Argentina first as sommelier Rosberg heads global guild

Andrés Rosberg, former president of the Argentine Sommelier Association (AAS), was anointed head of the Asociación de la Sommellerie Internationale (ASI) last Thursday in Bordeaux, France. He is the first sommelier from the Americas in the international sommellerie association’s 48-year-history to take up this post.

He told the Buenos Aires Herald: “We’ve been working toward this goal for many years and it will surely have direct implications on Argentine wine and sommellerie. In 2012, the AAS invited every ASI member nation’s president to Argentina to convince them to vote for us as future world cup hosts; we then hosted that contest in 2016. In addition, Paz Levinson [from Virtus restaurant, Paris] won the PanAmerican championship in 2015 then ranked fourth in the world last year. These, and other factors, all added up to help Argentina not only stand for the ASI presidency – but also win it.”

Rosberg added that Argentina is increasingly on the world stage for wine professionals: “Not only are there more Argentine sommeliers than ever but students from around Latin America come here to train then go out into the world to work – we are building a network of Argentine wine ambassadors.

“All this helps puts Argentina on the map so competitors – and students – know they have to study the country and will likely have to blind taste Argentine wine. Arvid Rosenberg, who won the ASI Best Sommelier of the World contest in 2016, recognised our wines immediately when tasting because, he spent the previous eight days prior to the contest sampling around Mendoza.”

Rosberg, instrumental in organising the ASI’s 15th Best Sommelier of the World contest in Mendoza in April 2016, stood against Serge Dubs for the ASI title, pipping his French colleague to the post with 29 votes to 24. The Buenos Aires-born sommelier, who speaks all three of the ASI’s official languages, will lead the 1969-founded association for the next three years.  

He added: “While I will now be looking after all the sommeliers in the world as well as all the wine-producing regions, I’m still Argentine and this is a great goal for Argentina’s wine industry as well as a personal recognition.”

The prestigious election is a further string to his professional bow, given that the 42-year-old sommelier, who helmed the AAS for 10 years before bowing out last December, is also vice-president of the PanAmerican Association of Sommeliers (APAS).

Matías Prezioso, current president of the AAS, said: “I’m very proud and certain that  Andrés Rosberg will contribute to sommellerie at a global level as much as he has at a local one.”

Besides leading the ASI until 2020, Rosberg will start to juggle international commitments alongside his Argentine ones as executive sommelier at the Fierro Hotel and director of La Morada de los Andes vineyard project in Uco Valley.

Ph: Martín Fernández Delamer