As of March 2020 – the starting point of COVID-19 in Europe and national restrictions to set bounds to its spread – all workshops and courses including wine tasting classes had to be cancelled or suspended. The missing of wine tasting classes in wine education can be compared with sports studies and the missing possibility of training; or art studies like sculpturing and painting and the sudden abolition of possibilities to train exactly this. It is therefore the GOAL OF THIS PROJECT TO DESIGN AND CARRY OUT "REMOTE" ONLINE WINE TASTING COURSES. This involves: - a comprehensive framework for online wine tasting classes. Hence, an overall scheme - from beginner to advanced level - will be developed; course contents defined and learning materials created. In accordance a tasting agenda and online training material fitting to online-class needs will be created; - online tests, quizzes and final exams including tasting tasks and grading schemes will be designed; - furthermore, the physical act of filling small bottles and logistics will be tackled. To this end, filling technology will have to be adapted to the projects’ needs and consequently utilized. Three higher education institutions participate in this project; the University of Applied Sciences Krems (Austria), Geisenheim University (Germany) and the University of Camerino (Italy). They are in charge of designing course material and delivering online wine (tasting) classes. The start-up company MT Digital Wine Services will be in charge of procurement, filling and logistics. Results and envisaged impacts consist for and most importantly of the possibility to continue education in wine (business) programs without further cancellations and delays due to Corona and its' consequences. In addition results mean a big leap in innovation towards a much easier and more sustainable way to organize wine tastings despite of distances, time differences and other obstacles. Potential longer term benefits include an ONLINE EDUCATION PERSPECTIVE in a field which (so far) required physical presence by all means. On the long run this project develops technical possibilities which will bring major improvements in both, the short term solution for constrained teaching possibilities as well as a serious and professional alternative to all live-tasting sessions. Literally hundred thousands of live tastings take place each year for business, education or mere horizon-broadening reasons. The European wine sector that provides employment to millions (Comité Européen des Entreprises Vins https://www.ceev.eu/about-the-eu-wine-sector/) requires this important step towards a digital possibility TO PROVIDE AND ENSURE EDUCATION as well as presenting its' products in a future of limited ways to do so.
Online Wine Courses were primarily designed as a quick solution for possible times of crisis. As of march 2020 the starting point of COVID 19 in Europe and nationals’ restrictions to set bounds to its spread – all training courses, wine fairs and workshops have been cancelled or suspended. All trainer-student as well as supplier-buyer interactions had to take place online. Due to the COVID-19 lockdowns, it was not possible to impart knowledge in face-to-face contact for long stretches in 2020-21. Based on that circumstances an academic online course program was set up by IMC Krems, Hochschule Geisenheim and University of Camerino. The goal was a permanent provision of learning content without the influence of external factors such as distance (including travel costs, and sustainability issues); time and/or disabilities. We wanted to achieve that learning content at university level is permanently available to everyone in the world with internet access. OWCs are meant to be included in wine education programs but are also accessible free of charge by all wine interested persons. In terms of integrating the videos in existing education programs, the concept of blended learning is used.
The need for wine education programmes is evident. It is a global business with an annual production of 25 billion litres of wine on average. Approximately 234 million hectolitres of wine are consumed worldwide annually. 112 million hectolitres in the EU alone. The European wine sector, by far the biggest, is extremely fragmented with several hundred thousand individual producers and bottling firms (Rastoin et al. 2006). The recently published digital map of Austria’s wine areas displays 27 wine-growing regions (DACs), 458 wine-growing communities and more than 4,300 single vineyards called “Rieden” in Austria. Other European regions such as Burgundy are equally complex: Burgundy has 84 AOCs and 1,427 single vineyards. Robinson, Harding & Vouillamoz (2012) list and describe 1,368 vine varieties in their book “Wine Grapes”. The vast majority are European. Education in this industry is a necessity due to the above-mentioned level of complexity. The needs addressed result from the specific characteristics of the wine industry and, consequently, the framework conditions for education and training. For example, wine regions are mostly located in very remote, rural areas without colleges or universities. The strong seasonality is a reason for the need of more flexible times in wine training. In addition, the obstacle of possible delays in education like witnessed throughout the Corona crisis and its lockdowns were addressed to guarantee a manageable future in wine education.