Bordeaux Masters

The pinnacle in wine education, Wine Scholar Guild presents the Bordeaux Masters Program. The program has completely revised and updated in 2024 to include the most up-to-date information and statistics.

Bordeaux stands as a cornerstone in the world of wine. Wine Scholar Guild’s Bordeaux Masters program celebrates this region and its renowned wine styles with the foremost authorities in the Bordeaux wine trade including Mary Gorman-McAdams MW, Andrew Jefford, Dr. Cornelis (Kees) Van Leeuwen, Colin Gent MW, Guilherme Martins, Wendy Narby, Jane Anson, Fiona Morrison MW, Charles Curtis MW, Mark Pygott MW and more.

This program is unlike any other. Tailored to devoted wine aficionados and industry professionals, WSG’s Bordeaux Masters program distinguishes itself with its rich array of content and preeminent catalogue of world-class contributors.

From a comprehensive study guide, recorded educator seminars, expert interviews and live review online classes, every aspect is thoughtfully designed for the most flexible and in-depth learning experience available on the wines and region of Bordeaux. 

Enjoy the flexibility of expert-led instruction via live classes, recorded content and interviews. Topics are organized in monthly segments. Each month has a specific geographical focus, allowing themes to slowly build over time.

Your Bordeaux Masters course content has been divided into seperate tracks, each handled by topical experts & authorities:

Sharon is French Programs Director at WSG and oversaw the redesign of the Masters certifications as well as the complete update and revision of the Bordeaux Masters Certification launched in 2024. She is a Certified Sommelier through the International Sommelier Guild and teaches WSG and WSET courses on Vancouver Island as well as being a freelance wine writer and wine judge. Sharon completed the Diploma from the Wine & Spirit Education Trust® with the highest marks in Canada in 2009.

Mary Gorman-McAdams MW leads our terroir sessions. She is an independent wine consultant, wine judge, educator and business strategist with a specialist focus on the wines of Bordeaux. She became a Master of Wine in 2011 and is a wine educator and marketer, Mary has served as a mentor to wine students for more than 15 years. 

Andrew Jefford is the WSG’s Academic Advisor and is an acclaimed writer and critic. He is the author of “The New France,” “Whisky Island,” and “Andrew Jefford's Wine Course.” Andrew is the lead for the vintage presentations and the host of the interviews with the Bordeaux experts for this course. 

Dr. Van Leeuwen is a Professor of Viticulture at Bordeaux Sciences Agro—ISVV Bordeaux and Head of the Viticulture - Enology Department. He teaches on terroir and vineyard auditing. His research is focused on the concept of terroir in viticulture, and he has published 90 peer-reviewed research papers, which are centred on environmental constraints in the expression of vine-growing terroir.   

Colin Gent MW is a lead lecturer in the Wine Business Masters programs at Kedge Business School and is well qualified to lead many of our business sessions. He became a Master of Wine in 2003 and provides sales and marketing consultancy services to importers and exporters. He also offers high-end wine education and wine tourism. Gent previously worked for the Bordeaux-based wine broker Europvin.

Guilherme Martins holds a Ph.D. from the University of Bordeaux in wine microbiology and biotechnology, and he is an enologist graduate degree from the University of Vila Real (Portugal). He has worked as a winemaker in countries like Portugal, France and the United States. He is currently the coordinator of the Master in Vineyard and Winery Management at the Institut des Sciences de la Vigne et du Vin de l'Université de Bordeaux. 

Wendy Narby is a senior lecturer at the École du Vin de Bordeaux and has been a wine and food consultant in Paris and Bordeaux for over 20 years. Wendy is a long-term resident of Bordeaux and readily shares her passion in the classroom. She describes herself as a “flying wine educator” taking the latest news from Bordeaux across Europe, Asia and the United States.  

Jane Anson has lived in Bordeaux since 2003 and is founder of janeanson.com, the site that she launched in October 2021 after leaving Decanter magazine, where she was longtime Bordeaux correspondent. Recipient of the ISWC 2023 Wine Communicator Trophy, Jane is author of Inside Bordeaux (called a 'category buster' by Wine Anorak and 'the Bordeaux bible' by Le Figaro), Wine Revolution (Quarto 2017), The Club of Nine (Katz Publishing 2016) Angélus (Editions de la Martiniere, 2016) and Bordeaux Legends, a history of the 1855 First Growth wines (Stewart, Tabori & Chang, 2013, reissued as an NFT ebook in June 2022). She is a graduate of the DUAD tasting diploma with the Bordeaux Institute of Oenology, an accredited wine teacher at the Bordeaux École du Vin and co-founder of the Bordeaux Mentor Week, aimed at opening up diversity and access in the world of wine.

Fiona Morrison MW is the winemaker and manager at Le Pin (Pomerol), L'IF (Saint Emilion) and Chateau Goubau (Côtes de Castillon). She is also the Managing Director of Thienpont’s wine négociant business. 

Charles Curtis MW is the founder of WineAlpha and a regular columnist for the Chinese version of La Revue du Vin de France. He is the author of “The Original Grand Crus of Burgundy” and is a regular teacher and speaker at Master of Wine courses, numerous universities and dozens of wine and food festivals over the years. 

Mark Pygott MW has made, imported, distributed, marketed and sold wine in many countries. Mark became an Master of Wine in 2016 and instructs a range of business in wine courses through leading education providers such as the Kedge Business School in Bordeaux. 

As well as leading several seminars, Jane meets with Andrew to give deeper context to the history and positioning of Bordeaux.

Managing Director of AXA Millésimes, responsible for the prestigious Château Pichon Baron and Châteaux Pibran in Pauillac, Petit-Village in Pomerol, Suduiraut in Sauternes, as well as domaines in Bourgogne, Portugal, Hungary and Napa. 

Bill arrived in Bordeaux in 1974 and has since become a recognized font of knowledge for all things Sauternes. He is the founder of Négociant Vintex and Consultant to Christie's, France. 

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