Our Contributors

Anthony Gismondi is a Canadian wine journalist and one of North America's most influential wine voices. His twice-weekly column in The Vancouver Sun, which he has written since 1989, is read across Canada through Postmedia Network, reaching close to 10 million readers.  

His comprehensive wine review website, www.gismondionwine.com, is one of the first such sites on the internet and features over 30,000 tasting notes, with new ones added daily. It is an essential resource for trade and consumers in Canada and 114 other countries. 

Anthony hosts the BC Food & Wine Radio Show, the longest-running weekly wine and food show on Canadian radio for over a quarter century. The one-hour show is broadcast on 25 radio stations across British Columbia and is available on all major podcast platforms.

Gismondi co-founded the annual National Wine Awards of Canada, the largest and broadest competition for Canadian Wine since its inception in 2001. Anthony continues to run the annual event as its co-chair. He is also the former editor of the Canada wine section in the world's best-selling wine book, Hugh Johnson's Pocket Wine Book. In addition, Anthony is a much sought-after moderator and consultant. Contact him here to inquire. To have your wines reviewed, send your samples here.

TWITTER: @TheSpitter  FACEBOOK @AnthonyGismondi LINKEDIN Anthony Gismondi 

Cheri heads up sales, marketing and business development for Gismondi on Wine. Before her arrival at GOW, she spent 22 years in brand and sponsorship marketing at  The Vancouver Sun and The Province, working closely with all departments there.

Cheri earned her certificate at the Helen Lefeaux School of Fashion Design before pursuing marketing and event planning at BCIT. A desire for a classical education and an interest in technology led to pursuing a Cognitive Systems (COGS) multi-disciplinary degree at the University of British Columbia.

She left the newspapers in 2015 launching Back Valley Road Productions, producing, writing, filming and editing corporate and short doc videos. While her client list ranges from the Vancouver International Jazz Festival to Variety BC, working with Anthony, the Vancouver International Wine Festival and other projects has made her a specialist in wine and food videos, with hundreds of videos created with some of the top wine brands in the world.  She was pleased to add Assignment Editor for BC Food & Wine Radio to her responsibilities in 2022. She lives in downtown Vancouver. 

Treve Ring is a wine writer and editor, judge and speaker, and perpetual traveller. A certified sommelier, WSET diploma holder, French wine scholar and instructor, and Sherry instructor, she is based on Vancouver Island, Canada, though is most often found on a plane or in a vineyard.

After completing her Art History degree with Distinction from the University of Victoria and being exposed to the world of wine business at Christie’s in London, England, she switched gears, leaving the realm of art for the world of wine. Focusing on wines of place and time, Treve been writing professionally since 2001.

Her work is regularly seen in numerous publications including Meininger’s Wine Business International, World of Fine Wine, Wine & Spirits, Sommelier Magazine, Wine Enthusiast, WineAlign, The Alchemist, Quench Magazine, Vitis, Lonely Planet Travel, and others. In addition to her role executive editor at Gismondi on Wine, she is an editor for Scout Magazine, and SIP Northwest Magazine. She tastes thousands of wines each year, and is an established wine judge in Canada, the UK, South Africa and the United States. In 2012, she co-founded Cru Consultancy, a boutique wine education and consultation company. Though her travels take her all over the wine world, Treve has spent the last few years concentrating and researching sparkling wine globally.

Geoffrey Moss MW, a wine reviewer/critic and contributor at Gismondi on Wine, earned his Master of Wine in August 2020, an achievement that tops his exploration of many facets of the wine industry. His pursuit of learning about wine began after he earned a political science degree from McGill University in Montreal. After completing a diploma in wine and viticulture study at Niagara College in his native Ontario and coursework for an MBA at Brock University, Moss set his sights on the Okanagan Valley and marketing premium wine. His early resume includes working with Don Triggs and family at Culmina Estate Winery and then as part of the team at the ambitious, 100-million-dollar Phantom Creek Estates project, seeing the brand and winery emerge from scratch to completion. Moss opened Lithica Wine Marketing in 2019. The company specializes in new winery projects and brand launches. He runs his wine consulting business from Penticton in the heart of the Okanagan Valley. An avid writer, Geoffrey, has also been published on Jancis Robinson’s Purple Pages and Palate Press.

After HJ (Huijeong) Cha received her BA and MA in English Literature in Korea, she took a three-month beginner wine course as a fun break from her studies. It changed her career path, and she entered the wine world, first as the brand manager of Riedel Glassware in Korea, then as the marketing manager for one of Korea’s leading wine importers/distributors. Next, she moved to Napa to complete the Accelerated Wine and Beverage Program at the Culinary Institute of America, which she completed with academic honours. She then earned her WSET Diploma while working as an assistant to the award-winning writer Karen MacNeil, the author of The Wine Bible.  She gained hands-on winemaking experience at Burrowing Owl Estate Winery in British Columbia, during the 2018 harvest before joining the sales and marketing team at neighbouring Phantom Creek Estates. HJ continues her studies as a Master of Wine candidate. She is a project manager for Lithica Wine Marketing in the Okanagan Valley, where she has settled with her family. 

DJ Kearney is a Vancouver, British Columbia-based wine educator and wine personality. She has trained hundreds of sommeliers throughout North America during a decade of non-stop weekly travel from Vancouver to Las Vegas, Los Angeles, San Diego, Denver, Dallas, Seattle, and Portland as an itinerant wine instructor. She has spent the thousands of accumulated air miles on wine travel, of course, and visited all the world’s major wine regions, and many of the emerging ones too.  She has been the drink editor at Vancouver magazine, was the chief judge of the magazine’s popular wine competition for a decade, has judged internationally, and is a veteran judge for WineAlign’s National Wine Awards of Canada. DJ initiated a judge mentoring program at WineAlign, to help train the next generation of wine judges.  From 2015-2018 DJ was the director of wine for NewDistrict.ca, an innovative e-commerce platform for wine, and is presently helping to develop the wine program at the Terminal City Club.

DJ combines a background in geology, classical chef training, two decades in the wine business, and a relentless love of sports. She speaks and educates on behalf of Wines of Chile, Germany, Portugal, Argentina, New Zealand, South Africa, Jura, Portugal, and Canada.  DJ has a special devotion to wines of her home province, and frequently speaks, writes, and teaches about British Columbia wines. In 2015 she initiated the Judgment of B.C. which has since become an annual marquee industry event. 

With many marathons, a black belt, and a current obsession with boxing, DJ lives by the edict of the late, great Julia Child: moderation, and plenty of it.

Allison Spurrell stocks the larders of the city’s finest restaurants and your fridge alike, through les amis du FROMAGE, cheese shops in the Kitslano and Strathcona neighbourhoods in Vancouver which she runs with Joe Chaput. Their shelves are filled with 400 cheeses, including local, raw milk French, Italian and other specialties. They also sell foie gras, pâtés, crackers, biscuits, varietal olive oils, vinegars and other specialty food items and their kitchen in Strathcona prepares popular frozen taken away meals. Les amis du FROMAGE has received Vancouver Magazine's Restaurant Award as a top food supplier to Vancouver’s best restaurants and hotels. Allison is a proud member of Confrerie les Chevalier du Taste Fromage de France.

Brent Gushowaty is a Vancouver based wine writer and reviewer. His interest in wine started on his wedding day when a friend suggested letting a red wine “breathe” for an hour and to his surprise, he discovered that he was able to taste the difference. This lead him to London, to the Wine Department of Christie’s Auctions where a six-month series of tutored tastings with the likes of Jancis Robinson, Michael Broadbent, Stephen Spurrier, Serena Sutcliffe and others, made wine a lifelong pursuit. He holds a WSET 3 level certification (distinction). Brent has worked in many aspects of the wine industry, a maitre d’ of a wine bistro, a wine agency representative, a consultant for his own company Balance Wine Consultants and in retail for SIP Wines VQA; He taught wine appreciation at North Island College and is a certified wine judge with B.C. Guild of Wine Judges.

Pinot noir was always a special focus and while working in VQA retail he became intrigued by the quality of British Columbian pinot noir. In 2013, he launched bcpinotnoirinfo.com and embarked on his goal to taste every pinot noir produced in the province. He has made wine trips to Germany, France, the Willamette Valley, and to every significant pinot noir AVA in California.

Brent is currently writing book on B.C. pinot noir.