In a technical, legal sense, an ombudsman is often a corporate or government official whose task it is to investigate allegations of wrongdoing against members of their organization. In a broader sense, however, an ombudsman functions as a trouble shooter and a problem solver, a go-between that seeks to address the needs of the public. That more general meaning was what I had in mind when I first conceived of the name “Wine Ombudsman.” It began simply as a way to help a friend who was organizing a fundraising event for the Alzheimer’s Association of Central Ohio. After the inaugural event…
On April 13, I sat for the Introductory Sommelier Exam provided by the Court of Master Sommeliers (more about this august body below!). The course was a two-day intensive instruction administered by five certified Master Sommeliers, followed by a written exam that surveys the entire world of beer, wine and spirits. The exam consists of 70 questions, so the survey is brief and selective, meaning that if you do not have a fairly comprehensive knowledge of wine, beer, sake and spirits, it would be very difficult to excel on the examination. There were 80 students in my class, and I…