Critics Challenge celebrates its 10th anniversary in June with what is arguably the strongest team of judges in its history.
Chief Judges
Mary Ewing-Mullian, MW
Mary was the first woman to earn certification as a Master of Wine and is co-author of Wine for Dummies and numerous other wine books, as well as Director of the International Wine Center in New York City since 1984. Mary also writes frequently for newspapers and magazines and travels the world extensively in the course of covering wine. She is an experienced and sought-after wine judge and has been Chief Judge of Critics Challenge since its inception.
Robert Whitley
Robert writes the syndicated Wine Talk column for Creators Syndicate and is publisher of the online publication Wine Review Online. Robert’s columns have appeared in newspapers and magazines from coast to coast, and he also contributes columns and reviews to Wine Review Online. Robert is Director of the San Diego International, Winemaker Challenge and Sommelier Challenge wine competitions in addition to the Critics Challenge. This year Robert also is scheduled to judge at the Conocurs Mondial de Bruxelles, the Dallas Morning News TexSomm, and the Sunset International wine competitions.
Judges
Michael Apstein
Michael is a regular contributor to Wine Review Online, which publishes his reviews and columns. While a wine columnist for the Boston Globe he was nominated for a prestigious James Beard award, and his articles have appeared in many publications, including the wine section of the San Francisco Chronicle. Michael has judged at all of the previous nine Critics Challenges.
Jon Bonne
Jon is Editor of the San Francisco Chronicle wine section and a prolific writer and reviewer. Prior to his tenure at the Chronicle, Jon wrote on wine for MSNBC.com. Jon judges at numerous wine competitions, including the San Francisco Chronicle wine competition that kicks off the wine competition season each year. This will be his fifth appearance as a judge at the Critics Challenge.
Stephen Brook
Stephen is a London-based columnist and blogger for Decanter and a noted wine-book author with multiple works to his credit, including Bordeaux: People, Power and Politics; The Wines of California; and Liquid Gold: Dessert Wines of the World. Stephen judges numerous international wine competitions in Europe and has judged at all nine Critics Challenges.
Katherine Cole
Katherine writes a weekly wine column for the Portland Oregonian and is author of Voodoo Vintners, which delves into the mysterious realm of biodynamic winemaking. Katherine is currently working on her second book, a sweeping look at wines around the globe. This will be her third appearance as a judge at Critics Challenge.
Laurie Daniel
Laurie has written on wine for the San Jose Mercury News for the past two decades and is recognized as an expert on California wine. She has judged numerous wine competitions through the years, including the prestigious Concours Mondial de Bruxelles, and the Monterey Wine Competition. This will be Laurie’s debut at Critics Challenge.
Michael Franz
Michael is Editor of Wine Review Online. In addition to those duties, he contributes columns and reviews to WRO and also writes for France Magazine. Michael was wine columnist for the Washington Post for more than a decade before joining Wine Review Online. Michael also organizes the annual Wine for Oysters competition in Washington, D.C., and is Chief Judge of the San Diego International wine competition.
W. Blake Gray
Blake is a regular contributor to Wine Review Online and authors The Gray Report wine blog. Blake was a reporter covering wine for the San Francisco Chronicle before striking out on his own a number of years ago. Blake judges at numerous important international wine competitions, including the Concours Mondial de Bruxelles.
Paul Lukacs
Paul’s latest book, Inventing Wine, was released just before Christmas to critical acclaim. His first book, American Vintage, the Rise of American Wine, was nominated for a prestigious James Beard award. Paul is a regular contributor to Wine Review Online as well as numerous national publications. Paul also organizes the annual Wine for Oysters competition in Washington, D.C., along with colleague Michael Franz.
Ed McCarthy
Ed is co-author of Wine for Dummies and solo author of Champagne for Dummies and numerous other wine books.
Ed’s broad experience with wines the world over is invaluable in an important international wine competition, and he has judged at every one of the previous nine Critics Challenges. Ed also writes a column for Wine Review Online.
Linda Murphy
Linda recently came out with a new book, American Wine, in collaboration with Jancis Robinson, MW. Linda is the former Editor of the San Francisco Chronicle wine section and currently writes on wine for Decanter and Wine Review Online. Linda and Jancis are touring the United States extensively this spring and summer to promote American Wine.
Rebecca Murphy
Rebecca is wine columnist for the Dallas Morning News and Director of the Dallas Morning News TexSomm wine competition. Rebecca also is the person behind the scenes at several other major wine competitions, including the Sunset Magazine International Wine Competition.
Nick Passmore
Nick writes a weekly wine column for BusinessWeek.com and is Artisanal editor for Four Seasons Magazine. Over the years his work has appeared in numerous national magazines and online publications and he blogs regularly at NickOnWine.com.
Joe Roberts
Joe is the talented, eccentric and downright infamous 1WineDude, a wine blogger extraordinaire who makes tasting wine – and reading about tasting wine – relaxed, fun and entertaining. Joe also writes a wine column for Playboy.com. This will be his first trip west (Joe is based in Philadelphia) to participate in the Critics Challenge.
Leslie Sbrocco
Leslie is perhaps the most entertaining personality in the world of wine media. She’s an award-winning author (Wine for Women and The Simple & Savvy Wine Guide), television host (Check Please, a popular PBS show in San Francisco) and multimedia star as The Thirsty Girl. Leslie also makes frequent appearances on The Today Show to chat about wine. She is currently working on her third book, Adventures of a Thirsty Girl.
Sara Schneider
Sara is Wine Editor of Sunset Magazine, where she also covers wine-travel topics and oversees the Sunset International wine competition. Sara has also held the position of Food Editor at Sunset. She has twice been nominated for a prestigious James Beard award. Sara was a wine judge last year at the Concours Mondial de Bruxelles.
Bruce Schoenfeld
Bruce is Wine & Spirits Editor for Travel + Leisure. Prior to T&L he was a contributor to The Wine Spectator for a dozen years, and before that a rising star as a sportswriter for a number of different newspapers. Bruce is an avid collector of Barolo and Bordeaux, and has a rich background in Spanish wine after living in Spain for a number of years.
Jeff Siegel
Jeff is The Wine Curmudgeon, an eclectic and very popular wine blog that emphasizes affordable wines. Based in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, Jeff was wine columnist for the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. Jeff is currently working on a book about affordable wines, which are clearly his passion.
Marguerite Thomas
Marguerite is a columnist and reviewer for Wine Review Online. Marguerite has written previously for the Los Angeles Times and a number of national wine magazines.
Deborah Parker-Wong
Deborah is Northern California Editor for The Tasting Panel magazine and a frequent judge at important international wine competitions. She has a WSET diploma and is a member of the Circle of Wine Writers (London) and the Wine Media Guild (New York). Deborah is a frequent contributor to Sommelier Journal and other nationally distributed wine and spirits publications. This will be her second appearance at Critics Challenge.
Wilfred Wong
Wilfred, who has been writing about wine for national publications for more than three decades, recently added his considerable talents to the stable of wine reviewers at Wine Review Online. Wilfred probably judges more wine competitions than any other person alive, and travels the globe extensively in pursuit of interesting and outstanding wines for the national chain Beverages & More (BevMo), where he has been Cellar Master since 1995.
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