Melania Battiston
DWWA judge, Melania Battiston
(Image credit: DWWA judge, Melania Battiston)

Melania Battiston is a judge at the 2025 Decanter World Wine Awards (DWWA).

Melania Battiston

Melania Battiston comes from a small town in Lombardy, Italy. She is currently assistant food & beverage manager at the luxury hotel brand Aman Resort, where she has been working in Greece and Thailand. Previously in UK, she was head sommelier and wine buyer at Medlar restaurant in Chelsea, London.

Eight years ago, she moved to the UK to study Marketing at the University of Bath. After meeting Clement Robert at 28-50 Wine Workshop and Kitchen, however, she decided to start a career in the wine industry instead.

Already an advanced sommelier at the Court of Master Sommelier at the age of 24, Melania’s aim is to become the first and youngest Italian female master sommelier, perhaps MW in the future. Moreover, she graduated in Coaching and Positive Psychology at the University of Cambridge. She runs her own consulting and coaching company for hospitality and brands, MelCnC.

Melania is a Champagne lover, an Italian wine aficionado, and she also has a sweet spot for Greece, New Zealand, and Austria.

Follow Melania on Instagram.

See more judges for DWWA 2025.

Shivani Tomar
Shivani Tomar
Awards Manager

Born and raised in India, Shivani is the awards manager at Decanter, managing the 300-strong cohort of worldwide judges for the world's largest wine competition, the Decanter World Wine Awards, ensuring a seamless judging process and driving the competitive integrity of the awards. After earning a master’s in wine management from the Burgundy School of Business, she moved to London in 2016 and completed her WSET diploma. While Burgundy holds a special place in her heart, Champagne is her go-to bottle. Alongside her full-time role, she has been dipping her toes into wine writing, relishing the opportunity to bring wine stories to the surface.