence and great accessibility,” said Ben.

Joining Clara Davidson in the Class of 2009 were:
Bengt Baumgartner, The European (VIC)
Tim Sacklin, Rockpool Bar & Grill Melbourne (VIC)
James Welsh, Black Cow (TAS)
Matt Brook, Ortiga (QLD)
Iona Baker, Stokehouse (VIC)
Kim Bickley, Glass (NSW)
Shane Barrett, Circa – The Prince (VIC)
Evan Milne, Scorched (VIC)
Patrick White, Otto (NSW)
Quentin Ferguson, Vue de monde (VIC)
and Ed Wolkowinski, Halo (WA).