BB&T Charleston Wine + Food Festival » Andrea Immer Robinson, MS

Andrea Robinson, one of the country’s leading wine educators, is one of only seventeen women in the world to have been appointed Master Sommelier by the prestigious Court of Master Sommeliers. She was the first woman ever chosen Best Sommelier in the United States by the Sommelier Society of America, and is also an honors graduate and former Dean of Wine Studies of the French Culinary Institute. Andrea was named Outstanding Wine & Spirits Professional by the James Beard Foundation in 2002, and was selected by Bon Appetit Magazine as Wine & Spirits Professional of The Year in 2004.

With five books, three television programs and a DVD wine course series to her credit, Andrea’s down-to-earth, energetic approach to wine education has helped demystify the often intimidating subject for hundreds of thousands of consumers and beverage professionals across the globe. Andrea’s online food and wine pairing site, www.andreawine.com, features her Andrea’s Wine Kitchen video blog, her searchable database of thousands of wine ratings, how-to video pairing webcasts, and her hit wine club, Andrea’s A-Listä. Her latest book, Andrea Robinson’s 2009 Wine Buying Guide for Everyone, was released in October 2008. “Andrea’s Complete Wine Course for Everyone,” her first-in-a-series of wine classes on DVD was released in October 2005. Her new show Borders Kitchen launched in January on Bordersmedia.com.

Andrea’s first book, the best-selling GREAT WINE MADE SIMPLE: Straight Talk from a Master Sommelier is the ultimate easy, fun, pace-yourself wine course and guide book for consumers and those in the trade. The book was a James Beard Award nominee, and has been lauded for its original, real-world approach to wine by numerous publications including The New York Times and Wine Spectator. She is also the author and publisher of GREAT TASTES MADE SIMPLE: Extraordinary Food and Wine Pairing for Every Palate, and ANDREA ROBINSON’S WINE BUYING GUIDE FOR EVERYONE, the annually-updated, pocket-sized populist guide to the most popular wines available in stores and restaurants. Her cookbook, Everyday Dining with Wine, won the prestigious International Association of Culinary Professionals (IACP) cookbook award in 2005.

As a contributor to popular magazines such as Bon Appetit, Real Simple and Robb Report, and through her website www.andreawine.com, Andrea shares her wine knowledge with hundreds of thousands of consumers, hospitality trade professionals and students every month. She also consults regularly to clients such as Brinker International restaurants, Hyatt Hotels, Hilton and Olive Garden on their beverage and training programs, and speaks on wine regularly to the Board and membership of the National Restaurant Association, dozens of major corporations, consumer wine groups, and top hospitality schools. As the first Corporate Director of Beverage Programs for Starwood Hotels & Resorts, Andrea oversaw the entire alcoholic and nonalcoholic beverage program for its North American hotels, including the Sheraton, Westin and W Hotels, and The Luxury Collection. She also launched its award-winning wine education program, lauded by USA Today and numerous trade publications as the most innovative and far-reaching in the industry.

Andrea was named the first woman Cellarmaster for Windows on the World in 1992, and in 1996, reopened the restaurant as Beverage Director. Andrea counts the most significant years of her wine career in service to the Windows family of employees and guests. In 1996 Robinson was awarded the title of Master Sommelier from the Court of Master Sommeliers. In April 1997 she competed for and won the Sommelier Society of America’s ‘Best Sommelier in the United States’ title. As holder of this title, she represented the United States in the Concours Mondial, the international sommeliers’ world championship in Vienna in June 1998.

Andrea has served as wine and spirits host to more than 100 episodes of the Food Network’s “Cooking Live Primetime,” “Hot off the Grill” and “Emeril Live” shows. She was featured on Working Mother magazine’s cover as a Working Mother of the Year, and has been profiled in People, Glamour, Elle, New Woman, Working Woman, NBC Nightly News, CBS This Morning, The New York Times, and Food & Wine magazine. She also hosted the internationally-popular television program Simply Wine, and her own cooking show, Pairings with Andrea.

In May of 2004 Andrea was inducted into the James Beard Foundation’s “Who’s Who of Food & Beverage in America.” In October 2004, Andrea was honored with the M.F.K. Fisher Award by the Les Dames d’Escoffier International. She was also awarded the Wine Appreciation Guild’s 2005 Wine Literary Award for her works in wine journalism.