LEGANT, sophisticated, intellectual ...

One tends to run out of favourable adjectives when describing Serena Sutcliffe, a Master of Wine and head of Sotheby's International Wine Department.

The coveted Master of Wine designation is well known to be one of the hardest to attain in any academic discipline.

So far, only about 240 people have passed the rigorous exam, held annually since 1953 by the London-based Institute of Wine, which is determined to preserve the high standards of this field. In 1976 Sutcliffe passed the exam on her first attempt to become the second woman ever to be awarded the prestigious title.

Sotheby's is perhaps the world's best known auction house. Its wine sales, of which Sutcliffe is in charge, have for years ranked first worldwide. In addition, Sutcliffe has authored a number of books on the subject.

Approaching 60, Sutcliffe is a tall, striking woman, with platinum hair tucked neatly behind her ears. For our interview at a local hotel she looks natural and ebullient, her lips adorned with a bit of bright lipstick.

Her job with Sotheby's takes her back and forth between Europe and America as collections to be offered for sale are viewed, verified, and transported. This year, more journeys have been arranged to Asia.

"We have more and more Asian clients who are real wine lovers," she said.

Hong Kong and Singapore are the places she frequents, but Sutcliffe believes that "in the next 20 years, Shanghai will have as many big wine collectors as Hong Kong and Singapore," adding that "The Chinese are passionate about taste, and that makes a solid base for the wine industry here."

During her brief stay in Shanghai last month to attend a wine tasting activity, Sutcliffe also found time to visit local wine shops and taste a few Chinese varieties.

"I still couldn't get myself accustomed to the Chinese rice wine. It has a different taste, but I do like Chinese beers. Different cities have different beers in China, but they all taste good," she said.

Also interested in history, Sutcliffe couldn't help getting excited when discussing how in ancient times, many Chinese wines were also made from grapes, a fact that bolsters her confidence in the rising popularity of wine among Chinese.

Super palate

It sounds like a magical incantation when this master of wine describes the types, vintages and origins of the grapes simply by smelling, tasting and looking at a wine.

"The different terrains of the growing field, whether the slope is steep or gentle, and how is the soil and weather ... all these factors can influence the taste of wine," Sutcliffe explained.

"But to make out the differences, you should fully use all the sensory organs on your head - except maybe the ears."

A good wine, in her view, should have "a haunting taste, haunting scent, a lingering finish and a lacy texture."

"Good wine dances on the palate and the taste goes round and round in circles in the mouth," she adds.

Sutcliffe long ago began insisting on wine with every meal and now finds a day without it boring.

"I put my money for buying expensive clothes towards good wines," she said.

Interestingly, Sutcliffe has seldom become drunk, despite a job which requires her to sometimes taste more than 50 different wines in a morning.

"I actually don't swallow what I taste - a wine-taster should always find places to spit out the wine, otherwise he or she would immediately get drunk," she said.

"Being a wine taster is exciting. Each bottle is different. Even the same wine develops a new taste when it gets older. But like many other jobs, the start is difficult."

Sutcliffe's first job was as a French- English translator in France. Her passion for wine inspired her to change careers altogether and in 1971 she moved to London to join the wine trade.

No one in her family had been in the business before. When she told them her big decision, the whole family was rather taken aback. At that time, very few women were in the industry.

"I still remember the many doubtful looks from the old men in the trade who couldn't help asking me, 'Do you really know what a wine is?"' she recalled incredulously.

But the pressure never stopped her and in 1976 came the title for which she is famed, after the required minimum of four years' study with the Institute of Wine.

She then married another wine master, British wine expert David Peppercorn, and together the couple ran an international wine consultancy company from 1977 to 1990.

In 1991, they received an offer from Sotheby's International Wine Department for either of them to take charge of its wine auction. They finally decided that Sutcliffe would take the job.

"He wants more freedom," Sutcliffe said of her husband.

And despite what one might think, the couple doesn't spend a lot of time talking about wine at home.

"We talk about a wine for a few minutes, and then we talk about music, or politics," she said.

Gifted palate

Taste has been fundamental to Sutcliffe from an early age, "whether it was a preference for one honey over another, sipping my grandfather's Champagne or the revelation of my first Chinese meal, which in retrospect, was not so good."

And, like many other super tasters, Sutcliffe has had an acute sense of smell since she was a child.

"I would go berserk at school and say, 'Oh, there is the smell of gas,' and the teacher would say, 'No there's not," and then later they'd find a small gas leak down the corridor," Sutcliffe recalled.

Her work as a wine taster is not the cushy job one might imagine.

"You need enormous concentration to taste effectively. It is actually quite tiring, both physically and mentally," she said.

"You need to check everything from colour to texture and from smell to taste until the finish. Sometimes it is really easy and it just flows; at other times it needs great application."

In her spare time, Sutcliffe goes to concerts, museums and the opera.

Her latest trip to China left a great impression on her, especially the old Chinese furniture.

"I especially like the chairs made in the style of the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644). They look so simple but elegant," said the wine expert, who at this moment is likely dreaming of sitting in a Ming-style chair with a nice glass of Champagne.