As well as celebrating the great and good of the wine industry, The Golden Vines® are also dedicated to fostering the fresh wave of talent coming up through the ranks; the aspiring young professionals who likely will play a part in forging the future of the industry.

It was Gerard Basset’s belief that anyone should be able to succeed. Having left school with no qualifications himself, he made it his mission to uplift others and became a passionate advocate for mentorship. Thanks to the work of the Gerard Basset Foundation and the generosity of our guests, sponsors and patrons, a new generation are now able to build a career in wine and hospitality irrespective of their backgrounds or circumstances.

These are their stories:

**The 2024 Taylor’s Port Golden Vines® Diversity Scholarship**

The Taylor's Port Golden Vines® Diversity Scholarships in Wine

Taylor's is one of the first historic Port wine lodges, having been established in 1692. A family company since its foundation, it has been dedicated exclusively to the production of high-quality Port wines, and is now ranked among the very best in the world.

This life-changing scholarship offers winners funding for their choice of the Master of Wine or Master Sommelier certifications - both recognised as among the most prestigious and difficult wine certifications globally - complimented by an exceptional bespoke internship programme, incorporating more than thirty of the world's greatest fine wine and spirit estates where scholars may gain on-the-ground, in-depth insight into how they work. Throughout the entirety of their Scholarships, each winner may choose a mentor from among the Judging Panel to guide them on their journey, benefitting from their wealth of expertise and experience.

Lead by Head Judge Angela Scott, the panel included some of the most esteemed figures in the industry, including Nina Basset FIH, Rajat Parr, the Golden vines own Clement Robert MS, Hall of Fame winner Jancis Robinson OBE MW, Ronan Sayburn MS and Neil Tully MW.

The worthy winners were Bento Amaral of Portugal, Flavia Rizzuto and Emiliano Stratico, both from Argentina, and Kanchan Schindlauer from India.

Bento Amaral, Portugal

Bento worked as the Technical Director of the Institute of Douro and Port Wines (IVDP) for more than 20 years. Following a meeting with the Gérard Basset Foundation in 2022, he was inspired to start upon a new path and found Humanwinety, an organisation specifically set up to provide wine-focused courses which incorporate B-learning methods that make education more approachable and accessible for students with physical and intellectual disabilities. Drawing upon his own experiences of living as a quadriplegic, Bento is determined to use Humanwinety as a vehicle of advocacy and meaningful opportunity creation in the wine industry.

Flavia Rizzuto, Argentina

Flavia’s wine journey has spanned three decades, and began in the on-trade, working as a sommelier in hotels and restaurants. In 2002, she made history by winning the inaugural Best Sommelier of Argentina Competition, and then in 2004 she represented Argentina at the ASI World’s Best Sommelier Competition in Athens, Greece. Flavia decided to pivot her career path and devote herself to teaching and education in the wine and sommelier fields, but found that often it is challenging to access international certifications from Argentina. Flavia set herself the task of rectifying this, and in 2008 she succeeded in getting her school, CAVE (Centro Argentino de Vinos y Espirituosas), registered as an official Approved Programme Provider of the WSET, a phenomenal achievement. Since then, Flavia and CAVE have offered students a 3-year Sommelier Degree course, as well as Levels 2 & 3 of the WSET, with the view of eventually offering the Diploma as well.

**The 2024 Taylors Port Golden Vines® Diversity in Wine Scholarship Winners**

Kanchan Schindlauer, India

Kanchan is a first-generation, Indian-born migrant to the USA, and “the importance of learning as a top priority was instilled early on” within her. In 2014, Kanchan decided to pivot from her highly successful scientific career to a new path in the wine industry. She worked in diverse positions, beginning with that of a tasting room employee and crush intern at WT Vintners (located in Washington State) before becoming director of operations and customer lifecycle at Wine Folly. In 2019, Kanchan took the bold step of founding her own business, “There’s a Wine for That”, which specialises in “wine gifting for any life occasion”, and which she still runs today.

Emiliano Stratico, Argentina

After many years studying abroad and working in hospitality, Emiliano returned to Argentina in a role tasked with bolstering the exports of his home country, “organising events, workshops and tastings” globally, in markets as varied as Vietnam, China and Nigeria. He quickly progressed through the WSET, going on to gain his DipWSET. He now has his sights set firmly upon the MW (currently a Stage 2 student) and currently works as a freelance wine consultant, travelling globally to educate and mentor others, with a goal of “amplifying underrepresented voices and fostering a more inclusive global dialogue” within the wine industry.

The Golden Vines® Wine Scholar Guild Scholarships

Founded in 2005, Wine Scholar Guild offers immersive, region-specific wine education through online, in-person and study abroad certification programs. WSG certifications set the industry standard for up-to-date and in-depth information on the most influential wine regions of the world.

The Golden Vines® Wine Scholar Guild Scholarships offer scholars the opportunity to undertake their choice of WSG’s extensive courses specialising in some of the world’s most interesting wine regions. These allow winners to deepen their expertise as they continue their career progression. These Scholarships are awarded to outstanding applicants who the Judges feel are not yet ready for the Diversity Scholarships, but who they wish to recognise and aid on their educational path.

The winners were Deniz Bayram from the UK, Sammy Lam from the USA, Harnil Mathur from India, Junqi Peng from China, Valeria Tenison from Russia, Karene Vilela from Brazil, Xeniya Volosnikova from Kazakhstan, Jounghwa Yi from Korea, Denman Chan from Hong Kong, and Eduardo Contreras Perez from Mexico.

Xeniya Volosnikova, Kazakhstan

Originally from Kazakhstan, a nation of “diverse and mixed heritage being based between East and West”, Xeniya has a passionate “appreciation for the different flavours, aromas and terroirs of wine”. Her wide-ranging role working with the International Sommelier Association (ASI) has seen her involved in the organisation, planning and implementation of competitions such as the 2021 Best Sommelier of Europe & Africa (Cyprus), the 2022 Best Sommelier of Asia and Pacific (Tokyo) and the 2023 Best Sommelier of the World (Paris), meeting and learning with the world’s finest sommeliers. She aspires to be the first-ever MW from Kazakhstan to inspire others from underrepresented regions “to pursue their passions in wine”. She is currently working upon a range of projects, including a female sommelier club based in Kazakhstan aimed at promoting equality and inclusivity. Xeniya is also the host of the Introvert Wine Podcast, through which she shares her passion with others in a way that is welcoming to all.

Harnil Mathur, India

Harnil’s first exposure to wine came in 2015, when he started a Bachelor’s degree in Hospitality and Hotel Administration. After graduating he “decided to dive in head first and enrolled at the Court of Master Sommeliers”, passing both the Introductory and Certified exams on his first attempt in 2018 and becoming the youngest candidate to pass them in India up to that point, being only 20 years old at the time. By the age of 24, he had progressed to the Advanced Sommelier Certification, becoming only one of 3 in India to achieve this. He went on to attain Gold in the ASI Sommelier Diploma. Having just completed an MBA in Wine & Spirits Business at the Burgundy School of Business, he is now beginning to prepare himself for the Master Sommelier Certification.

**Romané Basset - Co-Founding Trustee, The Gérard Basset Foundation**

The Alexa Camus Golden Vines® Scholarships in Spirit

Camus Cognac, a family-owned distillery since 1863, is renowned for its dedication to crafting high-quality cognacs. With a focus on terroir and traditional methods, their commitment to excellence and innovation sets them apart in the cognac world and they’re consistently and rightly regarded as one of the very best producers.

The winners of the Alexa Camus Golden Vines® Scholarships in Spirit will each receive funding to complete their WSET Level 1 - 3 in Spirits Certifications. These courses will give Scholars a firm and deep knowledge base to progress with a career in the Spirits Industry. The winners will also be invited to attend a 5-day Immersion with Camus Cognac at their Distillery, during which they will meet with and learn from Camus’ Heads of Department, experiencing first-hand what it takes to run a world-class Cognac producer and developing their knowledge and competencies necessary to thrive in the Spirits sector, combining real-world experience alongside their academic learning.

This award was judged by Alexa Camus DipWSET, Vice President of Camus, Anna Kim, Chief Marketing Officer of Camus, Ian Harris MBE DipWSET, Chair of the Gérard Basset Foundation and Romané Basset, Co-Founding Trustee of the Gérard Basset Foundation.

The winners were the Ukraine’s Yevhenii Homeniuk, Scott Lam from Malaysia, Aman Shinde from India, and Bhoomi Salvekar from the UK.

Yevhenii Homeniuk, Ukraine

Yevhenii has a long experience working in wine and spirits sales within import companies in Ukraine, throughout which he has developed a large collection of customer contacts and sales skills. In 2022, when Russia invaded Ukraine, Yevhenii and his family were compelled to move to Bordeaux, offered support by a family friend there. Now based in France and determined to carry on with his life, Yevhenii has found that “the principles of sales, people’s mentality, approach to work and lifestyle” are all different from those he was used to in Ukraine. He intends to use his internship at Camus not only as a way to “understand the basic principles of production, marketing and sales” of Cognac, but also as a way to “better integrate into French society” and gain greater stability and continue his career progression while in France. To that end, Yevhenii’s scholarship will also enable him to undertake professional French lessons, to improve his ability in the language and therefore open up more career options to him on a level with his previous roles in Ukraine.

Jenipher Joy Adero Achola, Kenya

When Jenipher’s journey first began in wine and spirits, her education on the subject “consisted of scouring the internet to find any information” that she could, dreaming of “one day holding actual wine/spirit certifications” but also acknowledging that this was a “pipe dream”, due to there being no opportunities for certification in Kenya or the surrounding nations at the time. In 2019, this dream became a reality, as Kenya gained its first ever WSET provider. Jenipher dove into her studies with gusto, undertaking the WSET Levels 1 – 3 in Wine, scoring very well in all three and gaining a Merit in her Level 3. This formal education gave Jenipher the confidence and the knowledge to begin a career in wine, and become “a respected and credible voice in the industry”. She is currently a member of the Kenyan Team for Blind Tasting – an all-female group taking part in La Revue Du Vin De France’s annual World Blind Tasting Championship. Through her Alexa Camus Golden Vines® Scholarship, Jenipher hopes to expand her knowledge even further into the world of spirits, and from which she hopes to carry her knowledge forward to others in Kenya.

Visit the Gérard Basset Foundation website and learn more about their other incredible Golden Vines® Scholars and Scholarships: https://gerardbassetfoundation.org/scholars

The New Guard: Introducing Our Latest Scholars

Gracias Madrid! We Say Thank You and Farewell to Another Incredible Year of The Golden Vines®