The full example
Everything below is fictional. The venues are described rather than named, and the achievements are the kind of thing a real sommelier does — written the way they should appear on a CV, not inflated.
Sommelier CV — example
Header
[Full Name] [Town, UK] · [phone] · [email]
Professional summary
Sommelier with six years on the floor, currently running the wine programme of a 55-cover tasting-menu restaurant: a 240-bin list, a cellar of around 2,000 bottles, pairings for two menus and the beverage GP. WSET Level 3 with Distinction and working towards the Diploma. Looking for a head sommelier role or a larger list with a buying remit.
Core skills
Wine list writing and pricing · Pairing menus · Beverage GP and cost of sales Cellar management and stock rotation · Monthly stock counts · Bin cards Supplier tastings and allocations · By-the-glass programme · Coravin Table service, decanting and glassware · Staff wine training Sake, spirits and low-alcohol pairings · Lightspeed EPOS · SevenRooms notes
Experience
Sommelier — 55-cover tasting-menu restaurant, Edinburgh Feb 2023 – present · Write and price a 240-bin list across still, sparkling, fortified and sake, with a 16-line by-the-glass selection changed every six weeks. · Build the standard and premium pairings for each menu change with the head chef, tasting every course before the pairing is printed. · Hold the beverage GP to the restaurant target through pricing, allocation management and a monthly cellar count reconciled against Lightspeed. · Run a 20-minute pre-service wine briefing for the floor team and a monthly tasting session, with notes kept in SevenRooms for regular guests. Assistant Sommelier — 90-cover hotel restaurant, Glasgow Sep 2020 – Jan 2023 · Served wine across the restaurant and private dining room, including decanting and large-format service for a 16-seat private dining room. · Managed deliveries, bin allocation and cellar temperature logs for a 1,200-bottle cellar, and ran the weekly stock count. · Hosted a monthly winemaker dinner for up to 40 guests, from the pairing to the host’s introduction at each course. Waiter — 70-cover wine bar and restaurant, Cheltenham Jun 2018 – Aug 2020 · Ran a section of six tables and the by-the-glass recommendations for it, with 40 wines open on Coravin and by the bottle. · Took allergen and dietary requirements at the table and checked pairings against them with the kitchen. · Completed WSET Level 2 while working full time.
Education and certifications
WSET Level 3 Award in Wines (Distinction) — 2022 WSET Level 4 Diploma in Wines — in progress, expected 2027 WSET Level 2 Award in Wines — 2019 WSET Level 1 Award in Sake — 2023 Court of Master Sommeliers Introductory Certificate — 2021 Level 2 Food Safety and Hygiene for Catering — 2023 Personal Licence (APLH Level 2) — 2021
Additional
Languages: English (native), Italian (conversational), French (reading) Regions visited: Burgundy, Piedmont, Mosel, Rioja; harvest in Piedmont, 2022 Availability: evenings and weekends; happy to travel for supplier tastings
Templates that suit this example
- Classic — A quiet, formal layout that suits fine dining and hotel restaurants, where the list and the qualifications do the talking.
- Modern Rail — A side rail keeps WSET levels, languages and regions visible beside the experience.
- Floor — Front-of-house layout that puts service skills and qualifications early for a first wine role.
Want this structure with your own experience in it?
Build your sommelier CVWhy each section is written that way
Professional summary
- Why it matters.
- The reader is usually a head sommelier or a restaurant manager, and they want to know three things at once: the size of list you have run, your WSET level, and whether you have held the GP.
- A strong version.
- Covers, bin count, cellar size, pairing responsibility, your highest WSET level and what you are working towards. Then the role you want. Four sentences.
- Common mistake.
- Leading with a love of wine. Everyone applying for this role loves wine; the summary is for what you have been responsible for.
Core skills
- Why it matters.
- A sommelier CV sits between a service CV and a buying CV. The skills section is where a reader sees which side you have actually worked on — the floor, the cellar, the list, or all three.
- A strong version.
- List writing and pricing, GP, cellar and stock work, supplier relationships, service technique and training — plus the EPOS and reservation systems where your notes and counts live.
- Common mistake.
- A list of grape varieties and regions. Knowledge is assumed at Level 3; the reader is checking for the responsibilities around it.
Experience
- Why it matters.
- Bin count, cellar size, pairing menus and by-the-glass lines are the measures that let a reader compare one wine programme with another. Without them, "sommelier" could mean anything from a wine-literate waiter to a buyer.
- A strong version.
- List size, cellar size, how often the list changes, who you built pairings with, the GP you held, the training you gave, and the events you ran. Plausible figures about your own list only.
- Common mistake.
- Claiming a revenue figure for the whole restaurant as if it were yours. A head sommelier reading it will know the difference and discount the rest.
Qualifications
- Why it matters.
- WSET levels are the common currency of UK wine recruitment, and the Diploma or the Court of Master Sommeliers route signals how far you intend to go. Readers look here second, straight after the summary.
- A strong version.
- Highest level first with the grade if it was Distinction or Merit, anything in progress with the expected date, then sake, spirits or beer qualifications, then the floor essentials — food safety and a Personal Licence.
- Common mistake.
- Listing a qualification you are "planning to start". In progress with a date is evidence; an intention is not.
Additional
- Why it matters.
- Languages matter for supplier and producer relationships and for international guests, and a harvest or a vineyard visit shows the interest extends past the floor.
- A strong version.
- Languages with an honest level, regions you have visited or worked in, and availability — including whether you can travel for tastings.
- Common mistake.
- A long list of every wine region you can name. Keep it to the ones where you have been or worked.
If your experience looks different
Most people are not the candidate in the example. Three common situations, and what to change for each.
No wine experience — your first sommelier or wine-waiter role
Your summary. Say plainly that this would be your first dedicated wine role, and lead with the service experience and the WSET level you already have. "Waiter with three years in a wine-led restaurant, WSET Level 2, looking for a first assistant sommelier role" is enough.
What to emphasise. Any wine responsibility you took as a waiter — by-the-glass recommendations, helping with deliveries or stock counts, attending supplier tastings — plus the service standards of the venues you worked in.
Bullets you could adapt
- ·Recommended by-the-glass pairings for a [X]-table section, with [X] wines open on Coravin.
- ·Helped the sommelier with weekly deliveries, bin allocation and the monthly cellar count.
- ·Completed WSET Level 2 while working full time, and attended [X] supplier tastings with the wine team.
Certifications. WSET Level 2 is the practical minimum for an assistant sommelier post and can be completed in a few weeks. Level 3 enrolment with a date shows where you are heading.
Some experience — going for head sommelier
Your summary. Shift the emphasis from service to the programme: the list you own, the GP you hold, the buying you do and the people you train. Name the step — "sommelier with six years, looking for a first head sommelier role".
What to emphasise. List writing and pricing, supplier negotiation and allocations, the beverage budget, staff training you designed, events you ran, and any time you covered the head sommelier.
Bullets you could adapt
- ·Covered the head sommelier for [X] months, including the list relaunch and the quarterly supplier reviews.
- ·Wrote and priced a [X]-bin list against a beverage GP target, reviewed monthly with the general manager.
- ·Trained [X] front-of-house staff to WSET Level 1 standard through a weekly in-house session.
Certifications. WSET Level 3 with the grade, and visible progress towards the Diploma or the Court of Master Sommeliers Certified level. A Personal Licence helps if the role includes bar oversight.
Moving into wine from the wine trade, retail or another industry
Your summary. Lead with the wine knowledge and the commercial experience you already have, and be clear about the service side being new. Someone from a wine merchant or a drinks distributor is closer to this job than the titles suggest.
What to emphasise. Tasting and buying experience, product knowledge, customer-facing recommendation, stock and margin responsibility, and any floor work — even part-time — you have done.
Bullets you could adapt
- ·Advised retail customers on a [X]-line range at an independent wine merchant, with weekly tastings for staff and customers.
- ·Managed stock and margin for a [X]-bin range, including supplier ordering and monthly counts.
- ·Completed WSET Level 3 and Level 2 Food Safety ahead of moving onto the restaurant floor.
Certifications. WSET Level 3 if you have it, plus Level 2 Food Safety and a Personal Licence so a restaurant can put you on the floor without delay.
Next steps
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