DWWA 2013 Bordeaux Judging Panel

James Lawther MW DWWA 2013 Regional Chair James Lawther MW is a contributing editor to Decanter as well as an independent wine writer, lecturer and tour guide based in Bordeaux. He retailed wine at Steven Spurrier's Les Caves de la Madeleine in Paris in the 1980s, and his early career also involved stints as a cellar hand in Bordeaux, Burgundy, Roussillon and Western Australia. In 1993, James became a Master of Wine. He is author of The Heart of Bordeaux and The Finest Wines of Bordeaux , and has contributed to books including Dorling Kindersleyâs Wines of the World , Oz Clarkeâs Bordeaux and Hugh Johnsonâs Pocket Wine Book . Stephen Brook DWWA 2013 Regional Chair Stephen Brook has been a contributing editor to Decanter since 1996. He has won a clutch of awards for his writing on wine, and is the author of more than 30 books, including Complete Bordeaux , now the definitive study of the region, and now in its second edition, and The Wines of California , which won three awards. His recently published book, The Finest Wines of California , is his third on Californian wine. Stephen also fully revised the last two editions of Hugh Johnsonâs Wine Companion , and writes for magazines in many countries. Nicola Arcedeckne-Butler MW DWWA 2013 Judge Nicola Arcedeckne-Butler specialises in the classic French regions of Bordeaux and Burgundy as Director of Buying for Private Cellar. Her time in Italy in her twenties also awoke a passion in all things Italian, including the language, and as a result she is fluent in both French and Italian. Starting her career with Majestics Wine Warehouses in 1987, she then moved to Corney and Barrow and assisted in the development of their broking department before becoming their Wine Buyer. In 1996, she collected the Villa Maria award for best viticulture paper when passing her Master of Wine examinations. In 2005 she set up Private Cellar Ltd with Andrew Gordon and Laura Taylor, taking charge of the buying side of the company, which now employs eight people. Jane Boyce MW DWWA 2013 Judge Jane Boyce MW is the Fine Wine Manager at James Nicholson Wine Merchant, re-joining the company last year after nearly twenty years working freelance within the wine trade. In addition to her role at James Nicholson Wine Merchant, Jane runs wine courses, lectures widely on food and wine, and consults for both the five-star Merchant Hotel and Rossâs Auction house in Belfast. As a freelance writer, Jane was the wine columnist for Irish Tatler , Licensed Catering News and Easy Food , as well as contributing pieces to publications internationally, including Food and Wine magazine and the Irish Times . Her wine career spans 30 years, in which she has experienced all aspects of the industry, from buying and selling to marketing, and compiling wine lists and training staff for the on-trade. Peter Nixson DWWA 2013 Judge Peter Nixson joined British Airways as an airline steward in 1973 â having never drunk a glass of wine in his life. Through his job he visited places including California, South Africa and Australia at the time when their wine industries were starting to become established. His interest in wine grew and, in 1982, he began to take courses at the WSET and earned his Diploma with Honours in 1986. The following year, he joined BAâs newly created Wine Department taking over its management in 1989. For the next 20 years he was responsible for the selection of all BAâs wines â over 450,000 cases a year â including the Concorde Cellar. Peter left BA in 2009, worked for Vinum, a specialist importer of Italian wines and currently owns wine consultancy firm Airline Wine Consultancy. Matthew Hemming DWWA 2013 Judge Matthew Hemming is the Fine Wine Manager at Averys Wine Merchants, where he has worked since 2002, covering all bases from Van Driver to Burgundy Buyer. Travelling and tasting extensively in Australia over the years, Matthew won the only UK place on the prestigious Len Evans Tutorial in 2005, and in 2008 he entered the Master of Wine programme, where he is now working on the final stage. Jane MacQuitty DWWA 2013 Judge 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. Jane 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. Richard Bampfield DWWA 2013 Judge Richard Bampfield MW graduated with a French degree from Cambridge in 1981 and immediately decided he could best put the language to use in the wine trade. He managed retail wine shops in the North West of England for JW Lees Brewers for 7 years, then spent a year getting his hands dirty in vineyards around the world, also working in wine cellars in California and Australia. After passing the Master of Wine exam in 1990, Richard joined Australian producer Brown Brothers, and managed their European operations until 1999. He left them to set up his own company, specialising in public relations, and offering wine talks, tours and courses. Principal clients include Albert Bichot (Burgundy), Dom Perignon Champagne, Yvon Mau (Bordeaux), ChÃ¢teau Sociando-Mallet, Leithâs School of Food and Wine, Santa Rita (Chile), Enotria and the English Wine Group. Richard is currently Chairman of the Association of Wine Educators, and was named European Champagne Ambassador in 2009. Hugo Rose MW DWWA 2013 Judge Hugo Rose MW joined the wine industry in 1982 after a brief career as a 'garagiste' (motorcycle mechanic), and is currently Director of Vinsignia. After almost 20 years with UK fine wine merchants Lay & Wheeler, and then working as Head of Trading at boutique wine portfolio manager Culver Street, Hugo set up his own consultancy offering a variety of commercial services to the wine industry, including project development, cellar maturity evaluation and tastings of historic vintages. Hugo is a former Chairman of the Institute of Masters of Wine and is currently Chairman of the Wine Investment Association. Jean-Michel Valette MW DWWA 2013 Judge Jean-Michel Valette MW is Chairman of Vinfolio, a US-based internet retailer and seller of fine wine. He has also been chairman and MD of Robert Mondavi Winery, as well as CEO of Franciscan Estates. Outside of wine he is a Director of the Boston Beer Company, maker of Sam Adams beer, and the Chairman of Peet's Coffee & Tea. His interest in vines and wine started at an early age during summers spent with his grandparents in Vouvray, and since becoming one of North America's early Masters of Wine, he has been active in education, examination and governance of the Institute of Masters of Wine, where he is currently Chairman. Christopher Cannan DWWA 2013 Judge After a spell at Lloyds in London, Christopher Cannan joined Percy Fox & Co., then spent most of 1970 travelling in Europe, earning his board and lodging by working in cellars and vineyards. He then stayed on in Bordeaux as Assistant to the Export Director of negociant, Louis Eschenauer, where he travelled to the Channel Islands, UK, Denmark and the USA. Still based in Bordeaux, Christopher then joined New York importer, Frederick Wildman & Sons, as Assistant to the Managing Director, and when the companyâs Margaux office closed in 1978, Christopher founded Europvin, a company exporting top quality single estates internationally from Bordeaux, Loire, Burgundy, RhÃ´ne and Rioja, among others, and offering logistical services. In the 1990s, Spanish companies including Vega Sicilia followed, and in 1997, Christopher purchased Clos Figueras in Priorat. Christopherâs commitment to France has earned him the nomination of Chevalier de lâOrdre du MÃ©rite Agricole and since 2012, Christopher has been member of the AcadÃ©mie Internationale du Vin. Andreas Larsson DWWA 2013 Regional Chair Andreas Larssonâs career started at the young age of 16, when he followed his passion and entered chef school. Later, during his career as a chef, he was allured by the wine industry and spent numerous hours travelling to wine regions and tasting thousands of wines. After achieving several titles of Best Sommelier in Sweden, Scandinavia and Europe, his dream became true when he was crowned Best Sommelier in the World in 2007. Today, Andreas divides his time between working at renowned restaurant PM & VÃ¤nner in VÃ¤xjÃ¶, Sweden (where he is the Wine Director, in charge of 25000 bottles and 2500 references from around the world) and travelling the globe as a taster, lecturer and consultant. Clare Tooley DWWA 2013 Judge After completing a degree in modern languages at Cambridge, Clare Tooley began her wine life in London in 1995 with John Armit Wines, before moving to Laithwaites (Direct Wines) in 200, where she has worked ever since. Clare started out at the Direct Wines Group as a wine buyer, founding their international wholesale division, and in 2006 she moved to Bordeaux with her family to manage Laithwaitesâ French operations, and subsequently the Groupâs Wine Club interests in Germany and Switzerland. Currently, Clare is still based in Bordeaux, where she is the Director of the Groupâs winemaking facility in the region, Le Chai au Quai, although she continues to travel extensively in a sales capacity promoting the groupâs exclusive range of wines to the international wine trade. Clare is also a first year student in the Master of Wine programme. Jean Marc Sauboua DWWA 2013 Judge Jean Marc Sauboua is Head of Winemaking and Bordeaux buyer for Laithwaites Wine. He joined Laithwaites in 1993 after training at ChÃ¢teau Haut-Brion and has been making premium wines around the globe for over twenty years in France, Australia, Chile, Italy, Moldova, Spain and South Africa. James Cluer MW DWWA 2013 Judge James Cluer MW owns and operates FineVintageLtd.com . Through his business, James consults on wine buying, operates 13 WSET professional wine schools across the US and Canada, and runs luxury wine tours. His consulting clients include major international airlines, retailers and Fairmont Hotels & Resorts, and his excursions to wine regions visit iconic properties in Bordeaux, Tuscany, Spain and the Napa Valley. Jamesâ other website, FineVintageWineClub.com , allows wine lovers to buys his picks. Ben Stephenson DWWA 2013 Judge Ben Stephenson is the Managing Director and founder of hangingditch wine merchants in Manchester. He has spent over 15 years in the wine industry, starting with stints as Shop Manager for Oddbins and Harvey Nichols, and as an Account Manager at Pagendam Pratt Wine Cellars, Domaine Direct and Willoughby's Wine Warehouse. In 2001, Ben obtained his WSET Diploma, and in 2004 he was a UK semi-finalist for the Ruinart Sommelier of the Year competition. Benâs talents not only lie in wine, however, as he also holds an Art Foundation and BA in Graphic Design from the Glasgow School of Art. Linda Jotham MW DWWA 2013 Judge A wine educator and cellar consultant to consumers and the trade, Linda Jotham MW became a Master of Wine in 2001, winning the prestigious Bollinger Tasting Medal and the Tim Derouet Memorial Award for the most outstanding performance in the exams. Her trade experience includes Marketing at Mentzendorff, judging at the Decanter and IWSC competitions, and she is a member of the editorial board of the Journal of Wine Research. In addition to working with the wine trade, Linda is also a qualified English lawyer, and is a Senior Lecturer in Law at London's City University, as well as Programme Director of City University's Legal Practice Course. Arnaud Goubet DWWA 2013 Judge Hailing from Normany, France, Arnaud Goubet quickly realised that he wanted to work in the wine trade. He joined the catering team at the five-star Intercontinental Paris Le Grand after completing one year at University, and after four years there, he moved to the UK to take WSET courses and work as a sommelier, after which he worked for Harveyâs of Bristol. Drawing on his professional experience, Arnaud participated in the TrophÃ©e Ruinart in 2000 and 2001, and he has since held positions at The Vineyard at Stockcross and Cliveden House in the UK, and Pierre Gagnaire and Lasserre in Paris. Arnaud is currently working at Le Manoir aux Quat'Saisons, where he has been Chef Sommelier since 2006.

DWWA 2013 Bordeaux Judging Panel

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