A love affair with wine

When Li Meiyu became a sommelier, there was no such job in China. Now she is an Advanced Sommelier

Li Meiyu vividly remembers the first time she met the estate owner of a Burgundy vineyard. He was exactly what Li, the first female Advanced Sommelier on the Chinese mainland, had expected: gentlemanly and not a bit pretentious. He was serious and went about his work with principles.

The man drove Li to a mountaintop at dusk, so she could get a bird's-eye view of Cote d'Or. The experience made her think of the first time she tasted wines from the vineyard.

"The acid is sharp, indicating the winemaker is very serious and applies strict standards. Yet the wine has complex scents of rose, date-flower honey and red cherry, revealing the winemaker also has exquisite and delicate senses," says Li.

"The wine bears the same characters of the maker, who produce wines with souls."

In 2009, Li won China's Best French Wine Sommelier Competition thanks to her confident eye contact, fluency in French and graceful serving of wines. In 2014, the Court of Master Sommelier accredited her Advanced Sommelier, a step closer to the Master of Sommelier.

Being a sommelier is a brand new profession in China. It was not legitimately regarded as a profession until 2014, when the job was included in a book that classifies China's occupations. Being a sommelier requires extensive wine knowledge, experience, etiquettes in introducing and serving wines to pair with food and being a versatile manager of a wine menu and stocks.

"But I think the most important part of being a sommelier is to love your life and to observe life, observe the people behind the wines," says Li, 30.

Li says what separates her from her peers is that "I practice culinary skills, I love painting and travel, and I connect these facades of life with wines to enhance my understanding of wine."

She says her love for life led her to become a sommelier. In 2008, while pursuing her master's degree in business management at a university in France, Li toured Burgundy and tasted 18 wines out of curiosity and enthusiasm.

The diversity of fine wines intrigued her to keep searching for free tasting events in Paris and eventually led her into the profession. "My father said he'd never heard of the job before and asked what I can do after completing the training course I selected. But I believe I can live on it so long as I have enough passion for it."

The alcohol-paved path is not easy one, since it demands more from a woman than a man. During training, Li kept notes on more than 30 wines and reviewed them every day. Whenever new wines are released or wine regions organize events, she normally tastes more than 80 wines a day.

She recently screened more than 400 wine candidates over a two-week period to put together a new wine menu for her employer, Park Hyatt Beijing. Popping hundreds of corks and pouring wine all day is a physical challenge for female sommeliers.

Yet, being a woman also has its advantages. Female sommeliers benefit from their affinity with consumers, better understand their needs and budget concerns, and probably make fewer mistakes on the menu, Li says.

"With the Chinese economy rising, our guests have more dispensable incomes. That means more high-end restaurants value the roles sommeliers play to upgrade their offerings."

"I'm very glad to see that more young people are joining the profession along with the increasing market demand for professional sommelier service."

wanghuazhong@chinadaily.com.cn

(China Daily Africa Weekly 04/17/2015 page30)