Thirteen Masters of Wine inducted at the 2021 IMW awards ceremony
The Institute of Masters of Wine has officially welcomed 13 new Masters of Wine to its membership at the IMW’s awards ceremony in London.
The ceremony celebrates the induction of the new Masters of Wine to the IMW and recognises individual excellence in all aspects of the MW exam. Currently, there are 418 MWs based in 30 different countries.
The 2020 ceremony was postponed due to the pandemic. Instead, a digital celebration was released last year to honour the achievements of the 23 new members who became Masters of Wine in 2020.
A second awards ceremony in March 2022 will inaugurate the 10-remaining new Masters of Wine from the 2020 vintage, who could not attend the celebration at Vintners’ Hall, London, along with the 2021 vintage MWs.
The ceremony, which took place on 1 December, was live streamed for the first time, and viewers could see video messages from the MWs who were unable to attend.
The new 2020 MWs who attended in person were Mike Best MW (UK), Vanessa Conlin MW (US), Róisín Curley MW (Ireland), Tracey Dobbin MW (France), Christophe Heynen MW (Belgium), Elizabeth Kelly MW (UK), Ido Lewinsohn MW (Israel), Lin Liu MW (France), William Lowe MW (UK), Curtis Mann MW (US), Ray O’Connor MW (UK), Beth Pearce MW (UK) and Adam Porter MW (UK).
The MWs in the 2020 vintage not able to attend were Nick Bielak MW (UK), Beans Boughton MW (UAE), Duane Coates MW (Australia), Jacqueline Cole Blisson MW (Canada), Heidi Iren Hansen MW (Norway), Pasi Ketolainen MW (Finland), Annette Lacey MW (Australia), Geoffrey Moss MW (Canada), Louise Wilson MW (Canada) and Ross Wise MW (Canada).
The 23 MWs passed the final part of the MW exam in 2020 and were announced in February and August last year.
During the ceremony, individual awards were given to the MWs who performed exceptionally in a particular area of the MW exam.
Adam Porter MW received the IMW Chair’s Award, presented by Neil Hadley MW, for the top performance in the business of wine paper. Adam was also awarded the Noval Award, sponsored by Quinta do Noval, part of AXA Millésimes, for the best research paper by a new MW. Adam’s research paper, Can premium wines be marketed in single serve cans in the UK retail market? is available to download from the IMW’s website here.
Curtis Mann MW received the Taransaud Tonnellerie Award for his excellent knowledge in the production and handling of wine.
Geoffrey Moss MW received the Villa Maria Award for his outstanding knowledge and understanding of viticulture and the Robert Mondavi Winery Award for the best performance across all the theory papers in the MW exam.
For her outstanding tasting ability, Heidi Iren Hansen MW received the Bollinger Medal. Heidi also received the final accolade of the evening, the Austrian Wine Marketing Board Outstanding Achievement Award. The prize was given to Heidi for her overall performance in all areas of the MW exam.
Both Heidi and Geoffrey could not attend the ceremony but shared their delight and thanks via video link. They will be presented with their awards in person at the ceremony in March.
The Masters of Wine who celebrated their 50th year as MWs in 2020 were also honoured during the ceremony. Philip Goodband MW, Sarah Morphew Stephen MW and John Salvi MW passed the MW exam in 1970. Special mention was given to Michael Broadbent MW, who sadly died in March 2020 – his 60th year as an MW.
ENDS
For more information contact:
Belinda Eaton
Marketing and Communications Manager
Institute of Masters of Wine
+44 (0)207 383 9136
beaton@mastersofwine.org
Notes to editors:
About the Institute of Masters of Wine (IMW)
The IMW is a membership organisation with an exceptional international reputation. For almost 70 years, its members – the Masters of Wine (MWs) – have been at the forefront of leadership and expertise in the world of wine. The IMW’s mission is to promote excellence, interaction and learning across all sectors of the global wine community. MWs prove their comprehensive understanding of wine by passing the MW exam, recognised worldwide for its rigour and exacting standards. In addition to passing the exam, members must sign the code of conduct before they are entitled to use the initials MW. This requires them to uphold the highest standards of commercial conduct within the industry. Today, there are 415 Masters of Wine working in 31 countries. The membership encompasses winemakers, sommeliers, buyers, journalists, shippers, consultants, viticulturalists, academics, educators and more. There are 349 students from 40 countries in the 2022-23 MW study programme. The IMW works with 36 supporters and three research and industry associates, who help promote the IMW’s mission. The five principal supporters are Austrian Wine, AXA Millésimes, Constellation Brands, the Madame Bollinger Foundation, and Waitrose and Partners.