Serena Sutcliffe, Master of Wine, (born 1945), is the head of Sotheby's international wine department, as well as a prominent writer on wine. [1] She is married to fellow Master of Wine David Peppercorn. Joining the wine trade in 1971, she passed the Master of Wine examination at the first attempt and became only the second woman to hold the qualification.
Sutcliffe is considered one of the world's leading authorities on wine. A former chairman of the Institute of Masters of Wine, she was made a Chevalier of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres by the French Government in 1988. She was elected to the Académie Internationale du Vin in 1993 and, in 2002, she received the New York Institute of Technology’s Professional Excellence Award. In 2006, she received the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Society of Bacchus America and was awarded the title of Chevalier of the Legion of Honour by the French Government for her seminal work in promoting and selling French wines.
Sutcliffe is an internationally recognised wine writer and renowned taster and writes regularly for many international publications. Besides heading Sotheby’s worldwide wine auctions, she is also a member of Sotheby’s European Board and is a regular lecturer and broadcaster in Europe, the United States, and Asia. Her book The Wines of Burgundy appeared in its 8th edition in 2005.
Sotheby's is a British-founded multinational corporation with headquarters in New York City. It is one of the world's largest brokers of fine and decorative art, jewellery, and collectibles. It has 80 locations in 40 countries, and maintains a significant presence in the UK.
A sommelier, or wine steward, is a trained and knowledgeable wine professional, normally working in fine restaurants, who specializes in all aspects of wine service as well as wine and food pairing. The role of the sommelier in fine dining today is much more specialized and informed than that of a wine waiter. Sommeliers Australia states that the role is strategically on par with that of the chef de cuisine.
Master of Wine (MW) is a qualification issued by The Institute of Masters of Wine in the United Kingdom. The MW qualification is generally regarded in the wine industry as one of the highest standards of professional knowledge.
Dom Pérignon is a brand of vintage Champagne. It is named after Dom Pérignon, a Benedictine monk who was an important quality pioneer for Champagne wine but who, contrary to popular myths, did not discover the Champagne method for making sparkling wines.
Dương Thu Hương is a Vietnamese author and political dissident.
An art auction or fine art auction is the sale of art works, in most cases in an auction house.
Wine fraud relates to the commercial aspects of wine. The most prevalent type of fraud is one where wines are adulterated, usually with the addition of cheaper products and sometimes with harmful chemicals and sweeteners.
Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art is a museum of American art in Bentonville, Arkansas. The museum, founded by Alice Walton and designed by Moshe Safdie, officially opened on 11 November 2011. It offers free public admission.
John Michael Broadbent, MW, was a British wine critic, writer and auctioneer in a capacity as a Master of Wine. He was an authority on wine tasting and old wines.
Francesca Zambello is an American opera and theatre director. She is the artistic director of Washington National Opera.
Catherine Jeanne Cesarsky is an Argentine and French astronomer, known for her research activities in astrophysics and for her leadership in astronomy and atomic energy. She is the current chairperson of the Square Kilometre Array's governing body, SKAO Council. She was the first female president of the International Astronomical Union (2006-2009) and the first female director general of the European Southern Observatory (1999-2007).
Countess Albina du Boisrouvray is a former journalist and film producer who has become a global philanthropist and social entrepreneur working with AIDS victims and impoverished communities around the world. She is the founder of FXB International, a non-governmental organization established in memory of her son, François-Xavier Bagnoud.
David Peppercorn is a British Master of Wine, French wine importer and author, known for his books about the wines of Bordeaux and long experience in his field, having collected tasting notes since the late 1950s. He is married to fellow MW and wine writer Serena Sutcliffe. They were the first husband and wife team to both earn the qualification of Master of Wine. He has three daughters by a previous marriage. Peppercorn's books include Bordeaux, The Wines of Bordeaux, The Simon & Schuster Pocket Guide to the Wines of Bordeaux, Mouton-Rothschild 1945, The Wine To End All Wars and Great Vineyards and Winemakers.
Jasper Morris is a Master of Wine since 1985. An expert on the wine of Burgundy, with a strong interest in other pinot-producing countries such as New Zealand, he has taken a strong interest in the nascent wine industries of China and Japan, visiting the wine regions of both countries. He has launched InsideBurgundy.com website showing all reviews and news from the wine region of Burgundy.
Jeannie Cho Lee is a Hong Kong–based, Korean-American wine critic, author, journalist, consultant, wine educator and Master of Wine, the first ethnic Asian to achieve this accreditation. She was 25th on Decanter's Power List 2013.
Francis Kurkdjian is a French perfumer and businessman of Armenian descent. He is best known for creating the men's fragrance Le Male for Jean Paul Gaultier in 1995, which has become one of the world's best-selling perfumes.
The Madonna and Child with Saints Luke and Catherine of Alexandria, also known simply as Holy Conversation, is a painting by the Italian Renaissance master Titian. It is one of his several versions of the canonical image of the Madonna and Child.
Patricia "Pat" Mainardi is a leading authority on nineteenth-century European art and European and American modernism, and a pioneering professor of women's studies.
Joëlle Rollo-Koster is a French medievalist working as a professor of medieval history at the University of Rhode Island.