Lucy Simon
Lucy Simon is Food & Wine’s Special Projects Editor and a wine expert whose work is rooted in opening up the wine industry to a broader, more curious audience, with a particular focus on younger consumers and the next generation of wine drinkers. Since joining Food & Wine in 2021, she has written extensively about wine, cocktails, and beverage culture across the magazine, including the Bottle Service column, which she co-produces and contributes to regularly. She also hosts Varietals, a video series on Food & Wine’s social channels dedicated to approachable, engaging conversations about wine and drinks.
Beyond the page and screen, Lucy regularly leads wine seminars at major live events, including the Food & Wine Classic in Aspen, the Food & Wine Classic in Charleston, and Ojai Food + Wine. She also helps curate Food & Wine’s in-person activations and signature events, including Food & Wine Best New Chefs, the Classics, and more. Lucy is frequently tapped to discuss beverage trends on major podcasts and television programs, including CBS Mornings, ABC’s Nightline, PIX11, and others. She has completed the Wine & Spirit Education Trust’s (WSET) Level 3 Award in Wines.
Amanda McCrossin
Amanda McCrossin is a certified sommelier, wine personality, podcast host, and wine-focused content creator on Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube. With over 400k followers across platforms, Amanda has been called one of the most influential creators in the wine community, creating wine-focused, relatable content to help consumers via her @sommvivant channels.
A 10+ year veteran in the industry, Amanda spent the majority of her career as a sommelier in NYC and California. Perhaps most notably, Amanda helmed the wine list at PRESS Restaurant in Napa Valley as both sommelier and wine director, overseeing the world’s largest, deepest restaurant collection of all Napa Valley wines in the world thusly earning her reputation as an expert on the region. She has been featured by Food & Wine Magazine, Decanter, Food Network, San Francisco Chronicle, on the cover of SOMM Journal and Wine Enthusiast who named her a Wine Star nominee for ‘Sommelier of the Year.’
Today, in addition to her career as a wine content creator and host of the Wine Access Unfiltered Podcast, Amanda is regularly sought out for media appearances and speaking engagements around the world including the Food & Wine Classic in Aspen, Premiere Napa Valley, World of Pinot Noir, and Wine2Wine in Verona, Italy.
Ray Isle
Ray Isle is the Executive Wine Editor of Food & Wine and the Wine & Spirits Editor for both Travel + Leisure and Departures. For Food & Wine he writes the monthly “Wine Flight” and “Bottle Service” columns; he also contributes regular magazine and online features on wine, spirits, and wine travel to all three brands. His articles about wine, beer, food and spirits have appeared in a wide range of national publications. He has been nominated twice for a James Beard Award, has twice won the IACP Award for Narrative Beverage Writing, and his work appears in The Best Food Writing 2017. He speaks regularly on wine at live events and is a frequent guest on national media, appearing on programs such as Today, CNBC’s On the Money & Squawk Box, NPR’s “All Things Considered,” and American Public Media’s “Splendid Table,” among others. Follow his wine exploits on twitter @islewine and on Instagram @rayisle.
Femi Oyediran
Femi Oyediran is a sommelier and co-owner of Graft Wine Shop & Bar and Tutti Pizza in Charleston, South Carolina. He is an Advanced Sommelier with the Court of Master Sommeliers. His work focuses on creating welcoming spaces where wine and hospitality bring people together. He has been recognized by Food & Wine as Sommelier of the Year and by the James Beard Foundation for his contributions to the beverage industry.
Julia Coney
Julia Coney is a Washington, D.C. and Houston, Texas-based wine writer, wine educator, and consultant. Julia is the Wine Consultant for American Airlines in partnership with the James Beard Foundation. Julia is the recipient of Wine Enthusiast's 2020 Social Visionary Award Winner for her work in writing and speaking on diversity, equity, and inclusion in the wine industry. Wine Industry Network has named her one of Wine’s Most Inspiring People for 2022.
Julia is the Founder of Black Wine Professionals, a resource for wine industry employers and gatekeepers, professionals, and the food and beverage community. Their goal is to lift up the multifaceted Black professionals in the world of wine.
Julia is the Wine Columnist for Sweet July Magazine and a former Contributing Editor at VinePair. Her work has been featured in The New York Times, Wine Enthusiast, Thrillist, The Tasting Panel, Plate Magazine, Forbes.com, WineEnthusiast.com, The Washington Post, Seven Fifty Daily, Wine Searcher, the Financial Times, JancisRobinson.com, Glamour, Essence, and numerous print and digital publications. Julia is a 2019 Fellow of the Professional Wine Writers Symposium at Meadowood Napa Valley.
Julia has spoken at conferences such as TEXSOM, SommCon, wine2wine, Assemblage Symposium, The Culinary Institute of America’s Summit for Sommeliers and Beverage Professionals, Jackson Family Wines Rooted for Good, and Bâtonnage Forum. Julia is an experienced wine judge and has judged wines at TEXSOM, FLIWC, Wines of Michigan, and the Portugal Wine Challenge.
She is a lifelong Francophile and hopes all her assignments involve French wine. You can find her on all social media at @juliaconey.
Miles White
Miles White co-owns and operates Graft Wine Shop with his business partner / old friend Femi Oyediran in his hometown of Charleston, SC. After traveling the world working at wineries and his dream restaurants in his early 20's, he decided it was time to return home to the Lowcountry and bring his love of all things wine / music / food to the good people of Charleston. Although wine is his passion, he finds love in all things food & beverage, namely frozen drinks, long neck beers and foods his doctor tells him to avoid.
Anthony Giglio
Anthony Giglio is a celebrated wine and spirits writer, educator, and raconteur who has made a career out of demystifying what’s in the glass. Known for his witty, unpretentious style, he motivates imbibers to trust their own tastes and relax the rules. He is a longtime Contributing Wine Editor at Food & Wine, and he writes the Taste column for the Food & Wine Wine Club Newsletter. He is also a sought-after speaker, educator, and entertainer for Fortune 500 companies and major hospitality groups, frequently featured on panels, corporate tastings and dinners, and appearing at global wine symposiums.
As a leading voice in the drinks community, Giglio has authored 11 books, including the annual Food & Wine Wine Guide, the iconic Mr. Boston Official Bartender’s Guide, Cocktails in New York, and Passport to Italian Wine. Across pages, podiums, and social feeds, he delivers practical guidance on tasting, pairing, and selection—always prioritizing enjoyment over jargon. His approachable, story-driven teaching style has earned him a loyal following among both curious newcomers and industry pros looking for fresh perspective.
A journalist by training who studied to become a sommelier to deepen his reporting, Giglio received a Diploma in Service from the Sommelier Society of America in 1991 and worked as a sommelier at Cellar in the Sky at Windows on the World. Editorial roles followed—Managing Editor at Wine Enthusiast, Senior Lifestyle Editor at POV, and Executive Editor at Drinks.com—alongside bylines in New York Magazine, Esquire, The New York Observer, Robb Report, Worth, and more. He has appeared on NBC’s Today Show, Food Network, CNBC, and FOX Business, and has twice taken the stage at The Moth. From 2011 to 2025 he also served as the founding Wine Director for the American Express Centurion Global Lounge Collection, shaping its global wine program and curations. Whether on TV, in print, or leading a tasting, Giglio champions an inclusive, joy-first approach that makes wine and cocktails less of a test—and more of an invitation.