Bartender to head sommelier
A bartender already meets 21% of what the head sommelier role asks for. The move turns on 20 required skills not yet in the profile.
78.4/ 100
1 How much of what a head sommelier is expected to do is already part of a bartender’s work. Directional: the figure for the reverse move differs, because moving into a speciality is not the same problem as moving out of one. 2 Every skill the head sommelier role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.
Why this move works
A head sommelier role treats 5 of its required skills as things a bartender already does. You would walk in with these on day one.
- comply with food safety and hygiene
- maintain customer service
- serve wines
- sparkling wines
- upsell products
What stands in the way is 20 required skills the profile does not yet cover. Table 3 groups them; Table 4 says which to take first.
Table 2 · What you already bring
Of the 6 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. A head sommelier role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of a bartender background worth leading with.
- already held serve wines assisting and caring
- already held sparkling wines engineering, manufacturing and construction
- already held apply foreign languages in hospitality communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held upsell products communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held comply with food safety and hygiene assisting and caring
- already held maintain customer service communication, collaboration and creativity
All 6 carried skills, including the 5 the head sommelier role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 22 missing skills fall into 6 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, numbered in the order worth working in. Areas carrying the most required skills come first, and inside each one the required skills sit above the optional ones. Nothing here is a verdict on you: it is a list of what this particular job asks for that your current one does not.
- still to learn compile wine lists required
- still to learn procure hospitality products required
- still to learn recommend wines required
- still to learn coach employees required
- still to learn order supplies required
- still to learn train employees required
- still to learn organise wine cellar required
- still to learn manage medium term objectives required
- still to learn manage stock rotation required
- still to learn plan shifts of employees required
- still to learn recruit employees required
- still to learn assist customers required
- still to learn prepare alcoholic beverages required
- still to learn select glassware for serving required
- optional, not held prepare tableware optional
- optional, not held handle surveillance equipment optional
- still to learn wine characteristics required
- still to learn wine related sciences required
- still to learn types of wine required
- still to learn check wine quality required
- still to learn monitor work for special events required
- still to learn ensure maintenance of kitchen equipment required
Table 4 · Where to start
The 3 entries a head sommelier role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.
- 01 assist customers practise this
- 02 check wine quality practise this
- 03 compile wine lists practise this
Each entry opens a course search for that skill. Career Overlap earns nothing from these links.
Appendix · The rest of the record
All 6 skills that carry over
- already held comply with food safety and hygiene skill
- already held maintain customer service skill
- already held serve wines skill
- already held sparkling wines knowledge
- already held upsell products skill
- already held apply foreign languages in hospitality skill
2 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held prepare tableware optional
- optional, not held handle surveillance equipment optional
32 held skills the head sommelier role does not ask for
- not needed by the target role assemble cocktail garnishes skill
- not needed by the target role change kegs skill
- not needed by the target role clean beer pipes skill
- not needed by the target role clear the bar at closing time skill
- not needed by the target role compile drinks menu skill
- not needed by the target role compile drinks price lists skill
- not needed by the target role create decorative food displays skill
- not needed by the target role detect drug abuse skill
- not needed by the target role devise special promotions skill
- not needed by the target role display spirits skill
- not needed by the target role educate customers on coffee varieties skill
- not needed by the target role educate customers on tea varieties skill
- not needed by the target role enforce alcohol drinking laws skill
- not needed by the target role execute opening and closing procedures skill
- not needed by the target role handle bar equipment skill
- not needed by the target role handle gas cylinders skill
- not needed by the target role handle glassware skill
- not needed by the target role handover the service area skill
- not needed by the target role identify customer's needs skill
- not needed by the target role local area tourism industry knowledge
- not needed by the target role maintain bar cleanliness skill
- not needed by the target role prepare fruit ingredients for use in beverages skill
- not needed by the target role prepare garnish for drinks skill
- not needed by the target role prepare hot drinks skill
- not needed by the target role prepare mixed beverages skill
- not needed by the target role present drinks menu skill
- not needed by the target role process payments skill
- not needed by the target role serve beers skill
- not needed by the target role serve beverages skill
- not needed by the target role setup the bar area skill
- not needed by the target role stock the bar skill
- not needed by the target role take food and beverage orders from customers skill
3 gaps that are knowledge rather than practice
Knowledge gaps usually close through study. Practical skill gaps usually need something you can point at.
- still to learn wine characteristics required
- still to learn wine related sciences required
- still to learn types of wine required
Other moves recorded from bartender
- cocktail bartender 74% covered · moderate
- barista 45% covered · substantial
- quick service restaurant crew member 38% covered · substantial
- sommelier 33% covered · substantial
- waiter/waitress 30% covered · career change
- hotel concierge 27% covered · substantial
- quick service restaurant team leader 24% covered · substantial
- night auditor 24% covered · substantial
Common questions about this move
Can a bartender become a head sommelier?
Yes, and it is a career change move. A bartender already covers 21% of what a head sommelier is expected to do: 6 skills carry over, 5 of which the head sommelier role treats as required.
What skills does a bartender need to become a head sommelier?
20 required skills are missing, plus 2 optional ones. They fall into 6 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by communication, collaboration and creativity. The single most important is assist customers.
How hard is the move from bartender to head sommelier?
Its learning distance is 78.4 out of 100, which is the career change band. That accounts for both how much is missing and how specialised those skills are.
How this record was compiled
Both occupations are taken from ESCO, which lists the skills and knowledge each occupation is expected to have and marks every one required or optional. Nothing here is a prediction about hiring, and nothing here knows that a particular employer wants a particular certificate. Treat Table 3 as a starting point for your own research rather than a syllabus. The full method states what these figures can and cannot tell you.