WINEALIGN: MEET THE JUDGES
Anthony Gismondi
British Columbia
Co-Head Judge
WineAlign, Vancouver Sun
Follow on Twitter @TheSpitter
Anthony Gismondi is one of North America’s most influential wine critics. A writer and broadcaster, he is currently in
his 25th year as wine columnist at the Vancouver Sun where his combined weekly columns are viewed by some one
million readers. His comprehensive and busy wine review website www.gismondionwine.com has attracted over a
half million visitors a month since 2002 from over 70 countries. He is also the co-host of the longest running, weekly,
wine and food show in Canada. The Best of Food and Wine is now aired in prime time from 6 to 7pm Pacific,
Thursday evenings on AM650.
In his spare time he is the 'Canada' section editor for Hugh Johnson’s Pocket Wine Book, writes a regular wine
column in Vancouver’s urban hip Montecristo and the Pique Newsmagazine a weekly newsmagazine serving the resort
community of Whistler, British Columbia, North America’s number one ski resort. Mr. Gismondi became a partner and
principal critic at WineAlign in 2013 joining Canada’s busiest on-line social media wine site. He also heads up both
major WineAlign competitions: the 'Nationals' and the 'Worlds.'
David Lawrason
David Lawrason
Ontario
Co-Head Judge
WineAlign, Toronto Life, Ottawa Magazine
Follow on Twitter @DavidLawrason
David has been an independent, full time wine writer, educator and wine competition judge since 1986.
Formerly with the Globe and Mail and Wine Access magazine, he is currently VP of Wine for winealign.com,
columnist for Toronto Life and Ottawa magazine as well as Grapevine published in Ontario. He has closely
followed Ontario wine throughout his career, founding the Canadian Wine Awards and the Canadian Wine
Annual during his time with Wine Access. Residing in Toronto, he maintains close contact with wineries in
Prince Edward County and Niagara through regular visits and tastings.
There is no right or wrong about what wines you like, or how you enjoy them. But a critic should not reflect
personal preferences. Helpful criticism is about knowing quality, rating it objectively and describing any wine
based on tasting thousands of wines of all types. I have been doing that since 1986 for the Globe and Mail,
Wine Access, Toronto Life and now WineAlign, the best vehicle yet created for comprehensive, democratic
wine reviewing. I define quality as pure, balanced and generous expression of origin and winemaking intent and I have met winemakers with both noble and crassly commercial intent. Price usually does reflect quality,
but price should not be factored into ratings. What I can afford , or you can afford, has nothing to do with
what the price should be. And finding and recommending the best value wines - at any price - is my mandate
and my great pleasure. With WineAlign your chances of finding pleasure in very good wine at the price you
can afford just got a whole lot better.
John Szabo
Ontario
WineAlign, City Bites
Follow on Twitter @JohnSzabo
John is Canada’s first Master Sommelier. He’s a partner and principal critic for WineAlign and authors the bimonthly Vintages Preview Report, also published on nationalpost.ca and he is wine editor for Toronto’s
CityBites Magazine. His freelance work has been seen in Wine & Spirits Magazine, En Route, the Globe and
Mail, and Grapevine Magazine among others, and his views are heard regularly on Classical 96.3FM. He is
author of Sommelier Management used by the Canadian Association of Professional Sommeliers, and of Pairing
Food and Wine For Dummies.
John also designs wine programs, with the Trump International Hotel and
Tower Toronto, OTG management at Pearson International Airport, and Cafe-Bar-Pasta among current clients,
and is head buyer for the Sommelier Service Wine Club. He teaches, speaks, judges and travels around the
world, and to round out his experience and get closer to the land, he also owns a small vineyard in Eger,
Hungary, the J&J Eger Wine Co. And as a holder of a 3rd degree black belt in Goju-Karate-do, his grapes are
well protected, too.
READ THE WINEALIGN INTERVIEW WITH JOHN HERE
Jamie Goode
United Kingdom
wineanorak.com
Follow on Twitter @JamieGoode
Jamie Goode is a UK-based wine journalist. After completing a PhD in plant biology he worked as a science editor,
before switching careers to wine writing. He’s a book author (The Science of Wine and Authentic Wine – both with
University of California Press), writes a weekly wine column for a national newspaper, and blogs daily
at wineanorak.com, one of the most widely visited of all wine websites. An experienced wine judge, he’s a
panel chair for the International Wine Challenge each year, and has judged wine in France, Australia, Bulgaria,
Hungary and Serbia.
Sara D’Amato
Ontario
WineAlign
Follow on Twitter @SaradAmato
Sara is a Toronto-based wine consultant, sommelier, wine critic and principal partner with WineAlign. She has worked in
cellars both in Niagara and in France, formerly as Sommelier of Four Seasons Hotel in Toronto and you may now find her at
the Platinum Club of the Air Canada Centre. Tune into daytime Toronto with Val Cole on Rogers Cable 10 or 103.9 Proud FM
with Mike Chalut in Toronto where she is a regular guest. A graduate of the University of Toronto and Niagara College’s winery
and viticulture technician program, she was the youngest and only woman to win the grand prize at Canadian Renaissance
Wine Tasting Challenge in 2006 as featured in CBC’s Wine Confidential Documentary. Sara has been awarded The Ontario
Hosteliery’s “Top 30 Under 30” Award and is a staunch promoter of local wine and gastroculture. Sara is a member of the
Wine Writer’s Circle of Canada and continues to participate in judging wine competitions across the country. Currently, Sara
sits on the board of the Ontario Chapter of the Canadian Association of Professional Sommeliers.
READ THE WINEAKLIGN INTERVIEW WITH SARA HERE
Remy Charest
Quebec
WineAlign, Chacun son Vin, Palate Press,
The Wine Case, CJAD 800AM
Follow on Twitter @RemyCharest
For nearly 20 years, Rémy Charest has been working as a journalist, writer, translator and project manager with a great
variety of media and public and private organizations in Quebec and Canada, as well as France, the United States,
Switzerland and the United Kingdom. Rémy has been writing about wine, food and other tasty stuff for over fifteen years, in
publications like Le Devoir, Coup de Pouce, Châtelaine, Wine Access and several other magazines in both Canada and the
United States. He is an editor and contributor to Palate Press, the online wine magazine. He also talks about wine and food
on Montreal radio station CJAD and on Radio-Canada. Rémy is also a judge for several wine competitions across the country.
Rhys Pender
British Columbia
Wine Plus+
Follow on Twitter @WinePlus
A passionate educator, wine lover, judge, writer, and grape grower/farmer, Rhys has worked in the wine industry
since he was a teenager. Rhys pursued his food and wine passion by completing a Professional Culinary Diploma to
ensure he eats well and all levels of the Wine and Spirit Education Trust (WSET) programs to make sure there was
always good wine at the table. In 2004 Rhys began taking on the grueling Master of Wine program. This culminated in
Rhys becoming Canada’s youngest Master of Wine in 2010, one of only approximately 300 in the world.
Rhys runs a WSET wine school and consultancy through his business Wine Plus+ and between travelling around the
world can be found with his boots in the dirt at his small 4 acre vineyard and winery in the Similkameen Valley –
Little Farm Winery. He is a regular contributor to Canadian publications such as Montecristo, Taste, Savour, Wine
Trend and Good Life Connoisseur. In addition to judging for Wine Align, Rhys judges wine competitions internationally
such as the Decanter World Wine Awards, Vancouver Magazine Wine Awards and the Dallas Morning News Wine
Competition.
READ THE WINEALIGN INTERVIEW WITH RHYS HERE
Janet Dorozynski
Ontario
WineAlign and
Global Practice Lead – Canadian Wine at
Foreign Affairs and International Trade Canada
Follow on Twitter @WineTrackMind
By day, Janet is the Government of Canada’s chief wine guru, where she is responsible for managing the Foreign
Affairs and International Trade Canada cellar, overseeing a program to assist Canadian Embassies to serve and
promote Canadian wine, beer and spirits, and works with Canadian producers on international business development.
Janet has worked in numerous capacities in the international and Canadian wine industry for more than a decade and
has taught about wine and the business of wine for many years. She holds the Diploma in Wine and Spirits and is an
accredited educator with the Wine and Spirits Education Trust (WSET). Janet is a Professional Affiliate of Brock
University’s Cool Climate Oenology and Viticulture Institute (CCOVI) and Chair of the Advisory Board for the Governor
General’s Award in Celebration of the Nation’s Table, recognizing excellence and innovation in food and drink. Janet
has been reviewing wine and judging at wine competitions across Canada, the US, Europe and South America since
2001 and is co-chair of the Ottawa Wine Challenge.
READ THE WINEALIGN INTERVIEW WITH JANET HERE
Bill Zacharkiw
Quebec
WineAlign, Chacun son Vin,
Montreal Gazette, CHOM FM
Follow on Twitter @BillZacharkiw
Bill began his wine journey as a restaurant owner in Montreal. A few years later, he became head sommelier at one
of Quebec’s top restaurants. His writing career began in 2004 with the The Caveman’s Wine Blog, one of the
internet’s first. For the last 5 years, Bill has been the weekly wine writer for the Montreal Gazette. His articles are
carried across Canada via National Post.com and other newspapers, making him one of Canada’s most widely read
wine writers. Bill can be heard on CHOM FM (Montreal) every Friday morning to chat about Wine that Rocks. He has
judged international wine competitions in Canada, Chile and New Zealand where he is known as the critic who
prefers to taste barefoot. He is now also a principal critic on WineAlign’s Quebec website, Chacun son vin.
READ THE WINEALIGN INTERVIEW WITH BILL HERE
DJ Kearney
British Columbia
Wine and Spirits Education Trust
Follow on Twitter @djwines
DJ Kearney is a Vancouver-based wine educator, wine writer, judge, presenter and classically trained chef. She has
trained hundreds of professional Sommeliers for the International Sommelier Guild during a decade as a non-stop
travelling instructor throughout western North America.
A diverse background in wine, food and geology makes DJ uniquely qualified to guide the discovery of the world’s
wine regions, the understanding of terroir, the sharpening of palates, and the chemistry of food and wine harmony.
DJ is a contributing editor to Vancouver Magazine and has written for Western Living, Eat Magazine, and for Wine
Access until its demise. She appears on radio and television regularly; moderates and presents at wine festivals
throughout North America and judges several major wine competitions annually. She is the Chief Judge of the
prestigious Vancouver Magazine International Wine Competition, now in its 10th year. She consults for a small client
list assisting with wine selections, lists and training. DJ holds the WSET Diploma, the ISG Sommelier Diploma and is in
the Master of Wine program as an exam-ready candidate.
Firmly believing in the benefits of wine and health, DJ is a distance runner, a black belt in Tae Kwon Do as well as a
mother of twin black belts. DJ takes to heart the dictum of the late great Julia Child: moderation, and plenty of it.
READ THE WINEALIGN INTERVIEW WITH DJ HERE
Treve Ring
Victoria, British Columbia
WineAlign, EAT Magazine, Sip
Follow on Twitter @Treve_Ring
Treve Ring is a certified sommelier, wine writer, editor, judge and consultant based on Vancouver Island.
She is the DRINK Editor for EAT Magazine, BC Regional Editor for SIP Northwest Magazine, Wine Editor for Scout
Magazine, Wine Envoy & Consult for Edible Canada and partner in Cru Consultancy.
Treve received her Sommelier Diploma from the International Sommelier Guild, and Diploma from the Wine & Spirit
Education Trust. Along the way she has become a French Wine Scholar through the French Wine Academy, a certified
Sherry Educator through the Sherry Academy in Jerez, a Wine Location Specialist with the Center of Wine Origins
(Champagne & Port), and is currently completing certification with the Society of Wine Educators. She was a
contributing author for the award-winning book, “Island Wineries of British Columbia”, published in early 2011.
She is currently working her way through visiting every wine growing region worldwide – a seemingly (and
fortuitously) endless goal.
READ THE WINEALIGN INTERVIEW WITH TREVE HERE
Brad Royale
Alberta
Wine Director,
Canadian Rocky Mountain Resorts
Follow on Twitter @BradRoyale
Brad is the wine director for Canadian Rocky Mountain Resorts, overseeing eight beautiful properties throughout
Alberta and British Columbia. Brad has been involved in retail and restaurant management for fifteen years. He
has completed the ISG sommelier program and the WSET Diploma program. Brad has won multiple awards for his
wine programs from Wine Spectator, Wine Enthusiast, Avenue Magazine and the Vancouver Wine Festival. In 2012
Brad launched his own wine label, Kitten Swish…it’s delicious.
READ THE WINEALIGN INTERVIEW WITH BRAD HERE
Marc Chapleau
Montreal
WineAlign, Chacun son Vin,
Cellier (SAQ) , Guide Hachette
Follow on Twitter @MarcChapleau
Marc Chapleau is a well-known wine writer from Quebec and is a principal critic on WineAlign’s Quebec website,
Chacun son vin. His extensive travels to wine-growing regions all over the world, his appearances at wine-tasting
events as wine expert and master of ceremonies, and his hundreds of published wine columns, occasionally
humorous but always passionate, have made him an important figure on the Canadian wine scene.
READ THE WINEALIGN INTERVIEW WITH MARC HERE
Some Exemptions
New Brunswick
Telegraph Journal, East Coast Living,
TAPS Magazine, Progress
Follow on Twitter @frogspadca
Craig Pinhey is a food and beverage columnist for the New Brunswick Telegraph Journal and KV Style, & writes
for TAPS Beer Magazine, Palate Press, Halifax’s The Coast, Progress and East Coast Living magazine. He covered
the Atlantic Canadian wine scene for Wine Access for 7 years, including writing the entire Atlantic section of
their Canadian Wine Annual. He has also been CBC Radio’s Shift Sommelier for 5 years.
Craig had his booze epiphany circa 1985 with his first pint of Ginger’s Best cask conditioned real ale at the
original Ginger’s Tavern in Halifax. This led him to a lifelong love of quality wine, beer and spirits.
A certified Sommelier and BJCP Judge, Craig has judged at the Canadian Wine Awards, International Value Wine
Awards, All Canadian Wine Championships, Atlantic Wine Awards, Moncton’s World Wine Expo Awards, PEI’s Wine
Show Awards and the Canadian Brewing Awards. He was also part of the judging team for the 2013 WineAlign
National Wine Awards of Canada.
Craig designs wine lists, does restaurant service training, and conducts wine and food events.
READ THE WINEALIGN INTERVIEW WITH CRAIG HERE
Mark Davidson
British Columbia
Wine Australia
Follow on Twitter @vintageMD
Born in London, raised in Sydney Mark has over 30 years of experience in the hotel and restaurant and wine
business, fifteen of those as a Sommelier. In 2001, he was named Sommelier of the Year at the Vancouver Wine
Festival and also won the Spirited Industry Professional in 2014. As a Department Head and instructor with the
International Sommelier Guild he was instrumental in the on-going development of the curriculum and has
taught classes in Vancouver, Seattle, Portland, San Francisco, Los Angeles, San Diego and Las Vegas. Mark is an
annual judge at Dallas Morning Star/Texsom and Sunset Magazine wine competitions. In addition he developed a
wine education and restaurant etiquette course for Simon Fraser University Global Asset and Wealth Management
MBA program and is currently studying for the theory section of the Master of Wine having passed the rigorous
tasting examination in 2012. Mark is currently Global Education Director for Wine Australia.
READ THE WINEALIGN INTERVIEW WITH MARK HERE
Nadia Fournier
Quebec
WineAlign, Chacun son Vin,
Guide du Vin, L’actualité
Follow on Twitter @NadiaFournier
Nadia is a principal critic for WineAlign’s Quebec website, Chacun son vin. She developed a passion for wine on
a long journey in Europe, where she worked the grape harvest in Burgundy (France), in the Valais (Switzerland)
and in Piemonte (Italy). In 2007, she partnered with Michel Phaneuf, and began co-writing Le Guide du Vin.
Nadia is now in charge of the best-selling wine guide in Quebec. She is also a contributor to the magazine
L’Actualité, to Michel Phaneuf’s web site (www.michelphaneufvin.com), and she can be seen every Thursday
with Marc-André Coallier on MaTV on “Libre-Service”. Le Guide du Vin 2010 has been awarded the best wine
guide of the world at the Gourmand World Cookbook Awards.
READ THE WINEALIGN INTERVIEW WITH NADIA HERE
Gurvinder Bhatia
Alberta
Quench, Vinomania, Global TV, Edmonton Journal
Follow on Twitter @EdmontonWineGuy
Gurvinder Bhatia left a 10-year career in law to indulge his passion for wine and food. He is the owner of
Vinomania, a wine educator, wine commentator, international wine judge, published wine writer and has served
as the wine consultant to hundreds of hotels and restaurants.
Gurvinder is Contributing Editor for Quench Magazine (Canada’s most widely distributed wine and food
publication) and wine columnist for the Edmonton Journal. Gurvinder is a regular contributor to Global
Television and Italy’s multi-lingual digital publication Winelife. He was also the wine columnist for CBC Radio for
11 years. His articles have appeared in many publications including, Appetite Magazine Singapore, Wine Access,
City Palate and Vendor Magazine. Check out his Blame it on the Vine blog at edmontonjournal.com/vine as well
as his Wednesday video wine pick.
READ THE WINEALIGN INTERVIEW WITH GURVINDER HERE
WineAlign Staff & More
BRYAN MCCAW
CAROL ANN JESSIMAN
Software developer
WineAlign Staff
WineAlign Partner/Founder
SARAH GODDARD
Assistant Wineaux
at WineAlign
JASON DZIVER
Photographer
ROD & MARJ KING
Penticton growers for Sandhill
Backroom Coordinators for NWAC
EARL PAXTON
WineAlign Staff
MARSHA MORRISH & RAQUEL MERIAM
Tourism Penticton staff & hosts