Italy

Nikan Jooyani

Nikan is an Iranian lady, currently working at Ferrari’s historic Cavallino restaurant in Maranello, Italy. Her journey in wine began when she moved to Italy to study Literature. Coming from Iran, where access to alcohol is heavily restricted, Nikan took her first steps in the small restaurant she worked at, tasting wines and reading the labels after her shift would finish. A sommelier course with the FISAR soon followed, and Nikan had discovered her passion: as she puts it, “the forbidden fruit became the jewel in the crown”. As she has become more invested in the world of sommellerie, Nikan recognises and appreciates the determination and humility that marks out the masters of the craft. She has also noticed that often her tasting notes are different from those of her European peers, which she attributes to her upbringing amongst the tastes and scents of Persian cuisine. As Nikan progresses in her sommelier journey, we are sure that she will enrich and broaden our tasting lexicon with these new descriptors.