Ian’s background in wine teaching and course creation

Ian D’Agata has led different wine schools over the years, and has been increasingly asked over the years to set up new ones for different outfits. In the early 2000s, he taught wine courses at the Gambero Rosso’s Citta’ del Gusto, and in 2003 was named co-director of the International Wine Academy of Roma at Rome’s Hassler Hotel. It was Italy’s first wine academy of its kind, and afterwards much copied with “academies” of all kinds sprouting all over Italy. But the original was the best and most seriously credible, with Hugh Johnson the Honorary President and Steven Spurrier its President). Ian was fortunate enough to live and learn from this unique formative experience. He then went on to teach about wine, wine grapes and wine business at various Italian universities and technical institutes, including the Univesità di Roma-Tor Vergata and the Istituto Politecnico di Bari. During this time he was also extremely busy acting as an invited speaker at university, research and wine conferences all over the world, from North America to China. He was then the main founder of the Vinitaly International Academy (where he stayed four years but with which he has absolutely nothing to do with anymore, has had nothing to do with it since 2018, and is in no way linked or affiliated to it), moving on to create the much more credible and prestigious Italian International Indigenous Center for Wine and Food Studies in Barolo (or 3iC), that helped train over 300 individuals from all over the world in its time.

Clearly, when the pandemic hit, wine courses and events had to be put on hold or ceased to exist all over the world. But Ian was continuously asked by wine professionals everywhere about restarting his wine masterclasses and courses as soon as possible.

And so, the brand-new Ian D’Agata Wine Academy (IDWA) was created in an effort to cater to the needs and desires of sommeliers (including numerous Master Sommeliers and Michelin-starred restaurant sommeliers), and other wine professionals working in wine-related fields as diverse as wine sales, importing businesses, hospitality, journalism and wine writing and blogging, and more. The IDWA’s masterclasses, tutorials and courses will focus on Italian wines, Ian’s recognized specialty but also on wines of other world areas that Ian has been covering and writing about in-depth for the past twenty+ years in prestigious magazines such as the Gambero Rosso, International Wine Cellar, Decanter and Vinous, as well as Hugh Johnson’s Pocket Wine Book. Ian is universally considered an expert of the wines of all these wine regions.

IDWA Course Locations

For the time being, the IDWA courses are available in Shanghai (six a year), in Montalcino (twice a year) and Barolo (twice a year). Starting in 2026, once a year also in New York City and other cities in the USA and Canada (2026 course schedule to be published at the end of December 2025/beginning of January 2026). All the courses are held in one of our partner structures, such as the Castiglion del Bosco winery in Montalcino.

IDWA Course structure

The IDWA courses are divided in three different levels: Connoisseur (Introductory), Advanced and Expert. Those who wish to work with the IDWA in the future as teachers of the IDWA courses also need to pass an Educator exam. Ian’s award-winning books Native Wine Grapes of Italy, Italy’s Native Wine Grape Terroirs, The Grapes and Wines of Italy: The definitive Compendium Region by Region and  Italian Wine Terroirs, serve as textbooks for the courses.

All three levels are passed by writing successfully a multiple-choice exam of varying length depending on the course level. It is held on the final day of the course, at the end of the lectures; the Expert level also comes with a blind tasting exam of ten different wines. All three courses provide the students who nhave successfully passed with a specific Ian D’Agata Wine Academy certificate and lapel pin (the pins are of different colours: Connoisseur: bronze colour; Advanced: silver colour; Expert: gold colour).

The basic outline of the teaching programs of the individual course levels is as follows: 

Connoisseur: two 90 minutes masterclasses in the morning; one hour lunch; a third 90 minutes masterclass in the afternoon, followed by a twenty multiple choice question exam. This is a fairly straightforward, easygoing course and learning setting ideal for those who may not yet know much about Italian wine, wine grapes, and terroirs, and requires just good and attentive classroom listening skills to pass the exam. About 12 wines tasted. Cost: 250 euros.

Advanced 1 and 2

The Advanced level course covers most of Italy’s wines and denominations, but that is too large a topic to be broached and successfully taught in just three short days. Therefore, the Advanced course is divided into two equally large parts that cover different wines and terroirs. So, for example, Barolo is included in Advanced level 1 while Brunello is included in Advanced level 2.

Length: Three days (Advanced 1); three days (Advanced 2)

Ideal for: This course is ideally suited for those with an already good working knowledge about Italian wine, its terroirs, denominations and wine grapes but who wish to know much more. 

Day 1: Presentation and Introduction (roughly 30 minutes); Wines of Northwestern Italy Masterclass in the morning (90-120 minutes long); one hour lunch; Wines of Northeastern Italy Masterclass in the afternoon (90-120 minutes long). Special masterclass and dinner in the evening.

Day 2: Wines of Central Italy Masterclass in the morning (90-120 minutes long); one hour lunch; Wines of Southern Italy and the Islands Masterclass in the afternoon (90-120 minutes long). Reception and dinner party for the students in the evening.

Day 3: Exam (90 minutes in the morning); one hour lunch; afternoon special tasting, vertical or winery presentation and winery visit led by a winemaker; second winery presentation and visit. Departure.  

Note: while the outline of the course remains the same, the wines that are taught about and served are completely new and different in the Advanced level 1 and 2 courses. Each Advanced level will feature 60-80 wines. Cost: Advanced 1: 490 Euros. Advanced 2: 490 Euros.

Expert

Length: Four three-day courses held over two years at specific times of the year.

Ideal for: All senior level wine professionals, or those who reach that level, with a world-class unique, depth of Italian wine knowledge that helps set them apart in their chosen field

Day one and two consist in five specific masterclass seminars on specific individual wines and terroirs. There are therefore 20 different seminars held in four different blocks during the course of two years (each of five masterclass seminars) that make up the IDWA Expert level course, including: Barolo 1; Barolo 2; Barbaresco; Brunello di Montalcino 1; Brunello di Montalcino 2; Etna; Amarone; Malvasia varieties and their wines; Trebbiano varieties and their wines; Lambrusco varieties and their wines; Moscato varieties and their wines; Sicily; Sardinia; Verdicchio and Marche; Campania; Unknown and Rare  Grape varieties and their wines; Zone-specific Blind Tasting 1; Zone-specific Blind Tasting 2; Zone-specific Blind Tasting 3. Mock exam.

On the third day, a 100 multiple choice question written exam and an oral exam (blind tasting of 12 different wines) are held in the morning. Note that when the Expert and Advanced Level courses are held in Montalcino and in other wine regions, one or two winery visit/s is/are included in the course program as well. One evening reception and dinner party and one special masterclass and wine session focus and dinner are also always included in the two days of the course. Cost: 650 Euros per three-day session.

Educator

A limited series of courses involving a one day long wine name pronunciation, speaking in public / how to teach successfully lecture, and a 50 multiple choice question wine review exam. Cost: 650 Euros.