DWWA Spain Judging Panel

John Radford.jpg John Radford is a freelance writer, broadcaster, lecturer and speaker. John has had a lifelong love of Spain, particularly, and the Mediterranean, generally, and has written several books and chapters of books on the wines of Spain and Portugal. He edits the trade magazine CHEF and also writes for publications in China, as well as writing a blog, http://johnradfordcom.blogspot.com. Sarah Jane Evans MW.jpg Sarah Jane Evans MW started drinking Spanish wine â Sherry to be specific â as a student of Classics and Social and Political Sciences at Cambridge. This started a lifelong love affair for Sarah Jane with the countryâs wines, food and culture, leading to her appointment as a member of the Gran Orden de Caballeros de Vino for services to Spanish wine. In 2006 she became a Master of Wine, writing her dissertation on Sherry and winning the Robert Mondavi Winery Award. She is currently Deputy Vice Chairman of the Institute of Masters of Wine, also dividing her time between contributing to leading reference books, judging wines internationally and writing about wine, fine chocolate, coffee, tea and cheese. Stephen Skelton MW.jpg Stephen Skelton MW started his career in wine in 1975. After 12 months at Schloss SchÃ¶nborn in Germany's Rheingau winegrowing region and two terms at Geisenheim Wine School, he returned to the UK in 1977 to establish Tenterden Vineyards in Kent, where he made wine for 23 vintages. He was Winemaker at Lamberhurst Vineyards from 1988â1991. Stephen is a consultant to the English wine industry and is involved with planting vineyards for the production of sparkling wine. He became a Master of Wine in 2003. Theresa Paopao.jpg Theresa Paopao hails from the small town of Hilo on the Big Island of Hawaii. She left island life to pursue a graduate degree at the Yale School of Drama in New Haven, CT and then moved to Boston where she fell in love with the restaurant business and the world of wine. In 2004, she joined Ana Sortun of Oleana in Cambridge, first as manager before expanding the role to include Wine Director. In 2010, she moved to New York City to take on the role of Wine Director for David Changâs Momofuku restaurants. Among other accolades and achivements, Paopao is certified by the Court of Master Sommeliers and is currently completing the Advanced Certification through WSET. Victoria Stephens-Clarkson.jpg Vicki Stephens-Clarkson joined the wine trade in 2000. She worked in sales and buying with numerous wine companies including Lay & Wheeler and Direct Wines, before joining Liberty Wines as Buyer in 2008. She has worked in wineries in France, Australia and Argentina, and speaks French, Spanish and Russian. She specialises in several French regions, as well as South America, and is currently studying for her MW. Mike Ritchie MW.jpg Mike Ritchie MW was born in London but lived in Paris in his teenage years. He started in the trade with Saccone & Speed as a graduate trainee and has since gained a wealth of experience during his three decades in the UK wine business, which has included seven years during the early stages of London City Bond. In 2002 Mike passed his MW, being awarded the commercial and business-related Errazuriz prize.Since 2006 he has worked with Spanish specialist Moreno Wines and is selling their wines all over the UK, while helping to develop Moreno's increasing non-Spanish wine range. Nick Room.jpg Nick Room joined Waitrose in 1987, initially buying beers and spirits before moving into wine. Passing the WSET Diploma in 1992, he then bought wine for the retailerâs mail-order side before returning to the main buying office in 1998. Nickâs specialities and interests are Spain, Portugal and Sherry. Waitrose won awards for its lists of Sherry and Portuguese wines in 2005, 2006 and 2010, and its fortified wines are widely recognised as market-leading. Waitroseâs Buying Team has additionally been recognised as the best in the industry for several consecutive years. Nick is currently serving as Chairman of the Gran Orden de Caballeros and had the honour, in November 2011, of collecting an award presented by the Prince and Princess of Asturias acknowledging the work of the Orden to promote âbrand Spainâ. Patricia Langton.jpg Patricia Langton is a freelance journalist and the former wine editor of Off Licence News. Her website and blog can be found at www.patricialangton.com. Lindsay Talas.jpg Lindsay Talas joined Thierryâs in 2004 as Buying Director where she is responsible for Spain, Italy, South Africa, Chile, Argentina and Portugal. She embarked on her wine career in 1988 during a gap year spent working for Oddbins. She then moved to Bordeaux to take a bilingual European Business Studies degree and followed this up with the WSET Diploma, during which she was awarded the Italian Scholarship. Lindsay has spent 12 years in the multiple grocer sector where she worked as a Senior Buyer for Sainsburyâs and later, as Senior Product Development Manager at Tesco, was responsible for the launch of the Finest* wine range. She has a passion for Italian and Spanish wines and has judged in major wine competitions for more than 10 years. Matthieu Longuere MS.jpg Matthieu LonguÃ¨re MS is originally from Bordeaux and studied catering at college for six years before coming to England in 1994. Since then he has worked as Head Sommelier at Lucknam Park near Bath, the Hotel du Vin in Bristol and La Trompette in Chiswick. He won the UK Sommelier of the Year Competition TrophÃ©e Ruinart in 2000, passed the WSET Diploma in 2002 and became a Master Sommelier in 2005. He speaks French, Spanish, English and basic Swedish. Matthieu was a semi-finalist at the Best Sommelier of Europe Competition 2010 where he represented the UK. Mel Jones MW.jpg Mel Jones MW runs www.quaffersoffers.co.uk, a website that gives details of special offers at wine retailers and provides tasting notes and forum discussions on great wine buys. She is also half of the Birds with Bottle duo on YouTube, a weekly fun wine programme. Mel started in the wine trade shortly after leaving school and has been running wine courses and writing about wine since the mid-1990s. She also has a weekly wine slot on BBC Radio Gloucestershire. In her spare time, Mel is a performance poet. She became an MW in 2010. Mike Harrison.jpg Michael Harrison has been in the wine trade for 32 years and is currently a freelance consultant working with the Hotel du Vin chain. His areas of expertise are Champagne, Australasia, and South America as well as the English wine industry. Michael is a regular judge for major wine events and a frequent wine magazine tasting panellist. Joan Torrents.jpg Joan Torrents is the fourth generation of a wine business family who, by the age of 19, became a Chevalier of Cava. Since completing his MSc in Chemistry and Winemaking Studies, Joan has been involved in product development in major wine regions and business development in European and Asian markets. In 2007, Joan was nominated for Young Achiever in the UK by Drinks Business Magazine and received the Michel Laroche Award for outstanding performance while completing the WSET Diploma. Joan now heads wine buying for 1600 restaurants and bars at Mitchells Butlers and is involved in winemaking, travelling worldwide to source and blend wines which deliver profit growth. In 2011, Joan became member of the Champagne Academy. Jane MacQuitty.jpg Jane MacQuitty is a wine writer, author, judge and commentator. She started her career as wine and food correspondent for House & Garden magazine, followed by two years at the Consumers' Association editing the Which? Wine Guide. Since the 1980s, she has been the wine and drink correspondent for The Times newspaper. She is renowned for her independent, outspoken stance on the wine world commenting, as one of the country's top merchants noted, âwithout fear, or favourâ. Jamie Hutchinson.jpg Jamie Hutchinson is the Managing Director and co-founder of independent wine merchant The Sampler. After a career in venture capital, Jamie opened The Sampler in Islington in 2006 and The Sampler in South Kensington in 2011 and plans to open other shops in the future. Jamieâs passions are Sherry, traditional Rioja, grower Champagne and Beaujolais, while his weaknesses are for wines with personality and that go against normal commercial conventions. Jamie is also the holder of the WSET Rafael Balao Lustau Memorial Trophy and won the WSET Cava and Penedes Wine Institute Bursary. Giles Cooke MW.jpg Giles Cooke MW graduated with a degree in History but realised early on that he was more skilled at eating and drinking than at being an historian. He therefore worked at Majestic Wine until the lure of returning to his native Scotland saw him join Alliance Wine. In the 17 years since, Giles has worked in all areas of the business, including on- and off-trade sales, buying and marketing, and has been an integral part of the growth of Alliance from a regional supplier to an increasingly international player. Passionate about the wines of Spain, Giles extols their virtues both back home and in Alliancesâ export markets. Perhaps as much a passion as wine, Giles is fanatical about JamÃ³n ibÃ©rico and has been known to travel with a JamÃ³n in the boot of his car! Giles passed his MW in 2001. Ferran Centelles.jpg Ferran Centelles AIWS has been a sommelier at elBulli restaurant since 1999. Today he combines the role of Wine Director at elBulli Foundation with other project such as Outlook Wine (The Barcelona Wine School) and Wineissocial in Spain. Ferran won the Ruinart Best Sommelier of Spain award in 2006 and the Premio Nacional de Gastronomia in 2011. Juan Carlos Rincon.jpg Juan Carlos RincÃ³n is a professional wine taster, broadcast journalist, presenter and blogger. He had been judging wines in 15 countries in competitions around the world. He is a Commandeur of the Commanderie de Bontemps du Vins de MÃ©doc, Graves, Sauternes and Barsac, and La Jurade de Saint Emilion named him a Vigneron d'Honneur. He lives in London where he has worked for the Spanish Americas Department of the BBC World Service and was its wine expert for eight years. He is a wine consultant for Latin-American markets and is currently setting up his own wine website www.rincondecata.com. He is also a translator for French wineries and wine organisations and developed the Spanish website for the Conseil des Grands Crus ClassÃ©s en 1855. Juan Carlos loves wines with great character and is a specialist in the wines of Spain, France (Bordeaux and the RhÃ´ne) and Latin America. Ben Henshaw.jpg Ben Henshaw joined the wine trade in 2002 to work on the sales and marketing of Domaine Saint Hilaire, his familyâs newly acquired Languedoc vineyard. He set up Indigo Wine the following year, focusing initially on importing artisanal wines from southern France. Since then, Ben has built up the most diverse list of Spanish wines of any importer in the UK. Christina Alcala.jpg Cristina AlcalÃ¡ is a qualified sommelier; wine consultant, and taster based in Spain. She holds degrees in Sociology, Human Resources and Winemaking and Viticulture. Cristina is Editorial Manager of Vinum and MiVino magazines and a regular columnist for El PaÃs and other Spanish specialist publications. She has also worked as a wine expert on Radio Nacional de EspaÃ±a since 2005and has published two books on wine. In 2011 Cristina became Technical Director of Iberwine, a wine fair that takes place in Spain and Miami. She is a regular judge in several international wine competitions. Christine Parkinson.jpg Christine Parkinson started her career in the kitchen, moving into management after three years as Head Chef. Responsibility for 39 restaurants eventually convinced her to follow her passion and concentrate on wine. In 2001 Christine created the first wine list for Hakkasan, and then became Wine Buyer for the groupâs restaurants worldwide, including Sake No Hana and the Michelin-starred Hakkasan and Yauatcha. Christine judges regularly at wine competitions including Decanter World Wine Awards, New Wave Spanish Wines, IWC Sake Awards, and Sommelier Wine Awards. Christine has been called âone of the most creative wine buyers in the UKâ by Jancis Robinson MW, and is the recipient of the âTaste On-Trade Influencer 2009â and âImbibe Restaurant Personality of the Year 2011â. She is currently studying to become a Master of Wine. Alessandro Marchesan.jpg Alessandro Marchesan started his wine career as a bartender at various restaurants in his hometown of Venice, including the Cipriani Hotel. He moved to London in 1999 to work at Kensington Place Restaurant in Notting Hill. In 2003 Alessandro won the Dan Pontifex Award which sponsored a six-week course in Australia after which he joined Zuma as a Sommelier. During this time he was awarded the title of UK Sommelier of the Year by Harpers and Queen. He currently works as Group Sommelier and Wine Buyer for Zuma and Roka and is responsible for wine operations of these restaurants in London, Asia, the US and the Middle East. Since 2004, he has co-owned Mas la Mola, a boutique winery in Priorat. Andrea Briccarello.jpg Andrea Briccarello is Head Sommelier at La Chapelle, the winner of the Best Wine List at the National restaurants Awards 2011. He was previously Group Sommelier and Wine Buyer for Corrigan's Mayfair, Bentley's Oyster Bar & Grill, and Lindsay House. Andrea has also worked at the Michelin-starred Umu, and was named Sommelier of the Year 2009 by Taste of London, as well as being the winner of the Wines of Roussillon Dessert Trophy in 2010. Annette Scarfe.jpg Annette Scarfe consults for restaurants in London, Hong Kong and Singapore including Alan Yauâs Princi and Bettys. She has previously consulted for Sake No Hana and runs regular training sessions for the on-trade at several restaurants in London. Annette is a regular member of magazine tasting panels and is also a Bordeaux educator and WSET certified educator. She is currently studying for the Master of Wine. Barbara Philip MW.jpg Barbara Philip MW is a portfolio manager at the British Columbia Liquor Distribution Branch (BCLDB) in Canada and is responsible for selecting European wines for the BC Liquor Store chain. Barbara has a long history working as a sommelier and wine educator and, in 2007, passed the MW. In addition to her role at the BCLDB, Barbara works as a freelance lecturer, radio columnist and wine judge through Barbariain Wine Consulting, a company she runs with her husband Iain. Dawn Davies.jpg Dawn Davies is the wine and spirits buyer for Selfridges. Previously, she worked as Head Sommelier and Restaurant Manager at The Ledbury in Notting Hill, as Sommelier at The Square restaurant in Mayfair, and as Head Sommelier at Boxwood CafÃ© (Gordon Ramsay) and Zuma. At Selfridges, Dawn helps people select wines, gives advice on how to set up a new cellar, or just helps with the growth of an established one. Ed Adams MW.jpg Ed Adams MW joined the wine trade in 1983 after dabbling with radio journalism in his home city of Bristol, England. He worked for an old Bristol wine firm, Howells, before eventually moving to the bright lights of London. Edâs first big break was working for Vinos de EspaÃ±a in London, where he rekindled his passion for Spanish wine and all things Spanish. It was then seven years as a buyer for the Co-op in Manchester, after which he became Quality Control and Purchasing Director for Western Wines for 12 years until 2006. Since then Ed has been working on the BÃ¡scula Spanish wine project with South African winemaker, Bruce Jack, working with some top producers throughout Spain. Daniel Hart.jpg Daniel Hart is the Senior Buyer at Enotria, where he has been responsible for growing Enotria's New World wines into an award winning, benchmark portfolio since 2003. He also oversees the categories of Champagne, Portugal and England, and has winemaking experience with Enotriaâs partners around the world. His highlights include working vintages in Douro, Piemonte, South Africa, Coonawarra and Catalonia. WSET Diploma qualified in 2001, Daniel is the co-founder of Trophy winning 'Hart & Hunter' wines in Hunter Valley, Australia.

DWWA Spain Judging Panel

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