The Institute of Masters of Wine in London has announced its most recent members today. Janek Schumann from Saxony, Germany is among the few who have successfully completed the world’s most prestigious wine qualification earning himself the highly respected title “Master of Wine”. Up to this date only 322 wine professionals, five from Germany, may follow their names with the esteemed letters “MW”. The Master of Wine qualification requires years of theoretical study and wine tasting experience. Both theoretical and blind tasting prowess must be proven in the form of demanding practical exams, essays, and a scientific research paper. In his Master of Wine dissertation titled “Back to the Future: Determination of Superior Parcels within a VDP.Große Lage through a Comparison of Historical Sources with Current Scientific Measures”, Janek Schumann examines the classification of vineyards. The “VDP.Große Lage Würzburger Stein” in Franconia, Germany serves as a case study. Schumann examines and compares historical sources for demarcation with current scientific quality parameters. With the results of his research, Schumann derives valuable recommendations for transparent and objective methods of classification of vineyards throughout Europe. Inspiration for Janek Schumann’s wine career came during a trip to Bordeaux in 1992. Fascinated by the intricacies of wine, he established his wine shop “La Vinothèque” in the city of Freiberg located between Dresden and Chemnitz. It was originally a side job, but he finally abandoned his banking career in 2003. He completed the WSET Diploma in Wines and Spirits with merit at the Austrian Wine Academy in the same year. This served as the prerequisite for entry to the Master of Wine study programme, which he began in 2008. S 1/2 Meanwhile, Janek Schumann has travelled nearly all the major wine producing countries of the world and the profundity of his wine knowledge is impressive. Today he works as lecturer throughout German-speaking Europe and in addition to his wine shop, he also operates a restaurant and wine school called “Die Weinwirtschaft” in Lichtenwalde bei Chemnitz. He also distributes his own personal wine label together with a befriended wine merchant, Guido Walter from Munich over the online shop TASTE THAT.
