DWWA 2013 Turkey Judging Panel

Angela Muir MW DWWA 2013 Regional Chair Angela Muir MW started her career with John Harvey & Sons of Bristol, shortly after leaving Bristol University with a degree in Politics and Economics. She then joined Grants of St James's and Victoria Wine as a Buyer. In 1988 Angela set up her own prize-winning wine shop and school which she followed up with Cellarworld International, a wine consultancy, and then Cellarworld Argentina in 2002. Angela also lectures in French, English and Spanish on wine production and the UK market. She is an MW of more than 30 years' standing, a past chairman of the MW Education Committee, and past president of the Wine and Spirit Association of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. Nicolas Clerc MS DWWA 2013 Judge Nicolas Clerc MS has been working with D&D London since 2009, and is currently the restaurant groupâs Beverage Manager. From 2009 to 2012 he looked after Le Pont de la Tourâs restaurant and wine shop, as well as the wine lists at neighbouring restaurants The Blueprint CafÃ©, Cantina del Ponte and Butlers Wharf Chop House. In 2012, he added Fish Market, Old Bengal Bar, New Street Grill and New Street Wine Shop to his portfolio of restaurants. Nicolas started his career in 2000 at Michelin-starred restaurants in his native France, and in the UK he has worked at Waldoâs in Cliveden House Hotel in Berkshire, Summer Lodge Hotel in Dorset, and the Milestone Hotel and Apartments in Kensington, among others. Nicolas was named UK Sommelier of the Year 2007, won Best Sommelier and Best Wine List at the Tatler Awards in 2010, and in 2011 he was awarded Champagne List of the Year at the Louis Roederer Wine List of the Year Awards. Janna Rijpma Meppelink DWWA 2013 Judge For almost two decades, Janna Rijpma Meppelink has been one of Hollandâs foremost wine experts. After a 15-year career as an Executive Producer in television, she started working with wine in 1996, and currently writes columns and articles for both print and online publications. Also regularly appearing on television, Janna hosts top wine and food events at national and international levels, and is an enthusiastic public speaker and teacher. Along with fellow wine writer Hubrecht Duijker, Janna has written 4 editions of Wijngids Voor Het Zakenleven (Wine Guides for Business People) â these feature interviews with a range of prominent people about their favourite wines and food. Dimitar Nikolov DWWA 2013 Judge Dimitar Nikolov has seven yearsâ experience in the wine industry as a wine buyer, sommelier and wine judge, holds qualifications from the ISG Chicago, the WSET Advanced Certificate, and is currently studying for the WSET Diploma. He is a wine buyer by profession and a sommelier by heart. Starting his career as a sommelier for a major hotel chain in Bulgaria, and at a restaurant in Chicago, Dimitar then returned to his native Bulgaria to work for Metro Cash & Carry, firstly as the Wine Buyer for Bulgaria, and then as Wine Buyer for Metro Cash & Carryâs entire Russian Federation operations, which saw him move to Russia. After five years with the company, Dimitar was appointed to a top management position at a wine importer specialising in Hungarian wines. Together with his wife, he owns the online wine shop apollowine.com, which stocks a selection of high end Bulgarian and Balkan wines. Luis Capitao DWWA 2013 Judge Luis Capitao is a California-based wine industry veteran and international wine consultant. Former roles have included advising Eastern European wineries and government associations on export strategies, a ten-year period in strategic marketing with Constellation Wines U.S., and a tenure as Marketing Director of WJ Deutsch and Sons Inc, during which time he successfully rolled out Yellow Tail in the US. Luis holds an MBA from the Rochester Institute of Technology, and a BA in economics from Rutgers University. He is currently Managing Partner of the company he co-founded, Touchstone Wines, a sales and marketing firm working with foreign wineries. Isa Bal MS DWWA 2013 Judge Isa Bal MS has been Head Sommelier at Heston Blumenthal's three Michelin-starred restaurant The Fat Duck for the past eight years. He studied hospitality in his native Turkey before moving to the UK in 1999, where he started in the resturant business at the Vineyard at Stockcross, working his way up to the position of Wine Director/Head Sommelier. In 2008 he won the title of Best Sommelier of Europe from the Association de la Sommellerie Internationale, and this year he represented Turkey in the Best Sommelier of the World competition in Tokyo. Ulf Sjodin MW DWWA 2013 Judge Ulf SjÃ¶din MW originally working in chemical engineering, holding a Masters in the subject, but switched to marketing when he joined the wine trade in 1996. He worked for importer and producer V&S, where he held the position as PR Manager for 13 years, and after a period as self-employed consultant on pricing and market analysis, Ulf joined the Swedish retail monopoly Systembolaget in 2010 to become head of Category Management, a position he holds today. In 2007, Ulf became the first Master of Wine in Sweden, receiving awards for best tasting paper, best paper on viticulture and best total result on the MW exam.

DWWA 2013 Turkey Judging Panel

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