Beverages can include wine, beer, spirits and liqueurs. This unit applies to hospitality organisations which serve food and beverage including hotels, restaurants, wineries, fine food outlets and clubs. Advice on food and beverage matching might also be provided by wholesalers to hospitality outlets and from retail liquor outlets to retail customers.
It applies to frontline sales and operational personnel who operate with some level of independence and under limited supervision to provide advice to others about the matching of beverages to food items and cuisines. This includes beverage sales consultants, bar specialists, sommeliers and other senior bar and food and beverage attendants.
This unit must be assessed after the following prerequisite unit: | |
SITHFAB201 | Provide responsible service of alcohol |
Elements describe the essential outcomes of a unit of competency. | Performance criteria describe the performance needed to demonstrate achievement of the element. Where bold italicised text is used, further information is detailed in the required skills and knowledge section and the range statement. Assessment of performance is to be consistent with the evidence guide. |
1. Evaluate foods and beverages. | 1.1 Assess the compatibility of both Australian and imported wines with various food items and cuisines. 1.2 Assess the compatibility of beers, spirits and liqueurs with various food items and cuisines. 1.3 Determine the ways in which different methods of cooking affect food compatibility with different beverages. 1.4 Evaluate the ways in which food features affect interactions with different beverages. 1.5 Determine the ways in which beverage production techniques affect beverage compatibility with different foods. |
2. Provide advice on food and beverage compatibility. | 2.1 Provide informed opinions and ideas to support the selection of compatible food and beverage items. 2.2 Exchange and discuss options, ideas and information in a manner that builds positive rapport with customers and colleagues. 2.3 Provide tailored food and beverage matching advice that is appropriate to the specific need. 2.4 Take account of appropriate and ethical business considerations when providing advice. 2.5 Adapt and adjust advice appropriately to meet particular organisational requirements. |
3. Extend and update own knowledge of food and beverage compatibility. | 3.1 Conduct research to access information on current and emerging food and beverage service trends and customer preferences. 3.2 Identify customer taste trends based on customer contact and workplace experience. 3.3 Provide informed input about food and beverage matching to support organisational activities. |
Required skills |
communication skills to articulate advice about food and beverage matching and to discuss and debate different ideas and opinions critical thinking skills to evaluate wide ranging information about food and beverage compatibility learning skills to continuously update knowledge of food and beverage compatibility literacy skills to: read and interpret detailed product information, promotional material and reviews about cuisines and beverages research information on current and emerging food and beverage service trends and customer preferences write notes, summarise and record information in basic documents such as information sheets, portfolios and files problem-solving skills to recognise customer budget and adjust advice to take account of their constraints self-management skills to take responsibility for sourcing and updating current and emerging product information teamwork skills to share current knowledge and new information with colleagues. |
Required knowledge |
major food types, their characteristics and how those characteristics affect compatibility with beverages: appetisers cheeses dishes from several major cuisines: international modern Australian fruits and vegetables meat, fish and seafood salads sauces and accompaniments soups special diets for health or cultural reasons sweets and desserts major methods of cookery, including those listed, and what this means for food and beverage matching: baking boiling braising deep-frying grilling pan-frying poaching roasting shallow frying steaming stewing stir-frying compatibility of a range of beers, spirits and liqueurs with various food items and cuisines compatibility of Australian and imported wines with various food items and cuisines overview of the chemistry of primary food and beverage components different ways that alcohol is used in cooking and the impact on food items traditional and contemporary food and beverage matches across a selection of cuisines, food types and beverage styles current and emerging trends in food and beverage matching in Australia and overseas factors to consider in achieving a balance between food and beverages on a menu. |
The evidence guide provides advice on assessment and must be read in conjunction with the performance criteria, required skills and knowledge, range statement and the Assessment Guidelines for the Training Package. | |
Overview of assessment | |
Critical aspects for assessment and evidence required to demonstrate competency in this unit | Evidence of the ability to: evaluate a range of beverages and their compatibility with different food items and cuisines provide advice to customers on their selection of compatible food and beverage items maintain and continuously extend personal knowledge of compatible food items, cuisines and beverage products integrate knowledge of: major food types, their characteristics and how those characteristics affect compatibility with beverages compatibility of a range of beers, spirits, liqueurs, Australian and imported wines with various food items and cuisines. |
Context of and specific resources for assessment | Assessment must ensure use of: an operational food and beverage outlet with the fixtures, large and small equipment and workplace documentation defined in the Assessment Guideline; this may be a: real industry workplace simulated industry environment such as a training restaurant servicing customers industry other people with whom the individual can interact to discuss food and beverage characteristics and matching options, and to answer varied questions about compatibility of food and beverage items current beverage product information within sales kits, brochures, product manuals, supplier information kits, information databases and computerised information sources current food information within recipes and descriptive menus. |
Method of assessment | A range of assessment methods should be used to assess practical skills and knowledge. The following examples are appropriate for this unit: direct observation of the individual providing advice to customers about the compatibility of beverage with food items and cuisines observation of a presentation on selected complementary food and beverage items project activities that allow assessment of the individual’s ability to research information about various compatible food and beverages items and write matching menus which meet the customer preferences of a given hospitality outlet written or oral questioning to assess knowledge of: major food types, their characteristics and compatibility with beverages cookery methods and effect on beverage matching review of portfolio of evidence and third-party workplace reports of on-the-job performance by the individual. |
Guidance information for assessment | The assessor should design integrated assessment activities to holistically assess this unit with other units relevant to the industry sector, workplace and job role, for example: SITHFAB201 Provide responsible service of alcohol SITHFAB307 Provide table service of food and beverage SITHFAB308 Provide silver service SITHFAB309 Provide advice on food SITXCCS303 Provide service to customers. |
The range statement relates to the unit of competency as a whole. It allows for different work environments and situations that may affect performance. Bold italicised wording, if used in the performance criteria, is detailed below. Essential operating conditions that may be present with training and assessment (depending on the work situation, needs of the candidate, accessibility of the item, and local industry and regional contexts) may also be included. | |
Australian and imported wines includes wines from: | all major and emerging Australian wine regions emerging wine growing countries Europe New Zealand North and South America South Africa. |
Beers, spirits and liqueurs include: | beer strengths beer types spirits traditional and contemporary liqueurs. |
Food features may relate to: | aroma taste or flavour: acidic bitter salty spicy spicy (heat) sweet umami temperature: cold frozen hot warm texture: clean creamy crisp crunch fibrous intensity light or heavy mouth feel marshmallow moist mousse rich slippery smooth velvety. |
Beverage production techniques may relate to: | bottling or packaging processes brewing practice chemical components fermentation processes maturation processes variations in raw products. |
Informed opinions and ideas might be based on: | accepted food and beverage matches critic reviews information from customers recommendations from suppliers or manufacturers research and reading results of own evaluations. |
Tailored advice might consider: | customer budget business objectives customer characteristics: age allergies cultural origins gender nature of the occasion: duration of event level of formality time of day profitability. |
Appropriate and ethical business considerations may include: | current stock profitability requirements responsible service of alcohol stock availability supplier arrangements. |
Research may include: | attending trade shows attending wine tastings reading general and trade media and supplier information reading wine and beverage reference books taking up memberships of associations and industry bodies talking to product suppliers, winemakers and vineyard managers using the Internet. |
Food and beverage service trends may relate to: | contemporary eating and drinking habits cultural and ethnic influences developments in particular countries or cuisines economic trends health and fitness issues major events and festivals media influence new ideas from chefs seasonal and popular influences. |
Organisational activities may include: | conducting product tastings providing product advice and selling food and beverage to customers selecting or assisting with selection of products from suppliers writing or providing input to: food and beverage menus beverage lists food and beverage matching menus. |
Hospitality
This unit contains employability skills.
The sale and service of alcohol is subject to the provisions of Responsible Service of Alcohol (RSA) law in each state and territory of Australia. Skills and knowledge for compliance with this law are covered by the prerequisite unit SITHFAB201 Provide responsible service of alcohol.