Breaking the wine glass ceiling

Ask Patricia Nguyen when her interest in wine started and she’ll tell you the exact date –September 16, 2011. It was the day she attended her first wine and bar class with Mr. Nicolas Bourassin at Swiss Hotel Management School (SHMS). So it was only natural that when she won the title of Vietnam’s Best Sommelier, one of the first things she did was message Mr. Bourassin to share the good news.

Patricia not only edged out some of Vietnam’s finest sommeliers, but she also became the country’s first female to win this prestigious competition. Come December 2016, she will be representing Vietnam in the Asia edition of the competition, taking place in Ho Chi Minh city.

 

“I thought I had it all planned - study finance and get a stable job in a bank. Within two years I realised I was in the wrong field and decided to pursue my interest in hospitality instead. The rest as they say, is history.”

 

Why did you choose to return to Vietnam instead of working overseas after graduation?
I felt that if I stayed in Europe, I would be limiting my knowledge and experience to mainly French and Old World wines. I spoke to some wine distributors I knew in Vietnam and the prospects and opportunities seemed better back home. I also felt that I had spent so many years away to pursue my higher education and it was only right for me to return home and pass on my knowledge and experience to the younger generation.

Did you face any challenges when you first started out?
I felt quite lost when I first returned. Not only is the sommelier profession in Vietnam dominated by men, but I was also one of the first Vietnamese to receive a proper education and qualification in wine. I couldn’t find anybody to guide or mentor me so I did independent research to meet people from restaurants, hotels and wine distributors all over Vietnam.

Soon after I got a job in the biggest wine distributor in Vietnam, worked as a wine educator and one of the retail managers. I provided trainings to staff in F&B throughout Vietnam and also developed the company’s retail channels. Currently, I’m working with a F&B start-up company as F&B Operations Manager and Sommelier for fine dining restaurants, managing the central kitchen and developing wine and F&B projects for the company.

Tell us a little bit more about the wine culture in Vietnam
French wines have been popular since the colonial period and Chilean wines do well in Vietnam because of its bold and full-bodied flavours.

As more young Vietnamese return from their travels or studies abroad, there’s been an appreciation for New World wines. With the increasing trend of fine dining establishments, wine pairings are also becoming popular and there’s a lot more interest about the study of wine.

Today, we have a wine community of over 2,000 on social media platforms like Facebook. It’s been a personal goal of mine to help the younger generation of sommeliers and give them the guidance, which I didn’t have when I returned. So I mentor a group of seven young and aspiring sommeliers and servers with whom I share my knowledge and experience on wine.

 

“The best thing about being involved in Vietnam’s wine industry is being at the forefront of a growing market. I hope by sharing my experience, it will help raise the profile of sommeliering as a career.”

 

How has your training at SHMS helped you in your profession as a sommelier?
Being a sommelier requires more than just understanding wine. You need to have a good knowledge about wine and food compatibility, manage front of house, day-to-day operations and inventory management. Having been taught and trained in these departments at SHMS has definitely helped me excel in my career. In fact during the competition for the Best Sommelier award, the service aspect was a huge focus and I think the professional training I received in Switzerland gave me an edge in this area.

 

“A sommelier is to a restaurant, what an executive chef is to food and cuisine.”

 

Any tips to aspiring young sommeliers?
Love what you do – my success stemmed from my passion in hospitality and wine. Every training or presentation I do, comes from my heart and people can feel my energy. When you have that fire in your belly and your heart, you will always succeed.