Sommelier
What the work is
Advises customers and businesses on the matching of wine and other alcoholic beverages with food menu items.
Would you enjoy the work?
These are the main tasks in the official description. Mark how each one sounds to you.
- Curates and updates the wine list for the establishment
- Provides guidance to Chefs and kitchen staff on pairing wines and other alcoholic beverages with menu items
- Decants, presents and pours wines for customers
- Collaborates with vendors and suppliers on the procurement of specific beverages
- Keeps up to date on wines and other beverage releases and seasonal trends
- Tastes and evaluates new wines ensuring they meet the appropriate standards
- Trains front of house staff to ensure customers are recommended wines and other alcoholic beverages that match with food menu items
Try it
A simulation and a case study from this kind of work, set in a small, busy restaurant with a short, well-chosen wine list. They are fictional.
The kind of days you could have
Good days
- A guest tries a wine you suggested and says that is exactly what they wanted
- A table you looked after all night leaves a note for the whole team
- The dining room hums, plates land in the right places and nobody notices how hard you worked
Hard days
- A table has a complaint and you only have one minute to turn it around
- A guest wants something you do not have and is not happy about it
- A double shift on your feet, with a tray on one hand and a smile on your face
Written by Career Calling as a general guide. Real roles vary by employer and place.
Work a mission
Step into a simulated workplace in this field, with a brief from your manager.
Description and tasks: Australian Bureau of Statistics, Occupation Standard Classification for Australia, 2024, Version 1.0 (opens another site), occupation 471631, used under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 licence. The skill guide above is our plain English summary.