Vinitaly International Academy (VIA) is the first certification available for Italian wine lovers and professionals, run by world-renowned wine experts and backed by the professional and organizational skills of Vinitaly, the world’s largest wine fair.
Given the great diversity of Italian grapes and terroirs (330 DOCs, 73 DOCGs and over 541 native grape varieties), there is often little standardization in what wine writers and educators say and oftentimes the information offered is neither precise nor accurate.
VIA was created by Stevie Kim, Managing Director of Vinitaly International, beacuse of her belief that education is the key to broadcasting the great diversity and richness of Italian wine in a more accurate and scientifically rigorous manner. With this intent, VIA offers standardized courses and different certification levels that enable all those who love Italian wine to speak of it in a unified, organized manner with in-depth knowledge of each specific Italian grape variety, wine and production area. With 50 years experience in the field of Italian and international wines, Vinitaly represents the gold standard for Italian wine culture and business. The vast know-how accumulated over the decades by Vinitaly is supported, transmitted and kept alive by individuals who have worked in the Italian wine industry for a long time, thereby guaranteeing that the Vinitaly International Academy’s wine educational sessions are the state of the art in Italian wine courses.
No other course on Italian wines offers a similar level of knowledge and credibility.
VIA’s certification courses have been devised and are taught by the VIA Scientific Director, Ian D’Agata, who writes regularly for Stephen Tanzer’s International Wine Cellar and Decanter Magazine, and is the author of more than ten books and guides on Italian. In fact, the course textbook and Ian D’Agata’s latest book, Native Wine Grapes of Italy (University of California Press, 2014) has already been hailed as one of the most rigorous books ever written on Italian wine.
