Court of Master Sommeliers was founded in 1969 with only 281 awardees till date of the coveted designation of a Master Sommelier (though their website is slightly confusing as it lists 7 awardees this year on its front page but 6 inside; the response to our query is awaited presently), the List released last month confirms that Kamal Malik, that man from a small town in UP who is currently working in Maldives with Maritime and Mercantile International (MMI) as Sales Manager has reached the Summit. He has also worked with hospitality groups-Hilton, Taj, and the Oberoi.

He earned his Advance Certification, the stepping stone for the pinnacle in 2016 when he passed it with Mattia Cianca, an Italian Sommelier who has been very active in the Indian wine market since 2022 and is a co-founder of The Sommelier Association of India (SAI). Kamal made the final cut in his fifth attempt and joined the illustrious band as the first Indian. Congratulations Kamal Malik MS. The final list of the successful candidates also includes Paul Fauvel, Paul Robineau, Andres Aragón Pérez, Bertrand Lutaud, and Kevin Lu Kai Wen. Myles Trapp is the 7th candidate whose name does not appear in the final list- he would have been 282nd.

Alpana Singh MS (41), was the first American Master Sommelier with Indian genes and was the youngest woman Master Sommelier when she became MS. She was actually a second generation Indian-American from Fijian parents of Indian origin who moved to California where she was born in Monterey in November 1976. Viraj Sawant was perhaps the only Indian Advanced Sommelier, working as the Brand Ambassador with a Mumbai-based importer, who brought the formal Certificate programs to India in 2018. He did once dream of the coveted title but with funding from Shark Tank India in one of his projects his career plan took a detour.

One cannot talk about the Indian journey to the peak without mentioning Rajat Parr from Kolkata/ Delhi while growing up. He shifted to the US, became a brilliant Sommelier and has been the blue eyed boy of many top wine personalities including Jancis Robinson who talked highly of him. Before clearing the final hump an opportunity came his way to start his own company Sandhi Wines and he dropped out of the race. More details on him at Raj Parr-Super Sommelier and Winemaker Extraordinaire

One has to go through an arduous journey before attempting to reach the Summit. Before attempting the Master Sommelier examination one has to crack Introductory (level 1),   Certified Sommelier (level 2) and the Advance (Level3).

The final climb is in three segments- Theoretical Knowledge, Practical Tasting, and Practical Service. These are followed by a round of Oral Questioning. One needs time to build up the memory to enable one to answer the toughest wine questions within a 45-second slot- this is the faster equivalent of the Rapid Fire questions one is used to watching on TV and quiz shows. For the observers it is sheer poetry- the way to deduce and dissect each wine to identify it.

There is already a similar Programme – Master of Wine-also originating in the UK and we already have a Master of Wine- Sonal Holland MW. CMS curriculum is more suitable for professionals choosing hospitality as a career with many functional aspects like service, wine lists, attitude, business acumen, etc. being important to be successful.

Kamal Malik will surely be an inspiration for the young wine professionals. His advice to them is that preparing for MS is like a marathon and not a sprint. You must continue to work towards gaining knowledge and taking the imminent setbacks not as a failure but a learning opportunity. But he cautions like the old stalwart John Salvi Master of Wine that becoming a Master Sommelier (or Master of Wine) is a significant milestone, but NOT the final destination. You must continuously hone your skills and work harder to maintain the high standards set by the Court of Master Sommeliers.

To the budding Masters, we should add that late Gerard Basset MW MS OBE was both an MW, MS and an OBE to boot!! His biggest quality and strength was that he was very humble and grounded, that made people in his fraternity and outside love him and respect him even after he left this world.

While Congratulating Kamal Mallik for achieving this extraordinary feat we hope this will be a part of his demeanour.

Also Read Raj Parr-Super Sommelier and Winemaker Extraordinaire

Subhash Arora