The Court of Master Sommeliers (CMS) was established in 1977 to promote excellence in restaurant and hotel beverage service. Its members around the world come from diverse backgrounds and experiences, and they share a proven mastery of the art, science and history that informs a wine steward’s work. CMS has joined with NRN to provide monthly wine recommendations that can be served well with a chosen menu item.
Meet the first masters to offer their selections here, and find their recommendations at www.nrn.com/MS-wine.
MASTER LAURA DEPASQUALE
Affiliation: Palm Bay International
Location: Miami
As vice president of fine wine development at Palm Bay International, Laura DePasquale heads a fast-growing team of specialized fine wine sales personnel for one of the United States’ top five wine importers.
Her first serious introduction to wine dates back to the late 1980s in New York City, when she worked as bartender at Arizona 206, followed by a stint as beverage director at the Royalton Hotel.
In the early 1990s, she moved to Miami and spent several years at Norman’s in Coral Gables, Fla.
She joined Palm Bay in 2001 for the newly created position of fine wine specialist for Florida.
She was soon promoted to national sales director for fine wine and then became the head of the whole division when I was formed in 2004, soon after DePasquale became a master sommelier.
Apart from her regular job, DePasquale also conducts seminars and wine tastings at numerous high-profile events, such as the Boston Wine Expo, South Beach Food and Wine Festival, New York Food & Wine, Aspen Food & Wine Classic, and Santé Restaurant Symposium. She also is an adjunct professor at Florida International University School of Hospitality in Wine Technology, her expertise extends to all aspects of the wine industry and is a regular lecturer and examiner for the Court of Master Sommeliers at all levels.
MASTER CAMERON DOUGLAS
Lecturer and consultant
LOCATION: Auckland, New Zealand
Cameron Douglas is a Senior Lecturer Above the Bar in charge of the wine and beverage program at AUT University in Auckland. He also consults for the hospitality industry and the interested public.
He is New Zealand’s first and only member of the Court of Master Sommeliers, and the only MS in the Australasia region.
He is an experienced writer, commentator, and reviewer on all things beverage-related: He is the resident wine writer for Hospitality Magazine; a senior wine judge for Cuisine Magazine; and a senior judge for Wine Award Shows. Recently, he was Head Judge at China Sommelier of the Year in Shanghai, and this year is Head Judge for the Inaugural Australia Junior Sommelier of the Year.
He writes independently for other national and international publications and is in demand as a speaker on many wine, beverage and hospitality related issues. He enjoys lecturing and presenting on select cruise ships, and travels regularly to present New Zealand wines and food throughout the world. In addition, he has a regular guest lecturer spot at the West Coast arm of the International Culinary Center.
He has been instrumental in establishing the Master Sommelier qualification formerly in Australia and New Zealand, and also is the South Pacific director of the Global Guild of Sommeliers.
MASTER STEVEN GEDDES
Affiliation: Chef and Master Sommelier, Local 127
Location: Cincinnati, Ohio
Steven Geddes is the only working chef in the United States to hold the title of Master Sommelier.
At age 17, the Colorado native first found himself cooking in Las Vegas at André’s, side by side with his mentor, chef André Rochat. With experience on the line, assisting with Rochat’s cooking classes, and a newfound respect for wine, he began redefining his outlook on the food and beverage world.
He became a master sommelier in 1995. Since then his projects have included heading up the famed wine tower at Charlie Palmer’s Aureole, teaching at the hospitality school at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, and working with culinary luminaries including Mark Miller, George Morrone, Charlie Trotter, Brian Ogden and Rick Moonen.
He then worked at Wolfgang Puck’s Trattoria del Lupo in Las Vegas, and followed that with another stint with Rochat, this time at Alizé.
He has since left Las Vegas and is now chef and sommelier at Local 127, a farm-to-table restaurant in Cincinnati.
MASTER ANDREW MCNAMARA
Affiliation: Wine and Spirits Specialists Manager, Premier Beverage Company
Location: Miramar, Fla.
Andrew McNamara grew up outside of Philadelphia and spent much of his childhood traveling with his father to New York City and Washington, D.C., in search of wines to add to the family collection.
His father, a doctor, always gave McNamara the opportunity to taste their purchases and would talk him through the tasting process and describe all that contributed to the intricacies of the wine.
After studying mathematics at Davidson College in Davidson, N.C., he pursued a career as a stockbroker for seven years before returning to the wine world. He found work as a consultant at Arthur’s Wine Shop in nearby Charlotte.
While studying for his M.S., he joined the sommelier team at the renowned Breakers Palm Beach in Palm Beach, Fla. He remained at The Breakers’ L’Escalier restaurant for almost four years. He also designed and ran the beverage program for the Breakers’ Phillips Point Club, and helped purchase wine for the other Breakers restaurants. In 2007 he became the 10th person in the world to be awarded the Krug Cup, which is bestowed on people who pass all three parts of the Master Sommelier test at the same examination and score the highest of all of those tested. Shortly thereafter, he was named one of the “Best New Sommeliers” of 2008 by Wine & Spirits magazine.
That same year, McNamara left The Breakers and briefly worked with the Professional Culinary Institute in Orlando as its Wine Department Chairman before finding his home at the Premier Beverage Company, where he currently works as the head sommelier and continues to work with customers and staff throughout of Florida. In 2010 he was appointed to the Board of Directors of the Guild of Sommeliers.
MASTER JAMES TIDWELL
Affiliation: Master Sommelier and Beverage Manager, Four Seasons Resort and Club Dallas at Las Colinas
Location: Dallas, Texas
James Tidwell is Master Sommelier of Café on the Green at Four Seasons Resort and Club Dallas at Las Colinas. He also is head of the Texas Sommelier Association, which he co-founded in 2005 with Four Seasons support, and oversees an annual conference to challenge local wine stewards to enhance their talents through certification.
Raised by an evangelical minister in small-town Louisiana, Tidwell earned a degree from the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, N.Y. After dividing his time between wine shops and the kitchen, he decided wine held the most appeal. He became a master sommelier in early 2009.
Tidwell recently, Tidwell returned from a weeklong tasting tour of Chile, where he participated in a colloquium for 100 local wineries. His topic? “Educating Sommeliers.”
MASTER CATHERINE FALLIS
Affiliation: Founder and President, Planet Grape LLC
Location: San Francisco
Catherine Fallis, aka the grape goddess®, is a popular speaker and event host for corporate and private events. She is founder and president of Planet Grape LLC (www.planetgrape.com), a wine consulting firm providing education, content and sommelier services, and is the first person to have earned both the Master Sommelier diploma from the International Court of Master Sommeliers and the Advanced Certified Wine Professional title from the Culinary Institute of America.
MASTER KEITH GOLDSTON
Wine consultant
Location: Los Angeles
Born and raised in Napa Valley, Goldston has more than 20 years of experience in foodservice, ranging from bussing and waiting tables to writing award-winning wine lists, and consulting, training and lecturing for restaurants, hotels, cruise lines, and wineries, including Domaine Chandon, Masa's, Spago, Picasso, Aureole, and Crystal Cruises.
His “Have Corkscrew, Will Travel” attitude has found him making sake in Japan, judging wine competitions and teaching wine classes in South Korea, opening wine bars in India, chasing kangaroos in Australia, crossing the Andes in search of great wine and working for the Culinary Institute of America, as well as teaching and examining for the Court of Master Sommeliers. Wine Spectator called Goldston “a wizard at matching food with interesting wines.” He is also a recipient of the Krug Cup, which is bestowed on people who pass all three parts of the Master Sommelier test at the same examination and score the highest of all of those tested.
MASTER SEAN RAZEE
Affiliation: Account Specialist, American Fine Wine
Location: Edwards, Colo.
Sean Razee sells wine to elite buyers in Colorado’s mountain resorts. He has completed his diploma with the Wine & Spirits Education Trust as well as being a member of the Court of Master Sommeliers.
From 2002 to 2010 helped open properties and developed beverage programs for Ritz-Carlton hotels and the Wolfgang Puck Fine Dining Group.
When not reading, traveling or learning about wine Sean enjoys speaking and writing. He has written monthly newspaper columns and participated in several food and wine festivals as presenter and wine expert.
MASTER DOUG FROST
Location: Kansas City, Mo.
Doug Frost, M.S., is a Kansas City, Mo., author who writes and lectures about wine, beer and spirits. In 1991 he passed the Master Sommelier examination and two years later became America’s eighth Master of Wine. He was the second person in history to complete both exams, and 18 years later he is still one of only three people in the world who is both a Master Sommelier and a Master of Wine.
Frost’s love of wine began in the late 1970s as a waiter and wine steward, although he dates his first interest to a glass of Louis Martini 1968 Special Select Pinot Noir when he was 15 years old. Frost was a fine wine wholesaler in the Kansas City area for 14 years and, in that capacity, represented most of the best wineries and estates from America and the world.
His first book, Uncorking Wine, was released in the summer of 1996, and is still a staple for many restaurant and retail companies and their staff and management. He also wrote On Wine, which was published in 2001.
His most recent book, Far From Ordinary: The Spanish Wine Guide, was released in October 2005 and a second edition was released in early 2008.
Recipient of the 2009 Cheers Beverage Industry Innovator of the Year Award, Frost is also a contributor to the Oxford Companion of Wine, The World Atlas of Wine by Hugh Johnson and The Wine Report which is published annually by Tom Stevenson. He writes about wine and spirits for many publications including the San Francisco Chronicle, the Underground Wine Journal, Drinks International, Practical Winery & Vineyard, Wines & Vines, Wines & Spirits, Cheers Magazine, Santé Magazine, and Epicurious.com. He also is the beverage the Kansas City Star, Hemispheres Magazine, Missouri Life and Fine Cooking.
Frost is the host of Check Please!, a weekly public television show filmed in Kansas City.
He is the wine and spirits consultant for United Airlines worldwide. He is the founder and director of the Jefferson Cup Invitational Wine Competition, a 12-year-old national competition, and is Head Judge and founder of the Mid-American Wine Competition, which is in its sixth year.
He is a founding partner of a new spirits and cocktail educational organization, Beverage Alcohol Resource (BAR), which was launched in June of 2006. Frost was selected as Beverage Innovator of the Year 2009 by Cheers Magazine.
He consults with many retailers, restaurateurs, wineries and distillers in the realms of marketing, merchandising, sales, education and sensory perception. He lives with his wife and two children in Kansas City, where he spends his spare time listening to his massive punk rock and “weird music” collection.
MASTER JOSEPH SPELLMAN
Location: Paso Robles, Calif.
Affiliation: Justin Vineyards and Winery
Joseph Spellman, MS, is winery sommelier for Justin Vineyards and Winery of Paso Robles, Calif. He has been sommelier in several Chicago restaurants, including Tango, Maxim’s, Pump Room, Park Hyatt Hotel, and Charlie Trotter’s.
He earned the Master Sommelier diploma in 1996 and was elected chairman of the American chapter of the court in 2005. He also won the 1997 title “Best Sommelier in the World in French Wines and Spirits” in Paris.
He wrote the critically praised wine notes featured in three Charlie Trotter books. He also wrote grape descriptions for the Wine Grapes posters produced by Ten Speed Press, and he has written for many magazines.
He is frequently a featured speaker and panel moderator at wine events, with a particular interest in wine’s historical and cultural contexts. As a former English major at the University of Chicago, Joe enjoys writing and critiquing writing about wine and food.
He also loves opera, film, food history, baseball and beer.
MASTER CLAUDIA TYAGI
Location: Roseville, Mich.
Detroit native Claudia Tyagi, MS, began her foodservice career waiting tables to help pay for college at Oakland University in Rochester, Mich.
Her employers noticed that she always had the highest wine sales and encouraged her interest.
Her first sommelier job was at La Fontaine at the Renaissance Center in Detroit, working under the United States’ first woman master sommelier, Madeline Triffon.
She later moved across the street to the Omni Hotel and created an award-winning 50 wines by the glass program. She was wine director of the Whitney Restaurant in Detroit and later directed the wine cellar of the London Chop House, also in Detroit.
After obtaining her Master Sommelier certification in 1997, Tyagi moved to the Rio Suites in Las Vegas to manage the multi-million dollar wine inventory there.
She is now back in Michigan, where she has been working as a consultant since 2006 and also is involved in multiple wine-centered charities such as “A Night for Sight,” “Vin Voyage,” and “Crush.” Among her local clients are Forest Grill, The Whitney and Sidebar.
MASTER FRED DEXHEIMER
Affiliation: Owner, Juiceman Consulting
Location: Brooklyn, New York
Fred Dexheimer started his career in the service and hospitality industry at his mother’s video game arcade and pizza shop in central Pennsylvania. After a brief attempt at college, Fred took to the road to find himself. Seasonal stints between Nantucket, Mass., and Jackson Hole, Wyo., helped him realize that he was destined for a full-time career in food and wine was for him.
Living and working in New York City since 2000, he has worked at many of the city’s top restaurant, including Daniel, Gramercy Tavern and Jean Georges. Most recently he was the National Wine and Beverage Director for the BLT Restaurant Group.
He has offered his worked as a taster, commentator, contributor and panelist for many publications, including The New York Times, Food and Wine, Wine and Spirits, Wine Spectator, Beverage Media, Food Arts, Sommelier Journal and Wine Enthusiast. He has also been featured in many of the world’s leading lifestyle publications, including Time, Men’s Vogue, Cosmopolitan, Newsweek, and People and also has been featured live on Martha Stewart Radio and MSNBC.
Dexheimer also is an accomplished mixologist, and his cocktails have been published in The New York Times, Food and Wine, Bon Appétit, People, Cosmopolitan and Bill Hamilton’s Shaken and Stirred.
He has been awarded many accolades for his service in the field and was selected to represent the United States for the Best Sommelier of the World Competition in 2007.
Since founding Juiceman Consulting, Dexheimer has served as United States Spokesman for Wines of Chile and Wines of Southwest France and also has worked with a wide array of restaurants companies, including Max Brenner Chocolate, Grand Hyatt NYC, Maple Leaf Sports Entertainment, Motorino Pizza Napoletana, Vina DeMartino and others.
MASTER LAURA MANIEC
Affiliation: Owner, Corkbuzz Wine Studio
Location: New York, N.Y.
Laura Maniec teaches and lectures on wine around the world and also is developing a wine bar in New York called Corkbuzz Wine Studio, which she hopes to open this spring.
She regularly sits on the New York Times tasting panel and contributes to industry publications, including Food and Wine Magazine and Sommelier Journal. Wine and Spirits Magazine named her “Best New Sommelier” the first year they presented that award.
She got her first sommelier job at age 21, at Blue Fin, a 400-seat restaurant in New York City owned by B.R. the Guest Restaurant Group. She opened hotels for the group across the country and was made a partner and wine and spirits director for the whole group, in charge of 20 restaurants, at age 25. She also was responsible for educating the front-of-the-house staff on wine. She left B.R. Guest to develop her wine bar.
She earned her Master Sommelier designation in 2009.
MASTER LARRY O’BRIEN
Affiliation: Sales director, Micro Cru
Location: Las Vegas
Larry O’Brien has more than 18 years experience in the restaurant wine business, including holding positions at two Wine Spectator Grand Award winning establishments, The Wine Merchant Restaurant in Akron, Ohio, and Bern’s Steakhouse in Tampa, Fla.
He also was sommelier for Emeril Lagasse’s Orlando, Fla., restaurant.
He moved to Las Vegas in 2005 to work for Stations Casinos, where he created the wine programs for Red Rock Resort and guided a makeover of the company’s wine program.
O’Brien represented the United States in the international sommelier competition Meilleur Sommelier du Monde Concours Mondial in 2000 after winning the title of Best Sommelier in America earlier that year. He passed his Master Diploma Examination in 2001 and became the first MS in Florida. Early in 2008, he was elected to the board of directors of the Court of Master Sommeliers. He has served as a judge for the Confrèrie de la Chaîne des Rotisseurs’ Jeune Sommelier competition at national and regional levels. He has also been a judge the Starwine International Wine Competition held in Philadelphia in 2004, 2005 and 2006.
When not immersed in the world of wine, you will likely find O’Brien in a bowling center working toward a 200 average and his first 300 game.
MASTER RANDALL BERTAO
Location: Los Altos, CA
Affiliation: Los Altos Golf and Country Club
California native Randall Bertao is general manager of the Los Altos Golf and Country Club. He grew up on a dairy farm in the Central Valley and began working in restaurants in 1974, at Mt. Charley’s restaurant in Los Gatos, Calif.
He spent 10 years working in London and then returned to California, starting at the Los Gatos Brewing Company in 1994, AP Stumps in 2001 and Parcel 104 in 2004. He began his current position in 2005
Bertao is an active member the Club Managers of America Association’s wine society and leads tours of prominent California wineries. He also selects the local wineries for the annual Harvest Wine Festival in Los Altos.
Bertao’s grandparents emigrated from Portugal and made their own wine at home in California. He still has bottles of his grandmother’s final vintage from 1983.
MASTER DARIUS ALLYN
Location: Las Vegas, NV
Darius Allyn, a partner in Wineworks Consulting Services, began working in hospitality at the age of 15, at The Salish Lodge Inn at Snoqualmie Falls, Washington. He was in the kitchen for a year before moving to the front-of-the house as a server and was promoted to captain by age 19.
He spent five years working on the Red Prussian luxury German train, serving American clientele who were traveling in Europe, gaining some knowledge of wine there as well as on backpacking trips and by harvesting grapes in Italy and Greece.
He went home to Seattle and worked as the buyer and staff educator for Theoz restaurant there and for several Tom Douglas restaurants, including the Dahlia Lounge, Palace Kitchen and Etta’s Seafood.
He landed his first sommelier position at age 25, back at the Salish Lodge Inn where he got his start.
He then moved to Las Vagas to work at Charlie Palmer’s Aureole restaurant at the Mandalay Bay Resort.
In 2005, Allyn became the 60th American to pass the Master Sommelier Exam and he began his wine consulting business the following year.
He consulted on the opening of the Rockpool Bar and Grill in Sydney, Australia, and upon his return became a sommelier at Bellagio.
When not at work, Darius enjoys playing music – mostly acoustic guitar, piano, and drums. He also continues to spend much of his time traveling and researching the beverage industry.
MASTER JUAN GOMEZ
Location: Palm Beach, Fla.
Affiliation: L’Escalier at The Breakers
Juan Gomez is sommelier at the legendary Breakers in Palm Beach, Fla., overseeing the wine operations at its flagship restaurant, L’Escalier.
He began working at the property in 1999 and began his wine career in 2001, after taking a class offered at The Breakers.
He joined the sommelier staff shortly thereafter and began working his way up the ranks. In March of 2007 he became the first Mexican native to become a master sommelier.
MASTER RON EDWARDS
Location: Charlevoix, Mich.
After many years in the restaurant industry, Ron Edwards is now an active consultant to all levels of the wine and hospitality trade, from wine importers to hotels.
In the past three years, Ron has been engaged by the Grand Hotel on Mackinac Island, Mich.; Tapawingo in Ellsworth, Mich.; Henry Ford Health Systems in Detroit; Practical Winery and Vineyard magazine; the Children’s Leukemia Foundation of Michigan; the Townsend Hotel in Birmingham, Mich.; 20 Brix Wine Bar in Milford, Ohio; The Weather Channel, and BuyersVine.com, among others.
He has also taught seminars to thousands of everyday wine drinkers.
He lives with his wife and four daughters in the lakeside town of Charlevoix, Mich.
MASTER RANDA WARREN
Location: Tulsa, Okla.
Randa Warren holds approximately ten private wine classes each month in the Tulsa, Okla., area. She also conducts custom wine programs at local businesses, clubs and private homes. Warren’s courses include discussions on food and wine pairings, wine and cheese pairings, and a general overview of the process of tasting and appreciating wine of all quality levels.
Warren is Certified Wine Educator and also has a diploma in wine and spirits from the Wine and Spirit Education Trust in England. She was previously in the Master of Wine program, and is a Chevalier du Tastevin of the Chapitre in Burgundy and also a member of the Chaîne des Rôtisseurs. She has bachelors degree in journalism and advertising with a miner in French from the University of Oklahoma.
Master Warren has one 16-year old daughter who does not enjoy still wine, however a glass of Champagne is tolerable to her.
MASTER ERIC ENTRIKIN
Location: Cupertino, Calif.
Affiliation: Alexander’s Steakhouse
Eric Entrikin began his career in the restaurant and wine industry while in high school. Like many working students, he was really only after a job, but a position at an upscale continental restaurant changed his mind after the owner asked him to learn something about wine since there was nobody working there to discuss wine with the guests.
After various positions in the Los Angeles area, he landed a job at the Regency Club in Westwood, Calif., with Chef Joachim Splichal. He followed Splichal to Patina restaurant, where he was the assistant to the maître ’D and sommelier.
A decision to venture into a more wine-focused role led him to move to the San Francisco Bay Area. There he embarked on a retail position on the wine floor of Beltramo’s in Menlo Park. The retail experience ultimately led to 14 years in outside sales working for small brokers and importers throughout the area and the opportunity to travel extensively to many of the wine regions of France.
In 2005, he accepted the position of Sommelier at Alexander’s Steakhouse in Cupertino, Calif., and created the wine list from the ground up. In 2008, that wine list was awarded the Wine Spectator’s Best Award of Excellence.
He became a master sommelier in 2010
MASTER ERIC HEMER
Location: Miami, FL
Affiliation: Southern Wine and Spirits
Eric Hemer is the Educational Director for Southern Wine and Spirits of Florida.
In addition to working with SWS sales personnel around the state, he also teaches classes on wine for restaurant and retail trade personnel, as well as evening classes on wine at Florida International University and at Chef Jean-Pierre's Culinary Center for Hospitality Management. His professional credentials include being a member of the Society of Wine Educators and a Certified Wine Educator, the highest level of certification offered by the SWE. He passed the Court of Master Sommeliers Diploma Exam in March of 2003 and is also an MW candidate in the Masters of Wine program, having passed the practical portion of the exam in June 2005.
He resides in Lake Worth, Fla., with his wife Marianne and their daughter, Julia.
MASTER GEOFF KRUTH
Location: Sonoma County, CA
Affiliation: Farmhouse Inn and Restaurant
Geoff Kruth is Wine Director of The Farmhouse Inn and Restaurant in the Russian River Valley. He has helped lead the Farmhouse to critical acclaim with a Michelin star and a 27 score in Zagat. It also was named one of the world’s top 36 food destinations by Gourmet magazine.
Kruth became a master sommelier in 2008.
In addition to his role at the Farmhouse, he serves as director of operations for the Guild of Sommeliers, a nationwide non-profit membership organization and educational foundation.
The former Sonoma resident graduated from Sonoma State University with a Bachelor of Science in Computer Science before moving to Silicon Valley to pursue a career in the high-tech industry. A blossoming wine hobby became an obsession that led to his enrollment in the French Culinary Institute's Classic Culinary Arts program in New York. While a student, Kruth started working part time at Balthazar as a cellar master and was promoted to assistant wine director upon his graduation in 2003.
At Balthazar he helped oversee more than $10 million in yearly wine sales and was responsible for wine list development, floor service and staff training.
In addition to his FCI diploma, Kruth holds a certificate in restaurant management from the Cornell School of Hotel Management in Ithaca, N.Y.
Over the years, Kruth has been a frequent guest lecturer and a consultant to restaurants and private events. For the past six years he has been the wine consultant for the Kapalua Wine and Food Festival in Hawaii, one the country's largest and most prestigious wine festivals.
In 2006, Mr. Kruth was awarded “Rising Star of the Year” by the committee of the Star Wine International Wine Competition in New York and in 2009 he received a “Rising Star” award from Star Chefs.
MASTER SCOTT CARNEY
Location: New York
Affiliation: Junoon restaurant
Scott Carney, a veteran of the fine dining scene in New York City, is beverage director of Junoon restaurant, an Indian restaurant that opened in early December and features cuisine and cooking techniques from all parts of India. Carney passed his Master Sommelier diploma exam in 1991.
MASTER WAYNE BELDING
Affiliation: Vintage Advantage
Location: Boulder, CO
Wayne Belding grew up in the mid-Hudson Valley of upstate New York, now a burgeoning wine-producing area. After earning a degree in geology from the State University of New York at Binghamton in 1972, he moved to Colorado and ultimately found his way into the oil fields of the United States as a geologist. Along the way, he became fascinated with wine, and when the energy boom went bust in 1982, used that opportunity to transform his avocation into his vocation.
He began at The Boulder Wine Merchant, a wine specialty shop in Boulder, Colorado. He then became sommelier at the Heritage Hotel in Denver which, at the time, had a Wine Spectator Grand Award-winning wine cellar. During his tenure at the Heritage, he competed in The Second Annual French Wine and Spirits Sommelier Competition in America, sponsored by Food and Wines from France. In 1985, he won the Denver Regional Competition and placed seventh in the final competition in New York. The examination experience was stimulating and, when the Court of Master Sommeliers first came to the United States in 1987, he seized the opportunity and began his pursuit of the Master Sommelier diploma. After passing the basic certificate and Advanced Sommelier courses, he became the 13th American to pass the challenging Master Sommelier examination in 1990 in Monterey, California. In addition to passing the rigorous examination, he also earned the Krug Cup – an award bestowed by Krug Champagne to the person who passes all three parts of the Master Sommelier test at the same examination and attains the highest score of those tested. He has served as Education Chairman and Chairman of the Court of Master Sommeliers Americas.
Throughout his years in the wine business, Master Belding has been an educator as well. He has taught wine appreciation classes for over twenty years, instructing well over 1,000 students in that time. He has been a wine competition judge at the National Restaurant Association Wine Classic in Chicago, The Jefferson Cup, the Colorado State Fair, and the California Wine Celebration in Denver. He has also been a featured speaker at the Epcot Food and Wine Festival, the Telluride Wine Festival, the Taste of Vail, and the Rocky Mountain Wine and Food Festival in Winter Park, Colorado. He has taught professional wine service classes throughout the country. In 1986, he purchased The Boulder Wine Merchant with fellow Master Sommelier Sally Mohr, which they owned until earlier this year when it was sold to Master Brett Zimmerman. Master Belding currently provides wine consulting services though his business, Vintage Advantage, and is working on a new book, Diving into Wine.
MASTER DREW HENDRICKS
Affiliation: Pappas Restaurants, Inc.
Location: Houston, TX
A highly accomplished sommelier, Master Hendricks finds daily inspiration from fine wines, good food and the camaraderie of company.
Growing up in a food-centric family, Drew Hendricks remembers going out to dinner more often than not. His father was in the oil business and the young Texan learned to appreciate haute cuisine at a very early age. However, he was not immediately drawn to the food and beverage industry. Instead, his military education inspired him to enlist in the United States Army at age eighteen. Drew thrived in the military environment, finding purpose in its structure and appreciating the contribution he was making to his country – and, more personally, to his family’s long history of military service.
While in the Army, Drew was stationed in Germany, where he rediscovered his love of food. During his off hours, he explored the country – its cuisine, wine, beers, and cigars – and began to realize how much he appreciated all things food and wine. When he returned to Houston following his military service, he enrolled in the city’s Art Institute, but found himself more intrigued by his job working as a line cook at a local restaurant. After a long day working at the restaurant, he and his colleagues would relax with a few bottles of burgundy, and so began his love affair with wine. Drew dedicated an increasing amount of his time to the study of wine, reading everything he could get his hands on and tasting as many different wines as possible.
Realizing that wine was where his heart was, Drew accepted a distribution job at Glaser’s, stocking shelves in grocery stores. Given his clear affinity for the industry, it was not long until he became a salesman for Glaser’s, ultimately working in their fine wine division. It was at Glaser’s where he met Master Guy Stout, who encouraged him to pursue the Court of Master Sommeliers’ educational programs. Under Master Stout’s mentorship, Drew flew through the Court’s programs, passing his Master’s Exam in 2008.
Following his time at Glaser’s, Master Hendricks worked for a small local distributor, and then moved to Pappas Restaurants, Inc., where he ran the wine program at Pappas Bros. Steakhouse for three years. From there, he went to work for Charlie Palmer, opening the Dallas branch of his award winning restaurant. After its successful launch, Master Hendricks returned to Pappas Restaurants as their corporate wine director, where he remains today.
Since deciding to pursue a professional career in the wine industry, Master Hendricks has amassed an impressive list of accolades in a very short time, including second place at the National Chaine des Rotisseurs Young Sommelier Finals competition and first place at the 2007 International Chaine des Rotisseurs Young Sommelier Competition. Wine and Spirits magazine named Hendricks a “Best New Sommelier” in 2005. Recognizing the challenges facing young people interested in wine, he is also the co-founder and a board member of the Texas Sommelier Association, which hosts the annual Texas Sommelier Conference to promote wine education throughout the South.
Master Hendricks lives in Houston, where he is also an accomplished home chef.
MASTE
R KATHRYN MORGAN
Affiliation: Michel Richard Citronelle
Location: Washington, DC
A DC native, Kathryn Morgan has been focused on wine in the hospitality industry since 1999. She has served as sommelier and wine director at top restaurants in Washington including the historic Occidental Restaurant, Ristorante Tosca, and 2941 Restaurant. In March of 2009, she proudly joined Michel Richard and his team at Citronelle Restaurant in Georgetown.
Kathryn has garnered numerous awards and accolades, as well as significant media recognition. Under her direction, 2941, Tosca and Citronelle all earned nominations for “Best Wine and Beverage Program” from the Restaurant Association of Metropolitan Washington. In 2007, Washingtonian Magazine selected 2941’s wine list as one of the top five in the D.C. metropolitan area. In 2010, the Washington City Paper named Morgan the best sommelier in Washington. In addition, she is featured regularly on tasting panels for Sommelier Journal, has appeared on WUSA TV and BBC World News, and is frequently mentioned in publications such as Washingtonian Magazine, The Washington Post, The Hill Newspaper and The D.C. Examiner.
In 2010, Kathryn became the 16th woman to earn the prestigious Master Sommelier Diploma. She is currently one of only 106 Master Sommeliers in North America.
MASTER TIM GAISER
Affiliation: Education Chair, Court of Master Sommeliers Americas
Location: San Francisco, CA
Tim Gaiser is currently the Education Chair for the American Chapter of the Court of Master Sommeliers as well as a contributing editor for Fine Cooking Magazine and an adjunct professor for the Rudd Center for Professional Wine Studies at the Culinary Institute of America at Greystone in Napa Valley.
Tim has experience in all phases of the wine industry – online, wholesale, retail, winery, and restaurant – including stints at Heitz Wine Cellars in the Napa Valley and Bix restaurant in San Francisco. He has developed wine education programs for several restaurants, winery schools and wine distributors, and taught classes at every level of wine education. He is a former member of the Napa Valley Vintners Association and a former staff lecturer for the Sterling Vineyards School of Service and Hospitality.
Tim spent five years as one of the senior wine merchants at Virtual Vineyards and the original wine.com, and was instrumental in building this multi-million dollar company. Tim has also served as a wine panelist for Bon Appetit magazine and received the Wine Spectator's Best of Award of Excellence for his wine lists at the Cypress Club in 1991, 1992, and 1993. Prior to developing his wine expertise, Tim received an M.A. in Classical Music. He played classical trumpet as a freelance professional and as an extra with the San Francisco Opera until 1988.
MASTER LARRY O'BRIEN
Affiliation: General Manager, Micro Cru
Location: Las Vegas, NV
Larry has over 18 years of experience in the restaurant and wine businesses, including positions at two Wine Spectator Grand Award winning establishments, The Wine Merchant Restaurant in Akron, Ohio and Bern’s Steakhouse in Tampa, Florida. Additionally, he served as sommelier for celebrity chef Emeril Lagasse’s Orlando restaurant. His career led him to Stations Casinos in Las Vegas in 2005 where he created the wine programs for Red Rock Resort and guided the makeover and modernization of the company's corporate wine program. Currently, Larry is the General Manager of Micro Cru, the Majestic Fine Wines Division of Wirtz Beverage Nevada.
Larry represented the United States in the prestigious international sommelier competition Meilleur Sommelier du Monde Concours Mondial in 2000 after winning the title of Best Sommelier in America earlier that same year. In 2001, Larry became passed his Master Diploma Examination and became the first Master Sommelier in Florida. Early in 2008, he was elected to the Board of Directors of the Court of Master Sommeliers. He has served as a judge for the Confrerie de la Chaine des Rotisseurs’ Jeuene Sommelier Competition at the national and regional levels. He has participated as a wine judge, with other internationally recognized experts, at the Starwine International Wine Competition held in Philadelphia in 2004, 2005 and 2006.
When not immersed in the world of wine, you will likely find Larry in a bowling center working towards a 200 average and his first 300 game.
MASTER VIRGINIA PHILLIP
Affiliation: Chief Sommelier, The Breakers
Location: Palm Beach, FL
Virginia Phillip graduated Magna Cum Laude from Johnson & Wales University in Providence, Rhode Island in 1989 with a B.S. in Hotel/Restaurant Management. Her keen interest in wine began in her late teens and led her to take a wine course in college and work a summer in a vineyard in upstate New York. Virginia has traveled extensively throughout the world to visit some of the most famous vineyards and wineries in the world. In November of 2002, Virginia became the ninth woman in the world to pass the Court of Master Sommeliers Diploma exam in London. Three weeks later, she successful competed against 30 men and one other woman to win the title of Best Sommelier of the United States 2002-2004 in New York City.
Virginia has worked at some of the most prestigious properties and restaurants in the United States including the Little Nell in Aspen and currently, The Breakers. The Breakers is a historic, 144-acre, luxury property located on the ocean in Palm Beach, Florida. As Chief Sommelier for the property since November of 2000, Virginia writes and oversees a total of thirteen wine lists for the property, including the Grand Award winning list for L'Escalier that includes over 1,400 selections. The Breakers has held the Grand Award since its inception in 1981.
MASTER FRED DAME
Affiliation: Vice President of Luxury Sales, Foster’s Group
Location: San Francisco, CA
Frederick L. Dame, Master Sommelier brings an impressive blend of experience, expertise and enthusiasm to the world of wine and cuisine. He is the first American to have served as President of the Court of Master Sommeliers Worldwide and assists restaurateurs and hoteliers in developing their wine programs in his role as Director of Prestige Accounts for Beam Wine Estates. He is currently the President of the Guild of Sommeliers Education Foundation.
Dame was the first American to successfully pass all three parts of the Master Sommelier Diploma Exam in a single year. This feat and his high score won him the coveted Krug Cup of the British Guild of Sommeliers in 1984. Dame founded the American Branch of The Court of Master Sommeliers in 1986 and has played an active role in the expansion of the Master Sommelier program throughout America since that time.
As Cellarmaster of The Sardine Factory in Monterey, California for twelve years, Dame created a wine list which won the Wine Spectator Grand Award. With the many wine events held in the brick and wine lined Wine Cellar, Dame turned The Sardine Factory into a wine destination restaurant of world renown. He is also active in the culinary arts serving as an Honorary Trustee of The American Academy of Chefs, the honor society of The American Culinary Federation. He was awarded the Antonin Careme Medal and was made a Supreme Knight of the Knights of the Vine in 2000. He was elected to the prestigious National Restaurant Association College of Diplomates in 2004.
A sixth generation Californian, Dame graduated from Washington and Lee University with a degree in journalism and communications. A European trip after high school piqued his curiosity about wine and food. Since then, he has applied his considerable persuasive skills to the service and appreciation of fine wine.
MASTER
SALLY MOHR
Affiliation: Boulder Wine Merchant
Location: Boulder, CO
Sally Mohr earned the title of Master Sommelier in 1995 and was the second woman in the United States to achieve that distinction. She began her wine career as an employee at The Boulder Wine Merchant in 1983 and became a co-owner of this prestigious specialty retail wine shop in 1986.
Sally also assists several Boulder and Denver area restaurants with staff training and wine list development. Under her tutelage, Restaurant Kevin Taylor received the Wine Spectator “Best of Excellence Award” in 1999. She is also the beverage columnist for the e-magazine Front Range Living and a regular contributor to the publications Boulder Women’s Magazine and The Boulder Wine Merchant monthly newsletter. Sally enjoys sharing her enthusiasm for wine and food with the public through tastings, seminars, and wine festivals. She is a featured speaker at the Telluride Wine Festival, Epcot Food and Wine Festival, and Denver’s Wines for Life. She has put her palate to the test by judging in several regional and international wine competitions.
Besides wine, Sally enjoys spending time with her husband and 2 teenage children in the wonderful outdoors of Colorado. Her travels have taken her to many wine regions around the world and her long term goal is to feel the dirt between her toes in all of them.
MASTER MELISSA MONOSOFF
Affiliation: Savona Restaurant
Location: Philadelphia, PA
Master Monosoff is a graduate of the Culinary Institute of America and has honed her skills at the top restaurants in Philadelphia as a cook, sommelier, bartender, and beverage director. These restaurants include some the finest establishments in Pennsylvania, such as the Fountain Restaurant at the Four Seasons Hotel and The Striped Bass. Currently she is the Sommelier and Beverage Manager for Savona Restaurant in Gulph Mills, PA and is the consulting Sommelier to the Pennsylvania LCB.
Monosoff earned her Master Sommelier Diploma in February 2010. She is the first in Pennsylvania, and the 17th woman in the world to hold this title. Her passion for all things wine and beer related has earned her several accolades. In 2009, both Philadelphia Magazine and Main Line Magazine named her “Best Sommelier,” and Wine & Spirits Magazine recognized her as one of America’s “Best Young Sommeliers” in 2004. In addition, she was awarded the Bronze Medal in the national Jeune Sommeliers competition sponsored by the Chaine des Rotisseurs.
In addition to her wine knowledge, Monosoff is becoming a recognized name in the Philadelphia beer community. She was instrumental in the opening of Maia in Villanova with a well-received 200-bottle beer list and her work at Savona earned her the “Best Beer Education” award from Philadelphia Magazine in their May, 2010 issue.
LEARN MORE: Check out the new wine section of NRN.com.
