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Wine education is extremely important to both of us. Through our books, articles, talks, classes, and reviews, we have tried to help and advise wine lovers on this very complex subject. Through the Parker & Zraly Wine Certification Program we hope to provide wine aficionados with an enjoyable and informative way to test their wine knowledge while, at the same time, acknowledging and celebrating their expertise.
Over the years, many people, both professionals and consumers, have asked both of us how they can test their knowledge of wine. In response to this interest, more than a year ago, we began working together to create an educational testing program. After evaluating the available wine education programs, we concluded that most are too expensive, too difficult, and/or too time consuming. With input from the entire Wine Advocate and eRobertParker.com staff, we developed a new way of testing and endorsing all levels of wine expertise.
With a combined total of well over 100 years of wine experience among us, our team has created a new and unique wine testing program that addresses the needs and interests of today’s wine lover.
The Parker & Zraly Wine Certification Program consists of three certification levels. Level I - Aficionado of Wine (AW) comprises eight examinations: France, US, Italy, Spain/Portugal, Bordeaux, Southern Hemisphere, Germany/Austria/Eastern Europe and Burgundy. For more details read the Level I FAQ.
Wine lovers who pass Level 1 will receive by mail a certificate hand signed by Parker & Zraly along with recognition on the eRobertParker.com web site and they will be eligible to take the Level II - Connoisseur of Wine (CW) exam (read the Level II FAQ for details) by re-visiting this page a few days (up to a week) after the pass Level I. This page will automatically acknowledge their success in red text at the top and will provide the means to purchase the Level II exam.
The most advanced, Level III - Expert of Wine (EW), will debut in September 2009 and will challenge even wine experts and professionals. Levels I and II consist entirely of online examinations. Level III will include a written exam as well as a meeting with Robert Parker and Kevin Zraly for a blind wine tasting and oral examination on wine.
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