September 09 - September 10, 9:30am - 5:00pm, at London
September 30 - October 01, 9:30am - 5:00pm, at New York
October 17 - October 18, 9:30am - 5:00pm, at Los Angeles
October 24 - October 25, 9:30am - 5:00pm, at Languedoc-Roussillon
Apparently Matthew Stubbs MV works at Domaine Gayda in the Aude so will obviously have on-the-spot knowledge.
I've received this, too. I don't know Matthew Stubbs (and did not know he had connections with Domaine Gayda). He may of course be a fine fellow, but it does rather smack of a money-making exercise, a-la International Wine Challenge, Decanter WWA etc. If memory serves, the cost is about £250.
ReplyDeleteI understand the need for merchants to have some knowledge of each wine region that they feature - though I appreciate that some are seriously lacking in this regard. But "Sud de France Master-Level Certificate"? Do me a favour! Without wanting to sound conceited, I have - over a period of more than 20 years - become pretty knowledgeable about the wines of Languedoc and Roussillon. Of course, when one stops learning, it is probably time to stop - and I hope never to reach that point. But I would wager that I know more than a good many of my contemporaries in the trade (by which I mean in my chosen field). Why on earth would I want a certificate to prove it?
Rant over. ;-)
I do agree the "Sud de France Master-Level Certificate" is a bit naff, otherwise I'm all for anything that increases knowledge of L-R wines for the trade or anyone else.
ReplyDeleteAs to the cost, 15+ years ago IT Software courses were £125 a day so given inflation it seems very reasonable.
Just to add my tuppence... Matthew has been a staunch supporter of Languedoc-Roussillon and its wines for many years and he created the (very professional) Vinecole wine school, situated within the grounds at Domaine Gayda, a few years ago, where he teaches WSET courses as well as his own Sud de France course (my understanding is that he wrote the course first, and then Sud de France finally saw the light and agreed to fund it and put their name to it, along with some other L-R trade bodies). I did the Sud de France course in 2012 (as a 3-day intensive coures at Vinecole) and found that it filled in the gaps in my knowledge very nicely. It was extremely comprehensive in its coverage, and we were able to taste a really wide and well-chosen selection of wines that illustrated the amazing diversity of this region's production. I've lived here since 2002 and work in wine, but nevertheless I found it very helpful to have to opportunity to really focus, learn and taste in depth with someone as knowledgeable as Matthew (who is personable, modest and a very good teacher). Just saying... :-)
ReplyDelete