Flying and eating don’t always go hand in hand. It’s often lamentable fare washed down with a fizzy ginger ale. For some airlines that’s just good enough. But Qantas isn’t playing that. They want you to have an awesome experience on their airplanes. They also want you to nosh on delicious food and tip back excellent tipple.
The carrier recently started the Sommelier in the Sky program to train 2,000 flight attendants in the gentle subtleties of oenology. This isn’t just pulling some corks and passing around a bottle. Qantas provides an in-depth course for their staff, “the sommelier flight attendants undergo three days of intensive training, which includes an all-day exam of blind tastings, an 80-question exam, and a practical skills test.”
Now, you’re probably thinking, “This is only for first class, right?” Actually, no. It’s for anyone seated on a long-haul flight. All you have to do is mosey on down to the galley and ask for the wine tasting. The blind tastings include 15 wines in total — many of which are otherwise reserved for business and first class passengers. Tasting 15 wines sounds like a great way to spend a few hours on a very long flight. Variety is key, so Qantas stocks over 250 different wines on its various flights around the world. Incidentally, the airline is the third largest buyer of Australian wine worldwide. If wine isn’t your thing, Qantas has also added professional mixologists to flights to shake you a perfect martini.
All those hours on that long flight to Australia seem to be getting a lot easier and tastier to bear.
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(Via Condé Nast Traveler)
