Wine Connoisseur vs Sommelier: what's the difference?

The short answer: a wine connoisseur is someone with deep knowledge of wine and a trained palate, who drinks for the pleasure of it. A sommelier is a wine professional who works with guests: choosing the wines, looking after them and serving them in a restaurant or hotel. One is a passion. The other is a job.

What does wine connoisseur mean?

A connoisseur is an expert judge in matters of taste. The word came into English from French in the 1700s, from the verb connaître, “to know”. So a wine connoisseur is, literally, someone who knows wine.

Other names for a wine connoisseur: oenophile (from the Greek for “wine” and “lover”), wine lover, wine enthusiast and, more casually, wine buff.

What is a sommelier?

Sommelier is a French word too. Today it means the wine professional in a restaurant or hotel. A sommelier builds the wine list, buys and stores the wine, recommends bottles that suit the guest's food and budget, and serves them. The guest's evening is the job.

Connoisseur vs sommelier, side by side

• Who: a connoisseur can be anyone. A sommelier works in hospitality.
• Focus: a connoisseur drinks for their own pleasure. A sommelier works for the guest's pleasure.
• Where: a connoisseur at home, at tastings, in the cellar. A sommelier on the restaurant floor.
• Training: neither needs a certificate by law. Many sommeliers earn one anyway, with the Court of Master Sommeliers, WSET or a national association.
• Paid: a connoisseur pays for wine. A sommelier is paid to sell and serve it.

Can you be both?

Yes, and many sommeliers started as connoisseurs. Mine was a wine store in Arkansas. A connoisseur who wants to turn the passion into a job has the first half already: the curiosity. The second half is learning to serve, sell and read a guest.

How to become a wine connoisseur

• Taste with attention. Before you drink, look, smell and name one thing you notice.
• Compare side by side. Two glasses teach more than one: a Sauvignon Blanc next to a Chardonnay, a young red next to an old one.
• Keep notes. A line or two per wine, so you remember what you liked and why.
• Learn the classics first. A handful of grapes and regions explain most of the wine you will meet.
• Ask a sommelier. Tell them what you like and what you want to spend. It is the fastest free lesson in wine.
• Take a course if you want structure. WSET Level 1 and 2 suit enthusiasts as well as professionals.

My book Wine Easy is written for exactly this stage: wine explained like a human, with a five-step tasting system you can use tonight.

How to become a sommelier

Start working with wine in a restaurant, a hotel or a wine shop, and study alongside. The Court of Master Sommeliers' first level is the Introductory exam. See what its questions look like in my Level 1 Sommelier Practice Test.

Questions people ask