Bob Paulinski, MW, stands as one of the foremost authorities in the field of private label wine development. Over the course of more than 40 years in the wine trade, he’s held diverse leadership positions in wine retail across the United States and Australia. In addition, he has extensively traveled the wine world and remains active in wine education and within wine international competitions. In 2002, he became a Master of Wine, a rare achievement shared by only a select group of approximately 50 individuals in North America.

Michael Alberty writes about wine for The Oregonian/OregonLive and Wine Enthusiast Magazine. He turned to wine writing after 16 years in the retail wine trenches of Illinois and Oregon. He has written about wine for publications based in England, Australia and the United States. He has also published work in the fields of international environmental politics and major league baseball. Earlier in his life he tended bar in Portland, pulled espresso shots in Seattle and made sandwiches with a famous bluegrass banjo player in Champaign-Urbana.

Wayne Belding, MS is a geologist turned oenophile.  He has written about wine for over 40 years for local and national publications.  In 1990, he became the 13th American to pass the Master Sommelier Diploma examination.  Since that time, he has been active in teaching and examining at all levels of the Master Sommelier program. He has served as Education Director and Chairman of the Court of Master Sommeliers – Americas. 

Over the years, he has taught thousands of sommeliers and industry professionals.  After decades as a successful retail owner, he now is a frequent wine reviewer, competition judge and speaker at wine events.