By Alyse Mier
Photography Courtesy of Toscana Divino
Italian wines are best known for their complexity, uniqueness and rich cultural history, yet these same qualities are what make Italian wines a difficult subject to both learn and teach. The North American Sommelier Association (NASA) has made it their personal goal to provide a cohesive and profound understanding of Italian wine to all those wanting to gain a greater knowledge.
NASA will be hosting its NASA Italian Wine Specialist course from June 27-30. The four day wine education courses will take place in some of Miami’s best Italian restaurants. Those in attendance will be educated on all 20 Italian wine regions, wine laws, regulations, grape varietals, a brief overview of cuisine and culture, and food and wine pairings. Following the course, guests will take a wine certification exam on July 31st at Ironside Pizza, providing them with the chance to become certified wine specialists.
During this time, NASA will also launch its newest one-day tasting course at Toscana Divino: Piemonte: King under the Mountain. The Piemonte region in Italy is highly recognized by the wine community to be one of the most prominent, historical, unique and significant wine regions of the world. Known to be shrouded in fog and have a sense of mysticism and enchantment the course aims to “lift” the mystery and focus on the wines produced in this region; their typicality, classification, history, and characteristics, as well as an overview of traditional food pairings, the entire region itself and tastings of the most incredible wines from this region are included.
The courses are led by Diego Grom Meraviglia, a Gold-Pin professional sommelier and Vice President and Director of Education for NASA, as well as the founder of this internationally recognized certification, Alessandro Sbrendola.
For more information and for details on registration visit http://www.nasommelier.com/courses/italian-wine-specialist/#miami