Sommelier Program Returns to New York for 10th Edition

Summary

The Olive Oil Times Education Lab’s Sommelier Certificate Program will return to New York’s Flatiron District for its 10^th annual edi­tion, offer­ing inten­sive instruc­tion in sen­sory analy­sis, pro­duc­tion, health, culi­nary appli­ca­tions, and qual­ity assess­ment to a wide range of par­tic­i­pants in the olive oil sec­tor and beyond. Developed in 2015 by Olive Oil Times pub­lisher Curtis Cord, the pro­gram pro­vides rig­or­ous train­ing in extra vir­gin olive oil eval­u­a­tion, with the New York edi­tion serv­ing as a flag­ship set­ting for the inter­na­tional audi­ence seek­ing to deepen their under­stand­ing of high-qual­ity olive oil.

The Olive Oil Times Education Lab’s Sommelier Certificate Program will return to its flag­ship home in New York’s Flatiron District for its 10^th annual New York edi­tion.

The five-day course has become one of the most rec­og­nized olive oil edu­ca­tion pro­grams in the world, bring­ing together pro­duc­ers, retail­ers, chefs, buy­ers, food pro­fes­sion­als and enthu­si­asts for inten­sive instruc­tion in sen­sory analy­sis, pro­duc­tion, health, culi­nary appli­ca­tions and qual­ity assess­ment.

The New York pro­gram holds par­tic­u­lar sig­nif­i­cance for the Education Lab. Developed in 2015 by Olive Oil Times at New York’s International Culinary Center, the course was cre­ated to pro­vide rig­or­ous, mul­ti­dis­ci­pli­nary train­ing in extra vir­gin olive oil.

Participants learn to eval­u­ate oils through struc­tured tast­ings, iden­tify pos­i­tive attrib­utes and defects and bet­ter under­stand the fac­tors that influ­ence olive oil qual­ity, from cul­ti­var selec­tion and har­vest tim­ing to milling, stor­age and pack­ag­ing.

The cur­ricu­lum also exam­ines nutri­tion, culi­nary appli­ca­tions and the mar­ket­place, while giv­ing par­tic­i­pants valu­able train­ing in sen­sory eval­u­a­tion and qual­ity assess­ment.

Over the years, the pro­gram has attracted par­tic­i­pants from across the olive oil sec­tor and beyond, includ­ing grow­ers, millers, chefs, retail­ers, qual­ity con­trol pro­fes­sion­als, jour­nal­ists and entre­pre­neurs seek­ing a deeper under­stand­ing of qual­ity.

The return to New York for the 10^th annual edi­tion marks a mile­stone for a pro­gram that has helped broaden olive oil edu­ca­tion for an inter­na­tional audi­ence. While the Education Lab now offers courses in other loca­tions, New York remains the flag­ship set­ting for the Sommelier Certificate Program.

As inter­est in high-qual­ity extra vir­gin olive oil con­tin­ues to grow, the New York course will again offer par­tic­i­pants the oppor­tu­nity to build prac­ti­cal knowl­edge, refine their tast­ing skills and become an expert in one of the world’s most impor­tant foods.