Who We Are

The National Capital Sommelier Guild welcomes members of all levels, from students and wine lovers to Masters of Wine. Members share a common appreciation of fine wines and wine service and are especially keen to discover fine wines and spirits that offer great value for money.

Reflecting the broad perspective and interests of its members, the Guild offers a diverse program of wine related events monthly. These events focus on one or more aspects of theory, tasting and/or wine and food pairing.

Events include​

• Regular advance tastings of LCBO Vintages releases 
• Events matching wines with cheese, small plates, desserts, etc… 
• Regional and varietal tastings designed to expand participant’s wine knowledge 
• Special tastings of older, cellared wines acquired at auction or from personal collections 
• Co-operative sponsorship of special events with other wine or trade organisations 
• Awareness and promotion of events and tastings across the National Capital region 

​Although participation in some of the above events is restricted to Members most of the tastings and dinners are open to a limited number of sponsored guests. 
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The Guild also fosters professionalism and skill development by offering an annual scholarship and awarding prizes to residents of the National Capital region pursuing studies in related areas. ​

Governance 
Elected annually by the members, the Board of Directors is responsible for planning and carrying out the on-going operations of the Guild. A Council of Governors, made up of leaders in the community, provides advice and counsel on overall strategic direction. 

Board of Directors 

• President: Bill Ellis 
• Vice President: Marie-France Champagne 
• Treasurer: Rod Story 
• Secretary: Lisa Isabelle 
• Directors: Don Cook, Ian Duncan, Greg Nyman, Sean O’Regan, Sylvain Segard, Matt Steeves 

Key volunteers 

• Cynthia Mar 
  Registrar 
  events@sommelierguild.com 
• Dave Isaacs 
  Webmaster 
  webmaster@sommelierguild.com 

Governor emeritus 

• Michael Botner 
  Wine writer 
  Owner, Accounting for Taste B&B 
• Peter Ward 
  Wine Consultant 
  Wine Writer 

Council of Governors 

• Luke Ambridge 
  District Sales Manager 
  Atlas Wine Merchants 
• Stephen Beckta 
  Owner, Beckta Dining and Wine 
• Peter Collis 
  Guild Past Vice-President and Treasurer 
• Gay Cook 
  Owner, Mrs Cook’s Food 
  Food Writer, The Ottawa Citizen 
• Tim Davis 
  Guild Past President 
• Michael Fagan 
  Manager, Vintages LCBO Knowledge Resources Group 
• Victor Harradine 
  Guild Past President 
  Publisher, winecurrent.com 
  former Director, Algonquin College Sommelier Program 
• J. Phillip Nicholson 
  Guild Founding Member and Past President 
• Karen Norris 
  District Manager, LCBO 
• Veronique Rivest 
  Sommelier 
• Halina Player 
  President, Players Exposition 
• Daniel Speck 
  Vice President Sales, Henry of Pelham 
• Rick Slomka 
  Canadian Directory, California Wine Institute 
• Gord Weber 
  Wine Agent, Colio Estates