Participating Panelists
Jim Barker
The man behind the Washington Wine Academy is President and Founder Jim Barker, whose fascination with wine is as extensive as his experience in staging interesting events; both extend to his college days nearly 20 years ago.
The organization and faculty focus is on ensuring that you have a pleasurable, enriching experience.
Says Barker, "It's great to give people an opportunity to have a wonderful evening, and it's due to our efforts."
Mike Carreiro
Tuscarora Mill wine buyer
Mark Carreiro began working in the restaurant business in the early1980’s; starting as dishwasher, then working as busboy and waiter,eventually becoming manager and wine buyer. He has run anaward-winning wine program at Tuscarora Mill Restaurant in Leesburg for over 25years, and has worked as a wine consultant for a number of successful 
Laurie Forster
Laurie Forster, The Wine Coach® is a wine educator, dynamic speaker and author of the award winning book The Sipping Point: A Crash Course in Wine.
Laurie’s specialty is creating unique corporate keynotes, team building events and group tasting seminars where she can deliver on her mission to demystify wine one glass at a time. Laurie is also a regular contributor to several magazines including Baltimore Style magazine; a sought after guest expert on radio stations across the country including most recently Martha Stewart Radio and has her own weekly radio show entitled Something to Wine About® on WBAL 1090AM.
Laurie has delivered wine edu-tainment to thousands of corporate clients and everyday wine lovers with her fresh (and fun) approach to wine. Laurie began her wine career in Manhattan in 2002 where she studied with the American Sommelier Association to obtain her certificate in Viticulture and Vinification. Laurie has since earned an Advanced Certificate with Merit from the Wine & Spirits Education Trust (WSET), completed her first step towards certification with the Court of Master Sommeliers and has trained at the Culinary Institute of America in Napa Valley.
Witty and entertaining, Laurie has been described as a sparkling presenter, highly skilled at engaging every wine lover—from beginners to wine enthusiasts. To receive Laurie's FREE audio CD "The 7 Secrets to Flawlessly Ordering Wine" Visit: http://www.thewinecoachsecrets.com
Dave McIntyre
Dave McIntyre is the wine columnist for The Washington Post.
He has written about Virginia wine for a variety of publications, including his blog, "Dave McIntyre's WineLine," available at www.dmwineline.typepad.com. 
Mike Mackie
Mike Mackie is currently the owner of The Wine Cabinet in Reston Virginia.
The Wine Cabinet opened in 2003 and has been succcessfully providing wines, beers, gourmet foods and giftwares along with large dollops of counsel, humor and support to clients in the DC area and beyond since then. Previously, Mike spent 30+ years with Marriott International managing hotels and overseeing the staff organization, creating a new national wine list that required tasting thousands of wines (someone had to do it!). Mike's goal is to triple the per capita consumption of wine in the US! Let's start with Virginia!!
Nycole Nellis
Nycole Nellis -- Nycci -- is the CEO and publisher of TheListAreYouOnIt.com (www.thelistareyouonit.com).
Founded five years ago and acknowledged by The Washington Post as "one of the premier resources for things food and wine in the Washington area and beyond," TheListAreYouOnIt.com is a multifaceted website providing details on literally hundreds of food and wine events occurring across Greater Washington each month, from chef appearances and cooking classes to wine seminars, local vineyard tours, special restaurant activities and promotions and more. Updated every two weeks and "announced" to more than 25,000 subscribers by a e-mail blast, TheListAreYouOnIt.com features a regular guest Chef’s Column authored by local and nationally-renowned toques, such as Wolfgang Puck, Michel Richard, and Eric Ziebold; Grapes & More, featuring guest columns by locally and nationally prominent sommeliers, wine writers, winemakers and mixologists; the Buzz, a section devoted to restaurant industry insider news; Openings and Coming Soon, each detailing changes on the restaurant scene.
Previously a baker for local restaurants and a professional meeting planner who spent seven years organizing educational conferences for state legislators, Nycci is a self-described "foodie descended from a long line of foodies" and has cooked and catered meals for friends and family since she was in elementary school. In addition to TheListAreYouOnIt.com, Nycci writes The Dish column, a bimonthly feature published in Washington Flyer magazine and is a featured lifestyle reporter for the publication on Washington's WTOP radio (103.5 FM). Most recently, Nycci and her husband, David Nellis have cooked up the DC area’s only food and wine variety radio show, Dishing It Out. Broadcast every Sunday at 11:00 am on 1500 AM, Nycci and David host guest chefs, mixologists, wine and beer aficionados from both the national and local food scene. Recent guests have included Thomas Keller of the French Laundry, Barbara Fairchild of Bon Appetite and Cathal Armstrong of Restaurant Eve
Nycci lives in Kensington, Maryland with her husband, David, five kids and two Bernese Mountain dogs.
Tim O’Hare, CWE, CSW
Certified Sommelier-Court of Master Sommeliers
Tim O’Hare, CWE, has a favorite quote from Ernest Hemingway that just about sums up his relationship with wine and grapes. “ Wine is one of the most civilized things in the world and one of the most natural things of the world that has been brought to the greatest perfection, and it offers a greater range for enjoyment and appreciation than, possibly, any other purely sensory thing.” Ernest Hemingway, Death in the Afternoon.
Tim O’Hare was born in Washington, D.C. and now resides in Towson, Maryland. He is married with two children and enjoys spending his off hours cooking, reading, gardening, and is passionate about baseball. Tim is a graduate the Baltimore International Culinary College, a former salesman of the year, and has passed Certified Specialist of Wine exam, Certified Specialist of Spirits exam, and the Certified Wine Educators exam through the internationally recognized Society of Wine Educators. Tim recently passed the first and second levels of the M.S. to become a Certified Sommelier. Also this past August, Tim completed the 3rd level or the Advance Program of the WSET with Merit. Tim is currently studying for the Diploma Level for the WSET this fall and will also be sitting for the 3rd Level of the Master Sommelier sometime in the fall of next year.
Previously, Tim served as the Director of Training at Reliable Churchill and was employed by them for seventeen years. Presently, Tim is the National Education Director for the Charmer Sunbelt Group. In this role he assists in the development of multi level, multi media, wine, spirit and beer educational programs that are utilized in the 15 markets the Charmer Sunbelt Group distributes alcohol beverages. The Charmer Sunbelt Group is the second largest wine and spirit wholesaler in the United States with over 6,000 employees.
Dezel Quillen
Dezel is an avid wine lover, wine geek, and wine blogger based in northern Virginia.
From 9am to 5pm he spends his days working as a Systems Engineer, while evenings and weekends are reserved for the ultimate hobby -- wine! Dezel also contributes periodic columns to Cork’d Content, DrinkLocalWine, and Virginia Wine Lover’s electronic newsletter.
Dezel is the founder, photographer, and writer for www.myvinespot.com. 
Andrew Stover
“It’s an obsession,” says Andrew Stover of his passion for wine. That obsession was quickly turned into a profession as Stover can now be found managing both the wine and sake programs at the tony Asian-themed Oya Restaurant & Lounge and its sister restaurant, SEI—among the finest restaurants in the DC Metro area.
A native of Grand Rapids, Michigan, Stover dove into the hospitality and tourism fields after he graduated from George Washington University. Post-graduation he spent eight years at WHERE Magazine as an advertising consultant, familiarizing himself with the restaurant scene in the Nation’s Capitol. Local Virginia vineyards, however, are where Stover found his true calling.
Stover has traveled around the nation and across the glove to engulf himself in various
cultures, cuisines and carfaes. His travels have taken him to such great wine-producing areas as Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Chile, France, Germany, New Zealand, South Africa, Spain and even the UK.
After conducting wine tasting and tours in the tasting room at Breaux Vineyards in Hillsboro, Virginia, Stover made his way to OYA Restaurant & Lounge to serve as Wine Director and Sommelier. With his knowledge and expertise in tow, Stover single-handedly revamped the entire wine program, catering more to the restaurant’s food and beverage-savvy crowd.
Stover’s overhaul of the wine menu at OYA gained him attention from not only DC area media, but the Wine industry as well. OYA has received the coveted Wine Spectator Award of Excellence and consecutive nominations for Wine and Beverage Program of the Year from the Restaurant Association of Metropolitan Washington. With a Sommelier Diploma from the International Sommelier Guild and a Certified Specialist of Wine certification from the Society of Wine Educators, Stover has taken his vintage know-how to a new level.
In Summer 2009, he launched a wholesale wine portfolio and brand called Vino50, created to encourage consumers to explore local and regional wines. Vino50 celebrates the 50 States of Wine and Stover collaborates with wineries in budding wine regions to show consumers that fine wines can come from states other than California.
Between an engaging career at OYA and SEI, developing new business ideas, and receiving an increasing amount of media coverage, Stover keeps a wine blog, (www.chiefwino.com), and continues traveling to satisfy his search for an array of worldly new wines. 
Jay Youmans MW, CWE
Jay Youmans has been involved in the production, importation, and distribution of wine for nearly three decades, and is one of the most experienced wine tasters in the US.
In the mid 80’s he spend several years working for Montdomaine Vineyards in Charlottesville, Virginia. Today, he is a partner in No Vineyards and Winery, ww.novineyardsandwinery.com, a California wine brand; a partner in Manse Field, a Pinot Noir Vineyard in Martinborough, New Zealand; Education Director for The Capital Wine School in Washington, DC, www.capitalwineschool.com; and owner of Rock Creek Wine Merchants. He has served as a wine judge for the Starwine International Wine Competition, The Atlantic Wine Competition, the Mid-Atlantic Competition, The Dallas Morning News, and the California State Fair. He tastes and writes about wine for The International Wine Review), and was a contributing author for The Business of Wine, published by Greenwood Publishing & Press (2009). He has passed the Advanced Level Sommelier exam put on by the Court of Master Sommeliers, and the Certified Wine Educator exam (CWE) held by The Society of Wine Educators. In 2004, he became only the 21st American to pass the Master of Wine exam; winning the Vina Errazuriz Trophy, and the Commanderie de Bordeaux Scholarship, www.mastersofwine.org.
