Twenty-seven wine professionals earned their Italian Wine Ambassador credentials from Vinitaly International Academy (VIA) following the program's 36th certification edition, held October 25–26, 2026, at Banville Wine Merchants in New York. Two candidates reconfirmed existing certifications, while Keith Mattrick was named Best Student of the edition.
The course ran alongside Vinitaly.USA and the wine2wine Vinitaly Business Forum — events also staged in New York that week — underscoring the push to embed rigorous Italian wine education directly into the calendar of the North American trade market. Organized in conjunction with Veronafiere and Vinitaly.USA, the New York session followed a June 2026 edition held in Toronto, reflecting VIA's expanding footprint across the continent.
Inside the Curriculum
Over two intensive days, the 36 candidates worked through Italy's regional wine landscape — native grape varieties, geographic identities, tasting methodology, and how to communicate Italian wine in international markets. Participants evaluated 47 Italian wines across guided tasting sessions before sitting a three-part exam: a blind tasting of two wines, short-answer questions, and a comprehensive multiple-choice test.
Special awards recognized standout performers. Allison Sheardy took Best Blind Tasting Exam; Pietro Buttitta earned Best Multiple Choice Exam; Keith Mattrick won Best Short Answer Exam; and Amy Duffin, Allison Sheardy, and Natalie Travis shared Best Video Project honors. The pinning ceremony was held at the wine2wine Brooklyn room, Pier 36, and presided over by VIA Faculty Sarah Heller MW.
"VIA New York this year brought together a very big, super impressive group of amazing wine professionals from all over North America and beyond," said Sarah Heller MW, VIA Faculty. "It was so heartening to see so many determined students come back for a second try and succeed."
Network and Next Steps
The New York class joins a global VIA community that now counts more than 1,500 members across 57 countries, with 550 certified Italian Wine Ambassadors — 22 of whom hold the higher Italian Wine Expert designation. For beverage industry professionals working in wine sales, sommelier programs, or fine-dining beverage management, VIA certification opens access to academic field trips across Italy, judging roles at 5StarWines – the Book, and participation in events such as OperaWine.
For operators building wine programs or sourcing staff with deep Italian wine fluency, the growing ambassador network represents a credentialed talent pool with a standardized, internationally recognized benchmark. That alignment of trade education with hospitality workforce development mirrors broader trends in restaurant and hospitality beverage training as operators seek staff who can guide guests through complex wine lists confidently.
The next VIA Italian Wine Ambassador certification course is scheduled for Verona, April 14–18, 2027 — the program's annual flagship edition, which draws candidates from around the world to study on home turf. The course was founded by Stevie Kim, Managing Partner of Vinitaly, and operates under the scientific direction of Italian vine genetics scholar Prof. Attilio Scienza. Trade associations Federdoc, Federvini, Vignaioli Indipendenti FIVI, and Unione Italiana Vini serve on VIA's Institutional Advisory Board.
This certification news was also covered by Food & Beverage Magazine, RHFNews's sister publication tracking the broader food and drink industry.
Written by Michael Politz, Author of Guide to Restaurant Success: The Proven Process for Starting Any Restaurant Business From Scratch to Success (ISBN: 978-1-119-66896-1), Founder of Food & Beverage Magazine, the leading online magazine and resource in the industry. Designer of the Bluetooth logo and recognized in Entrepreneur Magazine's "Top 40 Under 40" for founding American Wholesale Floral, Politz is also the Co-founder of the Proof Awards and the CPG Awards and a partner in numerous consumer brands across the food and beverage sector.
