How strong are your senses? Certified sommelier Gigi V earned her pin through the Court of Master Sommeliers by acing their blind taste tests – “determining the variety, vintage, and region of a wine using only the senses: the appearance of the wine, its nose, and its effect on the palate.” 

Sexy as that may sound, Gigi insists her job is the opposite of glamorous. She joins the pod to give a frank and hilarious look behind the scenes of the fine dining industry. [If you’ve dined at Antonio’s at PGA Cars, M Dining, Vask, The Tasting Room at City of Dreams, Chef Jessie, or bought wine from Wine Drop (by AWC/Txanton), chances are you’ve come across her work.]

She discusses her origin story, including foreign exchange programs and how a mentor at the Culinary Institute of America unlocked the magic of food and wine pairings for her, changing the course of her career. After graduating at the top of her class at CIA, she moved to the world of wine from the culinary sideand never looked back.

We chat Old World vs. New World, natural wines, and the benefits of being multi-lingual (think being the only one who could translate for Chinese tourists in the casino and the French head chef).

We came out of this interview praying she’d release a Kitchen Confidential-style tell-all à la Anthony Bourdain. This pod ep will have to do… for now.

This episode is dedicated to everyone in the service industry.

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Follow Gigi on IG @gigi.vin.wein.vino or on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/gigi-v-513376b/

More on her work at:

https://www.tatlerasia.com/dining/the-industry/must-know-sommeliers-in-the-philippines

https://www.esquiremag.ph/food-and-drink/drink/best-cheap-wines-a1570-20190409-lfrm

https://www.esquiremag.ph/food-and-drink/drink/best-wines-in-the-philippines-a00287-20190325-lfrm2

https://www.gmanetwork.com/news/lifestyle/food/305322/license-to-drink-what-it-takes-to-be-a-sommelier/story/

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Music: “Neon Laser Horizon” by Kevin MacLeod (imcompetech.com) licensed under ⁠⁠Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 License⁠⁠

Sound Editing by franticsong

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xoxo Jo

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