Publications
"'A prudent wine,' he would say, 'rather diffident and evasive, but quite prudent.' Or, 'A good-humoured wine, benevolent and cheerful - slightly obscene, perhaps, but none the less good-humoured.'" - Roald Dahl, Taste.
Richard Kershaw is a Master of Wine (MW) and a winemaker (among the handful of MWs making wine). The Institute of Masters of Wine was started 70 years ago in the UK as an exam for the UK wine trade and has grown in stature to become a globally recognised title, with 414 MWs in 30 countries around the world. The programme has three stages and involves rigorous exams at every level, culminating in a research paper. They study everything from viticulture, vinification, pre-bottling procedures, the handling of wine, the business of wine, and contemporary issues. These are also the people who do blind tastings in which they have to identify the variety, origin, commercial appeal, winemaking, quality, and style of a wine.
Origin means anything from the country, to the region, to the hill, to the actual producer, to the year. These people have encyclopaedic knowledge of wine and can therefore take on many roles within the industry. Some are critics, like Tim Atkin and Jancis Robinson. Some are buyers, some consult with wineries about anything from blending to viticulture, and some make wine. *There are other notable wine qualifications like the Cape Wine Masters, WSET, etc. But because Richard is an MW, I felt it relevant to expand.
