David writes, “I left Stowe in 1946 and was called up immediately for National Service. I was commissioned into the 4th/7th Royal Dragoon Guards and served with the regiment in Palestine until 1948. After demob in 1949, I entered the Wine Trade as a trainee. I retired from my own company in 1993 having owned several shops and bars and wholesaled fine wine extensively throughout the South of England. I passed the Master of Wine examination in 1956. There are now 380 Masters of Wine throughout the world in 29 countries – 249 male & 131 female. More individuals have now travelled in space or climbed Mount Everest than have passed this difficult examination. On my recent 90th birthday I realised that I had become the most senior living Master of Wine and felt, somewhat unreasonably, rather honoured! I am shown in the photograph holding a glass of wine and in the background are some of the thousands of gramophone records of opera in my life long collection which I began at Stowe in 1942.
