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Katy Gonzales is our local Sommelier.
Copper Basin News
Katy Gonzalez knows her wine.
And she has the certification to prove it.
Katy, a Winkelman resident, recently received her certification as Sommelier. More than 250 people were in her class in Las Vegas, but only 12 percent, including Katy, actually received the certificate as Sommelier. A Sommelier or wine steward is a person trained in the wine profession who specializes in all aspects of wine service and wine pairing.
“I love wine and I would like to teach people about wine. I tasted things in wine I didn’t anticipate tasting.,” Katy said.
Tasting a really good wine inspired her to look into becoming a Sommelier. “I tasted a wine from Australia and it tasted like chocolate covered cherry, velvet jacket in my mouth that was evolving,” she said.
Katy is also a butcher and enjoys what she does. There have been times in her butcher profession that she will go to the person’s home to butcher and they are always amazed at the amount of meat they receive and how the procedure is done. Her family has been in the butcher business and has been entrepreneurs giving her the drive for starting her own business.
Katy plans to start a business revolving around wine and teach at different locations including some of the local Town Halls in the next few months. Her classes will include how to taste wine, how different tastes come out when pairing food with wine and other preferences for wine. She has even named her business: Zeitgeist, Spirit of the Times.
Her testing in Las Vegas was a two-day event of testing four different wines at a time, six different times during the two days. She had to break down the components of the wine in 28 different categories: the nose and palate, fruits, non fruits, spices, organic, non-organic, minerals, low or high acidity, and alcohol content. She was given 12 minutes to test the four different wines.
Is Master Sommelier next for Katy? Achieving that takes years of preparation and an unwavering commitment.
Congratulations to Katy on her Sommelier Certification and best of luck to her future endeavors.
Nina Crowder is a resident of Mammoth. She volunteers in several local organizations. She covers events throughout the Copper Corridor and Superior Town and School governance.
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