What’s a cellar master ?
The cellar master is responsible for the care of the wines and spirits stored in a cellar. In collaboration with the oenologist, he or she supervises all the operations that lead to the elaboration of the wine. As such, he is a fermentation professional.
The cellar master works in a winery, a group of producers, a cooperative cellar or a trading company. He or she may have cellar agents under his or her orders. The job requires great rigor, precision and a good ability to react in case of unexpected problems.
His missions
He is the master of taste! The cellar master who supervises all the post-fermentation stages: from the reception of the grapes to the bottling, through repeated tastings to ensure the right taste, to the preparation of orders, without forgetting the management of supplies and stocks, he is present from A to Z.
First of all, he receives the raw grapes from the harvest. Then, he proceeds to the maturation of the wine, the elaboration of the vintages and the bottling. He supervises these steps while ensuring the material organization and management of the winery: respect of hygiene standards, management and monitoring of the level of stocks year by year, administrative declaration of the harvest.
Et, bien sûr, le maître de chai est aussi un maître en dégustation. Son tour de main, en quelque sorte !