Mosaic Sommelier Protégé Programme launched

22 Apr 2015

Aimed at empowering the next generation of world class sommeliers in South Africa, the Mosaic Protégé Programme has been launched by Restaurant Mosaic and the South African Wine Tasting Championships (SAWTC).

Mosaic's Germain Lehodey (Image by Rebecca Hearfield)

The goal is to offer a motivated young wine enthusiast the chance to be properly educated in the art of being a sommelier. He or she will be offered a fully paid internship with the most exciting restaurant in South Africa.

The South African Wine Tasting Championship will screen the candidates for their natural wine tasting talent and, with the support of the South African Sommelier Association; the best tasters will be interviewed, allowing Restaurant Mosaic to select the lucky young professional who could become one of this continent's best sommeliers.

Eat Out's 2014 Chef of the Year, Chantel Dartnall and the Restaurant Mosaic team at The Orient are delighted by the opportunity to train a motivated individual from a formerly disadvantaged community to have an international future.

"Restaurant Mosaic has always had a philosophy to educate and empower those individuals who are not in the position to further their own studies and, as a restaurant with a phenomenal cellar, we can contribute to the training of an individual to be part of Team SA and further their knowledge," says Dartnall.

The bursary will offer the young professional three years at Restaurant Mosaic, working alongside and gaining invaluable experience from acclaimed sommelier Germain Lehodey. The protégé will also receive the necessary formal education required to achieve the best professional knowledge, while gaining invaluable exposure to the industry and the more than 3,400 different wines in the Mosaic cellar.

The winning candidate will also automatically become a member of Team South Africa who will fly the South African colours in France at the World Blind Challenge in October 2015. This is the third year that South Africa has been selected to participate to the World Blind Challenge organised by French wine magazine, La Revue du Vin de France. Last year 22 countries were involved in the World Championship.

The first candidate selection will take place on 13 May 2015 in Sandton as part of the Gauteng Provincial Championships event during the Juliet Cullinan Wine Festival.

For more information, go to www.sawtc.co.za.