JWN Academy preparing people for the hospitality industry

Liquors are a major part of the tourist and hospitality industries. They are ­inseparable. Industry workers such as hosts, bartenders and bar supervisors, and beverage managers then must have a comprehensive knowledge of those alcoholic staples. Thus training is key.

It is offered by many ­institutions across the country.

Yet one company that is ­directly involved in the ­production of liquor is playing a major role in the training of bartenders and bar supervisors, et al. For three to four years now, JWN Academy has evolved into a popular place to go to get training. It is an affiliate of the Campari Academy, and JWN is owned by Grupo Campari.

Hospitality Jamaica recently spoke with Sharmon Hinds-Smith, lead instructor, about the roles that the academy is playing in the training of personnel in the ­hospitality and tourism sectors. One role is promotional as the company wants to make sure that people are aware of its products and choose their products for the right reasons. “It is to cement ­people’s thoughts about our ­products and brands,” Hinds-Smith said.

Thus, there is training about the individual brands, which is product knowledge; about how to use and mix the products; and about how to enjoy them in a responsible and safe way. It trains bartenders and bar supervisors, and there is a consumer course on creating cocktails. It is about learning about rums and aperitifs, and the doors are open to anybody who wants to learn. Hinds-Smith said many hotels take advantage of the courses offered.

Some of these courses are Professional Bartending Levels One and Two, and a beginners course in rums, aperitifs, and digestives.

But it is not just about the knowledge of liquors themselves, and it is very much more than pouring beverages into glasses. It is also about presentation, serving with flair, and at the Jamaica Rum Festival last weekend, patrons got a chance to see the mixing and ­serving skills of some of the ­graduates of the academy.

The ­essence was about ­educating and entertaining guests and patrons. In a dazzling, ­synchronised dance routine that also included singing, rapping, and modelling, some of the ­graduates showed thousands of patrons what they had learnt from the academy. It was a well-­received ­presentation, the kind that many people might not ­otherwise get a chance to see. It was symbolic of the kind of ­services that JWN Academy has to offer and the skills of the people that it has trained over the years.

Hinds-Smith said the academy is “quite popular and has good standing in the adult-beverage industry”, and “a lot of ­persons recommend us to their ­employees when they want to get them a little more skilled”.

Dajorn Commock, who is a ­graduate and now a bar ­supervisor, said the training was “great” and that he learnt all his skills at the academy.