We’re proud to announce that our resident “Wine Geek”, Oleg Dmitriev, has passed his Italian Wine Scholar™ exam with Highest Honours.
At Independent Wine, we take our passion for Italian wine seriously. We’re constantly learning – whether that means chatting with winemakers and consorzi, or studying towards official qualifications. The latest string to Oleg’s bow is the Wine Scholar Guild’s Italian Wine Scholar™ certification. This is the industry’s most respected qualification focusing specifically on the wines of Italy – and he passed with Highest Honours.
What is Italian Wine Scholar™?
The Italian Wine Scholar™ certification is an in-depth qualification covering everything there is to know about Italian wine. While Wine and Spirit Education Trust (WSET) Level 3 covers all countries of the world and dedicated only a chapter to Italy, The Italian Wine Scholar™ qualification is the most advanced, comprehensive, and up-to-date Italian wine course available.
The qualification is backed up by the Italian wine industry. Italian wine DOC/G consorzi support the creation of the content, and it has endorsement from the Italian Trade Commission. It’s a tough qualification to get, and only has a 50–60% pass rate. You can see why we’re so very proud that Oleg was able to pass with flying colours – with a very impressive score of 93.5%.
Sharing Italian wine knowledge with our customers
As well as bringing UK customers the best wine from small, family run Italian vineyards, Oleg is also passionate about sharing his knowledge with other Italian wine lovers.
That’s why our blog is chock-full of in-depth articles about Italian wines and regions. There’s a lot of misinformation on the internet, and we don’t want to add to it. That’s why, when we write articles about Italian wine, we don’t just parrot what other websites have said before.
We do our own research and consult official sources. With this ability to research, and Oleg’s own proven knowledge of Italian wine, we’re proud to share accurate information with our customers: read our wine guides.
Buy wine from the Italian wine experts
Oleg’s exceptional performance in the Italian Wine Scholar™ exams is just another example of our expertise in Italian wine. It follows on from last year’s win in the Decanter Retailer Awards, where we were named Best Small Online Wine Retailer of the Year 2022. With a combination of industry recognition and the certifications to prove it, we hope that you’re confident in buying the best Italian wine from us.