As a certified Sommelier with over 25 years of experience within the Food & Beverage industry in Australia & abroad, Mel has worked extensively in all sectors stretching through hatted fine dining restaurants & luxury hotels, to bars, pubs, clubs, cafes & catering. 

 

The last 15 years she has specialised in Fine Wine & Spirit Management and now focuses mainly on Wine Education & Consultancy. In order to stay current in this ever-changing industry, she also spends her time working off-trade in Liquor Retail  -  Wine Sales, merchandising, marketing, tastings & events.

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Mel’s passions lie in beverage operations, with wine appreciation, wine production, service (moreover food & wine pairings) & cellar management, being her areas of expertise. Throughout her career & hands-on experiences, Mel has continuously increased her academic knowledge base and qualifications & is an advocate for life-long learning.  Subsequently, her practical work placement was undertaken in vineyards and wineries in some of Australia’s most iconic wine regions. Taking her studies to a higher level, she graduated from a Bachelor of Business / Commerce Degree from the UWS Sydney where she majored in Hospitality & Wine Management, to add to her previously completed Certificate IVs/Diplomas in Training, Assessment & Education, WSET, CMS plus traineeships in Sommelier & Wine Making studies, Tourism – Hotel/Event Management & Tour Guiding.

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Mel believes that wine appreciation is a holistic way of developing knowledge in many other areas of interest, including; history, science, geography, topography, anthropology, gastronomy and more. She considers wine as the great connector of people and cultures & that all backgrounds/professions can benefit from formal and/or social wine events. As a host, Mel expresses the need to make learning about wine a fun and interactive experience,  which she achieves through her enthusiastic, uniquely engaging and unpretentious service/facilitating approach.

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In her own words Mel states…

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“Since I can remember I have felt an intense drive towards all things wine, and discovering that my grandfather was a wine maker  & liquor merchant in Russia was the final inspiration for me to pursue a career in the wine industry. Wine, food and making guests feel welcome is, and always has been, an intrinsic part of my Armenian heritage. To me wine is about family, sharing and stimulating the senses.

 

I believe in Wine Education without the pretension. All successful professionals owe it to their mentors and trainers for the inspiration and education that got them where they are today. I truly want to inspire and make a difference,  just like my teachers and trainers over the years have done for me.”  

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- Peace, Love & Wine xoM