Vinitaly International Academy (VIA) was originally launched in February 2014 in the shape of Executive Wine Seminars to accompany Vinitaly International’s events abroad.

In April 2015, VIA hosted its first Italian Wine Ambassador Certification Course and after 15 editions in Italy and abroad, VIA has trained over 600 wine professionals and certified over 230 Italian Wine Ambassadors, of which 15 have also gained the highest level of certification, the Italian Wine Expert title.

In 2017, VIA initiated developing the intermediate level course “Italian Wine Maestro Certification Course” and held the pilot course in Canada on that same year. Entering into 2018, VIA embarked on several major upgrades to its design, including the creation of the VIA Ecosystem. Proving to be a tangible development, VIA Ecosystem is harmonized by its 4 pillars (Chief Scientist, Advisory Board, VIA Faculty and VIA supporters).

In addition to this, there was a reformatting of the flagship Ambassador Certification Courses as well as the introduction of an online Maestro Educator program. VIA certified the first batch of Italian Wine Educator in September 2019. To know more about the program, please write to educator@vinitalytour.com.

The Vinitaly International Academy page is the central reference site. You are also encouraged to become familiar and follow all Vinitaly International social media activities; it is through social media that we gradually release event plans.

Please also make sure to sign up for the Vinitaly International newsletter and remember to update VIA staff of any changes to contact information should they occur.

Vinitaly International Academy (VIA) has built up an extremely capable and professional team to promote its educational activities, they provide fundamental support and growth of the VIA global community.

Moreover, Via Ecosystem is designed to act as the keystone for personal development in the VIA community; it enables competent alumni to assume more teaching roles and promotes receptiveness and cooperation with the VIA community.

VIA also makes every effort to involve the community in Vinitaly events; wine2wine, 5StarWines, and Operawine to name just a few. Vinitaly also takes part in new projects and oversees roadshows etc. As support for VIA grows, it will engage the community by offering various study trips and press opportunities on a more frequent basis.

Last but not the least, VIA is constantly updating its knowledge pool and spreading the gospel of Italian wine digitally as well as in person, to encourage community members to achieve higher certification and take on more responsibility.

VIA Alumni are motivated to re-sit the course for refreshing the knowledge as well as deepening the knowledge on specific fields. They will receive a 50% deduction on the course fee. The alumni will also have the chance to participate the wine competitions, wine shows, exclusive tastings, so to further their understanding.

VIA is building up an online library where access is strictly limited to Ambassadors and Experts, this would also largely improve the chance of an IWA to achieve higher scores.

All classes are delivered in English, therefore it is essential that the registrant has a decent level of English, both spoken and written.

For the Italian Wine Ambassador certification course, applicants with WSET Diploma/Advanced Sommelier certificates or the equivalent wine knowledge or a qualifying score from the Italian Wine Maestro course are prefered.

VIA is responsible for evaluating the applicants based on criteria such as their wine education background, applicable past work experience as well as their current roles.

For the Italian Wine Maestro certification course – No prior course is required but the WSET level 3, or equivalent wine knowledge is recommended as a prerequisite to this course.

Certified Educators are in charge of entry evaluation. The Italian Wine Fellow course is open to the entire wine community.

1. Italian Wine Expert (IWE) – Deemed to be the highest level of certification awarded by VIA, the IWE certificate states that the student has reached the highest level in Italian wine education.

2. Italian Wine Ambassador (IWA) – Is VIA’s backbone in terms of Italian wine education and promotion.

3. Italian Wine Educator – The Italian Wine Educator title is awarded to IWAs and IWEs at the completion of the Italian Wine Educator Program.

4. Italian Wine Maestro – The intermediate certification course is taught by Italian Wine Educators, it offers a unique understanding of Italian native grapes and serves as the stepping stone to the Italian Wine Ambassador certification course.

5. Italian Wine Fellow – This foundation level course is designed for newcomers to the Italian wine industry and also appeals to the larger community of wine lovers around the world.

Vinitaly International Academy (VIA) has built up an extremely capable and professional team to promote its educational activities, they provide fundamental support and growth of the VIA global community.

Moreover, Via Ecosystem is designed to act as the keystone for personal development in the VIA community; it enables competent alumni to assume more teaching roles and promotes receptiveness and cooperation with the VIA community.

VIA also makes every effort to involve the community in Vinitaly events; wine2wine, 5StarWines, and Operawine to name just a few. Vinitaly also takes part in new projects and oversees roadshows etc. As support for VIA grows, it will engage the community by offering various study trips and press opportunities on a more frequent basis.

Last but not the least, VIA is constantly updating its knowledge pool and spreading the gospel of Italian wine digitally as well as in person, to encourage community members to achieve higher certification and take on more responsibility.

VIA Alumni are motivated to re-sit the course for refreshing the knowledge as well as deepening the knowledge on specific fields. They will receive a 50% deduction on the course fee. The alumni will also have the chance to participate the wine competitions, wine shows, exclusive tastings, so to further their understanding.

VIA is building up an online library where access is strictly limited to Ambassadors and Experts, this would also largely improve the chance of an IWA to achieve higher scores.

Vinitaly International Academy (VIA) was originally launched in February 2014 in the shape of Executive Wine Seminars to accompany Vinitaly International’s events abroad.

In April 2015, VIA hosted its first Italian Wine Ambassador Certification Course and after 15 editions in Italy and abroad, VIA has trained over 600 wine professionals and certified over 230 Italian Wine Ambassadors, of which 15 have also gained the highest level of certification, the Italian Wine Expert title.

In 2017, VIA initiated developing the intermediate level course “Italian Wine Maestro Certification Course” and held the pilot course in Canada on that same year. Entering into 2018, VIA embarked on several major upgrades to its design, including the creation of the VIA Ecosystem. Proving to be a tangible development, VIA Ecosystem is harmonized by its 4 pillars (Chief Scientist, Advisory Board, VIA Faculty and VIA supporters).

In addition to this, there was a reformatting of the flagship Ambassador Certification Courses as well as the introduction of an online Maestro Educator program. VIA certified the first batch of Italian Wine Educator in September 2019. To know more about the program, please write to educator@vinitalytour.com.

The Vinitaly International Academy page is the central reference site. You are also encouraged to become familiar and follow all Vinitaly International social media activities; it is through social media that we gradually release event plans.

Please also make sure to sign up for the Vinitaly International newsletter and remember to update VIA staff of any changes to contact information should they occur.

Vinitaly International Academy (VIA) has built up an extremely capable and professional team to promote its educational activities, they provide fundamental support and growth of the VIA global community.

Moreover, Via Ecosystem is designed to act as the keystone for personal development in the VIA community; it enables competent alumni to assume more teaching roles and promotes receptiveness and cooperation with the VIA community.

VIA also makes every effort to involve the community in Vinitaly events; wine2wine, 5StarWines, and Operawine to name just a few. Vinitaly also takes part in new projects and oversees roadshows etc. As support for VIA grows, it will engage the community by offering various study trips and press opportunities on a more frequent basis.

Last but not the least, VIA is constantly updating its knowledge pool and spreading the gospel of Italian wine digitally as well as in person, to encourage community members to achieve higher certification and take on more responsibility.

VIA Alumni are motivated to re-sit the course for refreshing the knowledge as well as deepening the knowledge on specific fields. They will receive a 50% deduction on the course fee. The alumni will also have the chance to participate the wine competitions, wine shows, exclusive tastings, so to further their understanding.

VIA is building up an online library where access is strictly limited to Ambassadors and Experts, this would also largely improve the chance of an IWA to achieve higher scores.