Article written by Yanna Delière
“Wine should be fun, not intimidating.” Coming from the Best Young Sommelier of France 2023, this sentence is not a slogan. It is a programme for the future of sommellerie.
A career of excellence and early achievement
Originally from the Lyon area, Marie Wodecki has established herself in just a few years as one of the most serious rising talents on the French scene. Hers is the career of a passionate professional who has turned her talent into iron discipline. Trained alongside the very best, she built her experience in prestigious houses, notably at the Hôtel de Crillon in Paris, where she refined her technique and her palate in contact with a demanding international clientele.
Her victory in the Best Young Sommelier of France 2023 competition was a true turning point, while she was working at L’Écrin restaurant (Paris). Under the guidance of Xavier Thuizat, she learned the surgical precision of pairings and the management of an exceptional cellar.
For Marie, the palace hotel was a school of discipline. But it is at Saba that she now expresses her own identity as a sommelier.
The stage for her excellence: Saba (Annecy)
Marie chose to settle on the shores of Lake Annecy. She joined the team at Saba, the city’s rising gastronomic address.
Moving from the buzz of a palace hotel to an establishment like Saba is a bold choice. Here, sommellerie aims to be closer to the guest and more direct, while maintaining the highest standards. In a setting where nature and produce are at the heart of the plate, Marie brings her champion’s rigour and her knack for unearthing hidden gems, building a bridge between her Parisian expertise and the mountain terroirs she now explores with passion.
Why this encounter?
Behind the scenes of my choice
Inviting Marie Wodecki to take part in this series was an obvious choice. It seemed essential to me to listen to someone who lives the challenges of the job every day through the eyes of her generation. Best Young Sommelier of France 2023, she brings an essential cornerstone to this series: that of a professional rooted in the present, who talks about the future of sommellerie with the frankness of someone building it every day.
What struck me during our conversations is that she embodies three rare qualities in one person. Agility, first: in a human-scale establishment, Marie becomes a true craftswoman of advice again, able to adapt her list to the rhythm of the seasons and her favourite finds. Curiosity, next: she passionately explores the vineyards of Savoie and beyond, looking for wines that tell a human story as much as a terroir. And finally, without ever claiming it, a role model: her career inspires many young women, proving that you can reach the top of the profession very early — and then choose to build your own path.
The vineyard and the climate challenge: the rise of freshness
For Marie Wodecki, climate change is redrawing the map of opportunities. She naturally turns her attention to areas able to preserve tension:
“Savoie and Haute-Savoie are, of course, the terroirs of the future. We still produce wines there at 10% alcohol. But I’m also keeping a very close eye on Brittany; after tasting the wines near Saint-Malo, I think this region is going to develop at lightning speed.”
Changing consumption: making wine fun
Faced with growing disinterest in wine among some young people, Marie advocates a revolution in the way we approach guests. For her, the solution lies in teaching and adaptability:
“The sommelier must be approachable and make the conversation more spontaneous. Wine should be fun, not intimidating. To adapt to new profiles, we need to offer easy-drinking wines with less pronounced oak ageing. On the floor, I don’t hesitate to offer pours of less than 12 cl so that guests can enjoy precise pairings without excess.”
The future of the profession and training
Very clear-eyed about the recruitment crisis in hospitality, Marie Wodecki calls for a profound rethink of management styles:
“Restaurateurs must be humane and set an example. Managing working hours is key: four-day weeks and concrete benefits must become the norm to motivate teams. This profession has been devalued for too long by disrespectful behaviour that ‘puts off’ young people. It’s time to restore the prestige of service.”
Final words: A message to the next generation
To close our conversation, I asked Marie what advice she would give a young person still hesitating to take the plunge into sommellerie. Her answer is a heartfelt plea for her passion:
“Sommellerie is a wonderful world that offers unique moments: visiting estates, the challenge of competitions, the solidarity between colleagues… It’s a small family where you learn every day. If you need to push yourself and you love people, go for it. It’s a rewarding profession where you’re never bored.”
In summary: the key takeaways from our interview
Through Marie Wodecki’s eyes, tomorrow’s sommellerie takes shape with refreshing clarity. Young and rooted in her Alpine region, she holds a vision of the profession that combines high standards and accessibility — and refuses to choose between the two.
On the vineyard, she looks resolutely north and to higher altitudes. Savoie, Brittany, cool-climate terroirs — these are what will shape tomorrow’s wine lists. Not as a passing fad, but because guests increasingly favour tension and minerality.
On consumption, she advocates a revolution in how we approach guests: making wine fun, adapting the conversation, offering different formats — down to pours of less than 12 cl for precise pairings without excess.
Finally, on the future of the profession, she doesn’t mince her words: disrespectful behaviour has damaged the image of service for too long. It’s time to restore the profession’s prestige — through humane managers, stable working hours and daily recognition of teams.
Beyond her titles, Marie Wodecki embodies the figure of the “sommelier-artisan”, who builds a wine list the way one prunes a vine — with patience, intuition and deep respect for living things.