 Journalist/Sommelier
A world-renowned sommelier, wine educator and
critic, Christopher Sawyer travels around the globe
following trends in wine and participating as a
judge in international wine competitions. Sawyer is
also notably the world’s only Film Festival
Sommelier, pairing wine selections with some of the
world’s top independent films each year for the
Sonoma Valley Film Festival in California’s
spectacular wine country.
Christopher is currently sommelier-in-residence
at the Carneros Bistro & Wine Bar at The Lodge at
Sonoma and Renaissance Resort and Spa, where he
features an extensive wine list spotlighting wines
from Sonoma County and Carneros. He also serves as
the private sommelier for some of the area’s most
well-known residents, including the Getty family in
San Francisco and Pixar Co-Founder and Oscar
Award-winning director John Lasseter, of Cars, A
Bug's Life, Toy Story, The Incredibles and
Ratatouille fame, and as consulting sommelier for an
innovative new wine program at the Hilton in the San
Francisco Financial District.
Born and raised in Sonoma County, Christopher is
also a well-respected journalist whose articles
frequently appear in the Patterson’s Tasting Panel,
Click by LavaLife, Wine Business Monthly, Wines &
Vines, Vineyard & Winery Management, Fine Life,
Sonoma Magazine, California Wine & Food, San
Francisco Chronicle, Argus-Courier, Smart Meetings,
and many other national publications.
In 2006, he and business partner Jason Jenkins
opened Vine & Barrel, a hip international wine shop
in the historic district of Petaluma, featuring over
1,000 hand-crafted wines that can dazzle and delight
the palates of a wide range of savvy wine consumers.
When asked how he manages to wear so many hats,
Christopher says “When you work with great wines and
fine cuisine on such a regular basis, it is great to
be able to share these memorable experience with the
broad range of consumers that are so eager to apply
fun and adventurous pairings to their daily
lifestyle. To me, it is a delectable win-win
situation for everyone involved!” |
