Vincenzo Donatiello Vincenzo Donatiello hails from Vulture, Italy, and rose through the ranks in hospitality, developing professionally between Puglia, where he attended the hotel management school of Vieste and Romagna.…
DWWA 2018 judge
DWWA judge profile: Victoria James
Victoria James Victoria James has worked in restaurants since she was thirteen. She fell in love with wine and when she was twenty-one became certified as a sommelier. She has…
DWWA judge profile: Tim Jackson MW
Tim Jackson MW Tim Jackson MW is a wine drinker whose hobby got sufficiently out of hand when he took WSET Level 3 in 2004, got the WSET Diploma with…
DWWA judge profile: Stefan Metzner
Stefan Metzner Born in Germany, Stefan Metzner is currently co-owner and educator at Das Weininstitut in Munich. He has held previous sommelier roles as well as being head of wine…
DWWA judge profile: Sebastian Crowther MS
Sebastian Crowther MS Sebastian Crowther MS has been working as a sommelier for over 15 years. During this time he has gained the title of Master Sommelier, becoming only the…
DWWA judge profile: Rebecca Gibb MW
Rebecca Gibb MW Having spent six years living in New Zealand, Rebecca Gibb MW has recently returned to her native north-east England. While in New Zealand, she became a Master…
DWWA judge profile: Raúl Igual
Raúl Igual Since 2007, Raúl Igual has been working in his own restaurant Yain in Teruel, a beautiful town inland Spain. Before beginning his own restaurant project, in 2005 and…
DWWA judge profile: Pilar Cavero
Pilar Cavero Pilar Cavero studied for her Sommelier Degree in Barcelona between 2010-2012. During those studies she started working at the 1 Michelin starred Moo Restaurant in Barcelona. This was…
DWWA judge profile: Mikolaj Skrzypczak
Mikolaj Skrzypczak Originally from Poland, Mikolaj Skrzypczak started his journey with wine in 2010 when he used to manage a bar in Notting Hill. He did the WSET Advanced in…
DWWA judge profile: Eugene Mlynczyk MW
Eugene Mlynczyk MW Eugene Mlynczyk MW’s love of wine began in California while studying at Stanford University, where he earned his BA in Painting and Drawing. His interest in wine…
DWWA judge profile: Michaela Morris
Michaela Morris Michaela Morris is an international wine writer, educator, judge and speaker based in Vancouver, Canada, with frequent engagements in Italy. Besides writing for several Canadian publications including Taste…
DWWA judge profile: Mario Meštrović
Mario Meštrović Mario is an experienced Croatian sommelier with the international A.S.I. Diploma and the Croatian Sommelier Club Diploma. He acts as commissioner for the Croatian Sommelier Club in Zagreb…
DWWA judge profile: Kelli White
Kelli White Kelli White is the senior staff writer for GuildSomm. Prior to that, her work as a sommelier, first at New York City’s Veritas and then at PRESS in…
DWWA judge profile: Julie Dupouy
Julie Dupouy Originally from the south west of France, Julie Dupouy has been living in Dublin since 2004. Her early career in Ireland started in one of Ireland’s most reputed…
DWWA judge profile: Gennaro Buono
Gennaro Buono Gennaro Buono is currently head sommelier of the Capri Palace Group, heading up the sommelier team and wine cellars of 4 Michelin stared restaurants. Gennaro speaks 5 languages…
DWWA judge profile: Gemma Crangle
Gemma Crangle Gemma Crangle’s heart belongs to the wines of the Languedoc-Roussillon region. She began her wine career at Wine and Spirit International Magazine and subsequently moved to a role…
DWWA judge profile: Giovanni Ferlito
Giovanni Ferlito Giovanni Ferlito is head of wine and beverage at The Ritz London. An Italian and French native, Giovanni grew up in Sicily in the wine region of Etna.…
DWWA judge profile: Frederic Marti
Frederic Marti Frederic Marti was born and raised in the south of France, close to Toulouse. He started as a waiter at the age of 14, working his way up…
DWWA judge profile: Fred Bulmer
Fred Bulmer Following working for a couple of independent merchants in North Yorkshire, including Firth & Co and Yorkshire Vintners, Fred Bulmer joined The Wine Society in 2013. Freddy became…
DWWA judge profile: Erik Simonics
Erik Simonics Erik Simonics was born and raised in Slovakia. He moved to London in 2010 and started his sommelier career at Gordon Ramsay at Claridge’s, followed by French fine…
DWWA judge profile: Derek Morrison
Derek Morrison Derek Morrison is an accomplished sommelier, buyer, restaurant director, and retail manager with over 10 years’ experience in Europe and Canada. Currently, he oversees the buying and retail…
DWWA judge profile: Davide Buongiorno
Davide Buongiorno At the age of 31, Davide Buongiorno started his career as head sommelier in Venice at ‘Met 1’, the 1 Michelin Star restaurant of the 5* Metropole Hotel,…
DWWA judge profile: Christian Thorsholt Jacobsen
Christian Thorsholt Jacobsen Christian Thorsholt Jacobsen is a partner and sommelier in two small wine-focused bistros, Anarki & Mêlée, in the Frederiksberg neighbourhood of Copenhagen. Confessions of a sommelier: Christian…
DWWA judge profile: Caroline Hermann MW
Caroline Hermann MW Based in Washington D.C., Caroline Hermann MW is the import-export programme manager for wine, beer, and spirits in the US Department of Treasury’s Alcohol and Tobacco Tax…
DWWA judge profile: Audrey Doré
Audrey Doré Audrey Doré is a French sommelier working currently at El Celler de Can Roca in Girona, Spain. She has a degree is Hispanic Philology and a Sommlier Postgradute…
DWWA judge profile: Åsa Wahlström Karlsson
Åsa Wahlström Karlsson Åsa Wahlström Karlsson previously worked as Product Quality Manager for Systembolaget, Sweden’s retail monopoly, before commencing as Quality Manager for Solera Beverage Group in 2017. She has…
DWWA judge profile: Andrea Pritzker MW
Andrea Pritzker MW Andrea Pritzker MW is the founder of Wine inTuition, a wine education and corporate events business in Sydney, Australia. She is a sought-after corporate speaker, WSET wine…
DWWA judge profile: Amanda Barnes
Amanda Barnes Amanda Barnes is an award-winning wine journalist and expert in South American wines and regions. Based in Mendoza, Argentina since 2009, she is a regular South America correspondent,…
DWWA judge profile: Amanda Yallop
Amanda Yallop Amanda Yallop is Head Sommelier at Quay, Sydney, where she manages the cellaring programme as well as the largest single venue wine team in Australia. Amanda’s passion for…
DWWA judge profile: Alejandro Iglesias
Alejandro Iglesias Alejandro Iglesias was born in Buenos Aires, Argentina, to a family where gastronomy and wine always occupied leading roles. In 2004 he changed his career as a Financial…