Welcoming Sommit™ 2019 To Hawke’s Bay

Limited to just 20 attendees, the two-day Sommit™ will be hosted in Hawke’s Bay on the 25 & 26 January 2019, by NZ Master of Wine Stephen Wong and UK Master Sommelier Ronan Sayburn. “It is fantastic to welcome such a talented and passionate group of wine professionals to New Zealand and for the first time Hawke’s Bay is host to this initiative that has truly proven its value on past editions,” said Hawke’s Bay Winegrowers’ Chairman, Michael Henley. The New Zealand Winegrowers Sommelier Scholarship is a global initiative with sommeliers from Australia, Asia, Canada, Europe, Ireland, New Zealand, the United Arab Emirates, the UK and USA all eligible to participate. The event is a celebration of the lesser-known aspects of New Zealand wine, with particular emphasis on the facets that resonate with the sommelier community and is just one part of an intensive programme of 11 days, including the International Sauvignon Blanc Celebration in Marlborough and the Chardonnay and Sparkling Wine symposium in Gisborne. Sommit™ is a closed-door sommelier-only event, and a very different kind of tasting that is directed by the attendees based on what they taste in the glass. At the end of the experience, the aim is that the scholars will share personal wine discoveries and insights from their trip with their customers and the wider sommelier community – becoming true ambassadors for New Zealand Wine around the world. “Although the programme explores the depth and breadth of New Zealand’s many wine regions, being the host region this year allows these professionals to ‘live and breathe’ Hawke’s Bay”, added Mr. Henley. To date, the New Zealand Winegrowers Sommelier Scholarship has hosted five Sommit™ events for 79 sommeliers from 15 countries. Previous Sommit™ events have seen a marked increase in listings of New Zealand wines in top international restaurants. Posted: 24 January 2019