Getting Back in the Writing Saddle...

Well, it's has been a few months since I have had the opportunity to sit down and write anything other than emails and data-codes, which is not really what wine guys do (except now we do!), but here it is. Mid-July, and its either raining or hot as blazes; welcome to the new, tropical version of the New England summer (thank you climate change!).

So, what have I been doing? Well, to start, a lot of things in both the work life and in the personal life. In the past few months I/we have...

• Traveled for work for the first time since Covid hit (Florida was very nice)
• Had a kid graduate from college and move into a new place a few states away (emotional roller-coaster)
• Moved another kid home and then back to college a few states away (but in the other direction)
• Seen the restaurant world come screaming back to life (mostly)
• Seen the prices of everything jump up (everything)
• Seen the availability of everything come to a crashing halt (we all now know what the "supply-chain" is - or isn't)
• Been to two funerals (one human, one dog)
• Played golf (a bit), rode my bike (a bit more), and worked (a lot)
• Took the WSET Level 3 Spirits exam
• Passed said exam (Level 3 Spirits coming to this APP very soon)
• Took the WSET Level 1 Sake exam (now available at this APP)
• Helped Mom through some serious back surgery
• Had my car in the shop for 6 weeks due to water intrusion (don't get me started - and it's still there - supply-chain)
• Currently studying for more certifications (Yay!)

I have been busy. Everyone is busy. I am not complaining - believe me, I'd rather be busy than not! It's just that there never seems to be enough time to sit down and write. But, I am guessing my life is a lot like everyone else's - especially now as we are coming out of the pandemic, but we are still in a pandemic? - and you just have to make the time to do these things. So here it is. I will be adding more updates and articles on a regular basis, as well as notices about WSET and other classes and exam dates.

The first thing to note is that we have loaded a bunch of new courses up for the new WSET Academic year, which begins August 1. If you are looking for dates to enroll in new classes for either late summer or early fall, all of the course pages have been added for the online classes through October. We will complete the rest of the class links in the next week or two, but the next few months are currently available.

For the moment the classes will remain exclusively in the online format. Getting space to teach is still challenging, but also the availability of the online classes seems to appeal to most of the students I communicate with. The biggest benefit is the flexible schedule of the courses and assignments. It really is an advantage to be able to log on when you are available rather than having to sit a class at a specific time. If we were in a larger market with a greater pool of student-candidates, then we might look to adding more in-person sessions, but for the time being the online courses seem to be the way to go. This also allows us to keep operating expenses down, and therefore offer courses at a very competitive price. Speaking of which...

There were price increase from WSET to the APP's for the new academic year starting August 1. These included increases on course registrations, material fees, and exam fees. But at NEWA we decided to hold our 2020/21 prices through the end of the calendar year, at least. This may change if the British Pound gets any stronger against the dollar, but for now WE ARE NOT INCREASING OUR PRICES. Hopefully this resonates as there have been price increases almost entirely across the board in our world. NEWA is doing its part to hold back inflation, though - at least for the moment.

Hopefully everyone is having a great summer, and is able to find a few minutes to get some time with family and friends, or simply to yourself to enjoy the weather (when it's not raining), some wine, or a cocktail. For my part, I will be making sure I find the time to post more tasting notes, interesting articles, and announcements on current study opportunities. 
Cheers - BMitch