John Bell
John Bell is the winemaker and sole owner of WILLIS HALL, LLC. In the early 1980s, John developed an interest in wine appreciation. Pursuing all avenues to learn about wines for over 15 years, John determined that further learning could come about only by his actually making wine. Because he was an employee of The Boeing Company, John availed himself of the opportunity to join the Boeing Employees’ Wine and Beermakers’ Club, a.k.a. the Boeing Wine Club, giving him access to the accumulated experience of fellow members, some of whom had started commercial wineries, as well as access to some of the most highly regarded vineyards in Washington State.
John’s palate, which had been developed from his earlier wine education, enabled him to fashion wines that were awarded Best-of-Class, Gold, and Best-of-Show awards. The next logical step for John was to start WILLIS HALL, so that his wines could be made available for general purchase, consumption, and enjoyment. Vintage 2003 was the inaugural vintage for WILLIS HALL. In 2004 John retired from Boeing and is now making wine full time at WILLIS HALL. And in April 2006 in their inaugural Washington Wine Awards, Seattle Magazine honored John by naming him Best New Winemaker in Washington.
https://www.willishall.com/about-us/
Peter Bos
Peter Bos began his winemaking career in 1977, when there were only four premium wineries in Washington State. Peter has made wine alongside such notable winemakers as Robert Griffin (Barnard Griffin), David Lake (Columbia Winery), Brian Carter (Silver Lake), Mike Januik (Snoqualmie), Charlie Hoppes (Snoqualmie) and many others. He has been head winemaker for Tagaris, Hyatt, Silver Lake, and Mt. Baker wineries. His experience also extends beyond the world of winemaking into the realms of retail and wholesale marketing. Peter has managed wine departments for Safeway, QFC and Town and Country Markets as well as working in wholesale wine sales for P & S Wine Company and Elliott Bay Distributing. This depth of experience allows him to give students a well-rounded view of the Washington wine industry. Peter’s goal at South Seattle College is “to build a program that is not only a resource for our industry, but a place for industry to come and learn new skills and technologies.”
http://nwwineacademy.com/about/faculty
Tracey LaPierre
Tracey LaPierre is the owner and enologist for Seattle Wine Lab and Consulting Services, which offers a full-service lab for home or commercial wineries in Seattle and the surrounding areas. She has over 16 years of production experience in the wine industry.
Tracey started her career in the Finger Lakes region, in upstate New York, working for a small Riesling focused winery as a lab manager, compliance officer, cellar hand then assistant winemaker. From there, she moved to Sonoma, California to hone her winemaking and analytical skills, working for iconic Sebastiani Vineyards.
In 2011, Tracey moved to Washington State to work as a winemaker and consulting enologist for many small to mid-size wineries in western Washington.
Her lab is focused on comprehensive, accurate, and rapid results that provide a clear, unbiased and a practical approach to winemaking. http://www.seattlewinelab.com/
Leonard Ruiz Redé
A restaurateur, wine steward, consultant and educator with almost 30 years of industry experience, Leonard Redé has a unique blend of culinary and wine expertise. He is currently the European Wine Specialist at Esquin Wine Merchants. Prior to that, he was Operations Manager at Wine World working alongside David LeClaire helping to create the largest wine store in Washington State. He has worked as a Wine Steward for Metropolitan Market and is a well-regarded in the wine industry for his knowledge of wine history and gastronomy. As instructor in the Wine Technology Program at South Seattle College, he wrote the curriculum for the Associate of Arts Degree in Food and Wine Pairing, the first college level program of its kind. He is an award winning chef and he was nominated for educator of the year while Chef Instructor at the world renowned Le Cordon Bleu College of Culinary Arts. http://nwwineacademy.com/about/faculty
Ed Rydbeck
Past president of the Seattle Wine Society. I have been a judge for the Boeing Winemakers Club, Washington State Fair and other wine judging events for the past several years. Up until recently, I did wine tastings for BevMo, Total Wines and a few other wine purveyors. Now I spend most of my free time working with different wineries on crush, bottling and pouring for them at wine events. When not doing wine events, I own a company that represents printing/graphics manufacturers based outside the Northwest.
Tom Ward
I am retired from the banking industry. I performed part time work for Pacific Wine Consultants assisting with sales and pouring at various events throughout the Puget Sound area (Costco, Bevmo) until the company’s demise. My current part time work is with The Wine Connection (Total Wines and supermarkets). I also educate potential customers and assist them with wines that best suit their tastes. I have a current Class 12 Mixology Permit. Held a number of positions at Seattle Enological Society (aka Seattle Wine Society) over the years. Wine judging at Western WA State Fair, and prior Boeing Wine club events.
Henry Smilowicz
Wine lover for over 40 years. Extensive touring of various wine countries including Italy, France Germany, New Zealand and throughout the U.S. Founder of Array Cellars, a Washington State chardonnay (only) producer. Chairman of the "Wine, Spirits, and Culinary Committee" of the Rainier Club in Seattle. And a long- standing member of The Cellar Rats, a rogue organization of Seattle- area winemakers, which includes Tim Narby, John Bell, and Dave Larsen.