You will probably agree that there is nothing better than tasting a wine that goes very well with a delicious dish, weather or environment. We will not be surprised if we say that the character often determines the linking or disliking of a wine. There are many details to consider when pairing, but success is guaranteed when selecting from a well-rounded wine list.
Tazo is the best sommelier of Georgia in 2018. He believes that quality war materials are necessary to create an outstanding wine and hopes that winemakers will pay more attention to vineyard maintenance.
“In childhood, the harvest was a family tradition, during this period the whole family would go to our grandparents and start picking grapes with a bang. A busy day was traditionally crowned with a delicious meal. I tasted wine for the first time when I was 10 years old, and like all children, I wrinkled my face when I felt the acidity and alcohol”.
He had his first professional contact with wine when he was a student – while working in the service, he discovered that the bottle culture was slowly becoming more popular. Due to the lack of information in the Georgian language, he deepened his knowledge by reading foreign literature.
“I remember how I dreamed of being able to tale a sommelier course in my country, I felt how this direction was lacking in this field”.
The dream came true in 2015 – when he received the status of sommelier of the first edition of the Khetsuriani wine school. With his new status, he did not have to find a job, the demand for a professional was so great that he was employed in 3 places at the same time – for some he made wine cards, for other branding. Along with Georgian, foreign mentors gave him such motivation that he did not stop developing even after that, and to expand his knowledge he visited European countries such as France, Belgium and Germany.
“A sommelier is an ambassador of wine and culture, he should introduce any guest to the origin of wine and the right way of using it, to correctly match the wine that the consumer needs at that moment. A sommelier should not only know the wine of his own country, his general vocation should be wine and he should know all the varieties that are on the menu”.
He believes that chefs and sommeliers should have more communication with each other in order to satisfy the customer – “it is unbelievable when a chef changes the menu without a sommelier – he adds seafood dishes and you have a menu with red wines”. It is a very good process, when you have good communication. The result is appropriate”.
“Good memory, positive communication and taste are the skills that a sommelier must have. I advise aspiring sommeliers to travel a lot in the regions, not just wait for the tasting sample delivered to the facility. It is important to perceive the terroir from which this wine comes, which helps you to characterize it. Wine is not only taste and aroma, what is behind it is important”.
8 years and 13,000 bottles – Tazo Tamazashvili is one of the leading sommeliers in Georgia today. He is not afraid of the difficulties caused by the pandemic and tries to share his experience with the next generation through master classes and lectures. He believes that the country will move to a new level with an emphasis on education and service quality.
“We have a wine culture for 8,000 years, but this does not give us a reason to say that our wine is the best in the world, although we are on an upward path that is marked by great development.
As for future plans, he believes that if you love your profession, you should strive for the maximum number of writes – it does not stop at WSET 3 and the final point is the Master of Wine.
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