RESOLUTION OIV-ECO 492-2013

EVOLUTION OF THE OIV DEFINITION (LJUBLJANA 7/76) OF THE OENOLOGIST AND HIS/HER ROLE

THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY, on the proposal of the Union Internationale des Œnologues, from the work by the "Training" expert group,

CONSIDERING OIV resolution Ljubljana 7/76 on the definition of oenologist,

CONSIDERING OIV resolution OENO 2/91 relating to higher level training for oenologists,

CONSIDERING OIV resolution OENO 2/92 relating to training for oenologists,

CONSIDERING OIV resolution ECO 1/2004 relating to the skills required for training programmes leading to a diploma for wine professionals and the resolutions ECO 2/2004, ECO 3/2004, ECO 4/2004, ECO 5/2004 defining the basic level required for all of the four major fields of activity of wine professionals

DECIDES to repeal the parts A “DEFINITION” and B “FUNCTIONS OF THE OENOLOGIST” of the resolution 7/76

and

RECOMMENDS that Member States ensure:

that the oenologist is defined as an expert with skills acquired during a specific multi-year academic training course at university graduate level^[1] enabling him/her to conduct all 4 jobs as defined by the OIV resolutions and that he/she is able to carry out most if not all of the duties relating to the subsequent phases:

Phase I: Grape production

• participate in the design, establishment and management of the vineyard with the aim of adapting the raw material to the demands of modern viticulture production and consumer requirements;
• evaluate the maturity criteria and decide when to harvest based on expected maturity levels;
• assess the quality criteria of the raw materials received in terms of composition and healthiness and according to the desired final product;

Phase II: Grape processing, wine production

• actively participate in setting up the sites and selecting the processes and technological equipment for wine making  and grape processing for all product types;
• control all individual operations governing the transformations of the grape;
• based on the desired final product, and by assessing their subsequent consequences, select the individual operations necessary for winemaking, blending, treatment, maturing, conditioning and storage;
• develop products that comply with recognised oenological practices appearing in the OIV code and compliant with the national standards of the country of origin and current international standards;

Phase III: Production control

• perform analytical controls (chemical, physical, microbiological and sensory) on the product at each development stage up to consumption;
• interpret analytical results depending on the development stage and the product's purposes;
• control the consistency and efficiency of operations and processes including in terms of cost;
• manage all processes and controls relating to quality management in compliance with national and international standards;
• ensure the product’s traceability;
• ensure product health and food safety;
• respect the environmental balance;

Phase IV: Marketing and adapting products to the market

• formulate recommendations in the field of marketing on the designation and presentation of the product for marketing on national and international markets;
• advise the different organisations involved in all stages from production to the marketing of vine-based products and act effectively alongside them;
• with the producer and marketing specialist, analyse the product’s sales results and suggest changes in the production process in order to improve the response to the consumer preferences identified;

Phase V: Analysis

• analyse and summarise all data gathered from his/her duties in order to use it wisely;
• consider the ethical, including potential effects on consumer health, economic, social, environmental and technical aspects and develop proposals for measures in order to adapt production to needs and demands.

^[1] Training corresponding to the tertiary education according with the International Standard Classification of Education (ISCED 2011) of UNESCO (section 9, document reference UIS/2012/INS/10/REV)