Are you in a country that is already in lockdown or heading towards another lockdown? Do you have some time on your hands? Maybe because you cannot visit your local bar, gym or restaurant? Then Somm360 has the answer for you.
If you want to improve your wine knowledge, Somm360 have designed a free-to-play educational platform for mobile, tablet and desktop microlearning that not only educates you but rolls out a barrel of wine fun for all those who participate.
Somm360 has teamed up with top sommeliers and wine experts from around the globe to constantly create rich daily content and quizzes on a myriad of topics with different difficulty levels.
Somm360 is inviting the world to challenge each daily quiz creator as it opens up its 90-day inaugural season on its website.
“In this difficult time for our industry, it was important for us to create an accessible platform, free of charge, where everyone can join, anytime, anywhere, everywhere, from their mobile to their desktop. We are committed to offering equal opportunities for all learners, no matter their location, background, and skill set” said Somm360 founder Vincent Lafortune.
Since 2018 Lafortune has successfully developed a programme of symposiums, workshops, and tastings in cities around the world in order to give sommeliers the opportunity to learn from their peers and to prepare specifically for competitions.
With Somm360’s new online interface, we really wanted to capture some of that sense of camaraderie we felt with our Somm360 events.”
Over 60 wine industry leaders have already partnered with SOMM360 to create a truly global team, with a promise to deliver high-quality, in-depth content for this online initiative, while supporting the hospitality industry worldwide.
Among others these include Katja Scharnagl, chef sommelier at Le Bernardin New York, Guillermo Cruz, Restaurant manager at Ambivium, Penafiel, Nabilah Rawji, Former Wine Director for Shangri-La Hotel in Toronto and Reeze Choi, 16th of the 2019 Best Sommelier of the World Competition, Advanced Sommelier CMS, Hong Kong.
“I am honoured to be a quiz creator for Somm360, a platform I deeply admire. Ongoing education is so important right now, and Somm360’s new website really helps to keep us on our toes. Fun educational quizzes and brief but super-informative microlearning modules on many different topics are a great way to start the day. Keep learning!” said Katja Scharnagl.
“Current global challenges may stop us from gathering physically, but it shouldn’t stop us from gathering virtually to exchange knowledge and insights. This new initiative doesn’t just allow me to share knowledge, for me it is also an education in itself. I am honoured to be part of Somm360’s new learning facilitator team,” said Reeze Choi.
“Keeping your wine knowledge sharp is a priority for sommeliers, but these are usually resources that are behind a paywall. Somm360 is doing an exceptional job in recognizing the needs of the sommelier community during this challenging time by making high-quality educational content available for free. I love that somms are being involved in the project as content/quiz creators as it makes the platform very community-based,” said Nabilah Rawji.
“Somm360 is having a serious impact on the wine industry worldwide. They’re changing the rules in order to support the Sommelier community, shining bright lights upon what could be viewed as a very dark situation. Their leadership, pushing people to see the possibility of a more beautiful future, is absolutely inspiring. It was great to collaborate with Somm360 and their new educational program; having me create a 30-question quiz around Rioja (plus 10 bonus questions of my choosing) is such an innovative way to share my knowledge and passion for the subject with people from all over the world… it’s a truly amazing initiative” said Guillermo Cruz.
The Somm360 Education Fund
In conjunction with the rollout of this new online initiative, the organization is also launching the Somm360 Education Fund. Its objective is to raise $1M in the next 24 months, with all the money to be used to help sommeliers worldwide so they can continue to learn and grow as the hospitality sector navigates the uncertain waters of the coming years.
Greg Lambrecht and Michelle McFaul from Coravin support the project: until the end of 2020, anyone shopping at coravin.com can use the Coravin Collective Code “CCSomm36020” to receive a 10% discount on their purchase, with the Somm360 Fund receiving a 15% donation courtesy of Coravin.
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