Vinitaly International Academy, the prestigious Italian wine education institute, held the 29th edition of its immersive Italian Wine Ambassador certification course from 19-21 October 2024 at Navy Pier in Chicago, certifying 16 Ambassadors and a new Italian Wine Expert.
October 25, 2024 – Following the 28th New York edition held in March 2024 at Banville Wine Merchants, on 19-21 October, 21 candidates from all over the world attended the Italian Wine Ambassador certification course at Navy Pier in Chicago. Expertly curated by VIA Faculty Sarah Heller MW, the course involves two intense days of lectures and the tasting of 45 Italian wines in preparation for a challenging two and half hour exam scheduled on the last day of the course. Matteo Zoppas, President of the Italian Trade Agency, Federico Bricolo, President of Veronafiere, and Adolfo Rebughini, CEO of Veronafiere, welcomed the students during the first day and officiated the pinning ceremony as well.
Seventeen students successfully completed the exam: 16 of them were officially appointed Italian Wine Ambassadors, and one achieving the advanced title of Italian Wine Expert, becoming the 17th Expert of the Vinitaly International Academy.
This edition of the Vinitaly International Academy was part of the inaugural Vinitaly USA, the groundbreaking wine expo organized by Veronafiere, which took place on October 20-21 at Navy Pier.
The VIA Community
The Vinitaly International Academy (VIA) certification course is recognised as the gold standard of Italian wine education. The VIA community comprises over 1400 candidates, of whom 409 have now achieved the title of Italian Wine Ambassador and 17 of those are qualified as Italian Wine Experts. The VIA Community, composed of all students who have studied the program since its inception in 2017, welcomes wine professionals and wine enthusiasts from all over the world, forming a supportive and professional network that extends far beyond the limits of the classroom and includes lasting friendships, an open forum for sharing wine information, and career opportunities. Members continue to participate throughout the year in events such as field trips across Italy, gathering in Verona to judge at 5StarWines – the Book, attending OperaWine and wine2wine Business Forum, and continually increasing their knowledge and expanding their network across the wine sector.
The Italian Wine Ambassadors
The certified Italian Wine Ambassadors are:
Patti Robinson
Jeannie Boutelle
Carmine Caravaggio
Filippo Marsala
Rebecca Severs
Yoshihiro Nagase
Susan Wilson
Anthony Rostock
Luca Tarantino
Michelle Keene
Jamie Gump
Donatella Polizzi
Bo Young Northcutt
Naoko Suzuki
Jean Marc Lazo Rodriguez
In addition, Torrence O’Haire was officially certified an Italian Wine Expert. Massimo Serradimigni, already an Italian Wine Ambassador, confirmed his title.
VIA Faculty Sarah Heller MW says: “Our Chicago edition of VIA was a resounding success, producing a bumper crop of new Ambassadors from all across North America and as far afield as Japan as well as a new Italian Wine Expert. To me this seems a testament to the raised awareness of and deepened knowledge about Italian wine and culture across these critical markets, showing the great potential of Italian wine – including its many unique regional specialties – in this part of the world.”
Upcoming VIA Italian Wine Ambassador Courses
The 30th edition of Vinitaly International Academy is happening on November 16-18 in Almaty, Kazakhstan, landing for the first time ever in the heart of Central Asia.
The annual flagship course of Vinitaly International Academy will be held in Verona from 27-31 March 2025 in the days leading up to Vinitaly International Wine and Spirits Exhibition and will involve the participation of 65 candidates. Satellite courses in other locations around the world will be announced later in the year through VIA social media and the VIA website.
About Vinitaly International Academy
Vinitaly International Academy (VIA) aims to be the gold standard of Italian wine education. It offers a complete educational path with standardized courses that will teach professionals and educators to master the diversity of Italian wine in a rigorous, organized manner. VIA’s main objective is to foster a global network of highly qualified professionals such as Italian Wine Ambassadors and Italian Wine Experts: in turn, they will support and promote Italian wine throughout the world. VIA was founded by Stevie Kim, Managing Partner of Vinitaly. The new VIA ecosystem avails of the guidance of Italian trade associations Federdoc, Federvini, Vignaioli Indipendenti FIVI, and Unione Italiana Vini as members of the Institutional Advisory Board. Italian vine genetics scholar, Prof. Attilio Scienza, oversees VIA’s scientific and educational direction as the Chief Scientist. VIA Faculty Sarah Heller MW teaches the flagship Italian Wine Ambassador course. To date, there are 409 Certified Italian Wine Ambassadors of which 17 are also Italian Wine Experts.
