Sommeliers Australia has voted in Ben Edwards to be its first officially elected national president.

Edwards, head of the Victorian division of Sommeliers Australia, and Ben Moechtar, head of the NSW association, had been joint presidents of the organisation for the past two years.

Sommeliers Australia is a not for profit hospitality industry organisation that began life in the early 1990s in Victoria and NSW as separate associations. In August 2007, the two associations merged to form a national body, renamed ‘Sommeliers Australia’. In 2009 Sommeliers Australia has extended chapters to all states, and the Annual General Meeting (AGM) was the first since the official establishment of the national body. Those present at the AGM also appointed members who will take up roles on the national executive. They include: Ben Moechtar (NSW), Franck Moreau (NSW), Tim Stock (NSW), Tony Venn (NSW), David Lawler (VIC), Chris Crawford (VIC), Dan Sims (VIC), Peter Marchant (QLD), Ed Wolkowinski (WA), Louise Radman (SA) and Joseph Burton (TAS).

The first meeting of the national executive will be held in early 2010, and at this meeting a key agenda item will be to fill the remaining roles of vice-president, secretary and treasurer.

Edwards, who has previously worked at Stella, est, est, est and Circa, the Prince, and in 1999 was awarded the prestigious Champagne Devaux Young Sommelier Award. In 2003 he was awarded the honour of being Dux of The Len Evans Tutorial. The Presidency of The Australian Sommeliers Association in Victoria has been his responsibility since 2002.

“We've put in such a lot of work to take the association up a notch. The next phase is very exciting, and I was very keen to continue to drive the strategy with a committed team. It was actually quite a proud day to see all of our State Chapter representatives in the one room at this meeting. We’ve come such a long way, and this meeting was quite an important event in the history of our association,” said Edwards.

In May next year the association will hold its inaugural Sommelier Symposium in Melbourne, a three day event from May 15 including keynote speakers, education panels, tastings and the exploration of the leadership, educative and professional role of the sommelier. For more details visit Symposium.sommeliers.org.au