Valletta, November 2005 - Following a successful trial run in London, the European Wine Academy (EWA) has expanded internationally and has chosen Malta as the base for its Mediterranean Campus. The institution offers a range of high-standard short, long, and professional wine courses to students in the region that encompasses Sicily, Sardinia, Turkey, Lebanon, Israel, Malta, Tunisia, Algeria, and Morocco.
Professional wine courses will be delivered mainly through interactive, professional eLearning classes, which is a first for the region and Malta as well.
The Mediterranean Campus in Malta is the first of a number of satellite campuses to be set up by the EWA around the world, with others of Germany, Australia, Chile and California under negotiation.
The eLearning wine courses series are designed to reach any student anywhere as long as he or she has the interest, a computer, and an Internet connection.
Elearning wine courses are delivered in English at the Mediterranean Campus by international wine experts and oenologists. The programme is coordinated by EWA regional director Georges Meekers, himself a well respected, Belgian-born wine professional residing in Malta.
All Professional Certificate and Associate Degree e-courses are of a high academic and professional standard. They are overseen by principal Derek Koch and a board of trustees headed by the president, Frank Smulders, a master of wine from the Netherlands.
Other renowned international wine experts and oenologists act as tutors via the Internet to share their inside knowledge with students who cannot attend courses in a regular classroom because of work schedules, family needs, geographical isolation, or other reasons.
The subjects covered include Sommeliership and Hospitality, Wine Tourism, Wine Sales and Retail, Wine Entrepreneurship, Wine Marketing, Wine Business Management, and Oenology.
Malta won the bid to become the home of the Mediterranean Campus thanks to its central position in the Mediterranean and because, more than any other Mediterranean country, it is experiencing a renaissance in winegrowing - all of which make it the ideal area for practicums, in addition to virtual wine classes.
