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Over the past decade, the world of wine has been shedding its conservative skin for something much more exciting, steered by women. Wine is no longer the ‘old boys club’ it once was; perhaps it’s the low-intervention phenomena that has prompted its democratisation, or maybe it’s the long overdue realisation that women make up a large part of the wine drinking community and should be part of the conversation. Regardless, there are more women working in wine than ever before, from the vineyards to the most respected restaurants and wine bars across the world. These are the female sommeliers that should be on your radar.
Honey Spencer
Currently the director of wine at Palomar Group (overseeing London’s Palomar, Barbary, Evelyn’s Table and The Mulwray restaurants), Spencer has carved out her reputation as "one to know" on the London scene. With the help of her all-female sommelier team, she has created a unique personality for each location through wine; every wine list is approached with emotional intelligence, with the end goal being to guide guests into unknown territory without compromising on deliciousness. Honey’s journey started at Jamie Oliver’s Fifteen, and from there she went on to work with an impressive lineup of pioneering restaurants and wine bars: René Redzepi’s Noma Mexico, Sager & Wilde in London, Den Vandrette in Copenhagen and 10 William Street in Sydney. Later this year she’ll be opening the doors to her own neighbourhood restaurant in East London.
Audrey Annoh-Antwi
A sommelier, event host, wine writer and judge, Annoh-Antwi specialises in pairing wine with West African food. Most of the time you’ll find her at East London’s Planque, helping diners demystify the dynamic selection of rare and interesting bottles that have been carefully matured in the restaurant’s very own cellar. She also oversees the membership side of things – think wine drinkers’ clubhouse without the pomp – helping to curate events that bring people together under the guise of wine, for everyone from seasoned collectors to the cellar-curious.
Pascaline Lepeltier
Photo: Cedric Angeles
Born in the Loire Valley, Lepeltier started her career in philosophy before cultivating an innate obsession with wine at two-Michelin-star L’Auberge Bretonne. Since then, she’s cruised through a handful of fine-dining restaurants making her mark on their wine lists and collecting an impressive stack of accolades, from being named one of the best new US sommeliers in 2011, to being dubbed a “new wine prophet” by Time Out NY. In 2023, Lepeltier represented France in the ASI Best Sommelier in the World competition held in Paris, finishing fourth. Pascaline spends as much time in the fields as she does in restaurants, and in 2016 launched Chëpika, a wine project dedicated to rediscovering the potential of organically grown native grapes and sparkling wines in the Finger Lakes of Upstate New York. To understand the brilliance of Lepeltier, dig into the 2,000-bottle-strong wine list at her New York restaurant, Chambers.
Isabelle Legeron
Having grown up in a Cognac-making family, being given water with a drop of wine instead of cordial, wine runs through Legeron’s veins. Despite starting her career the traditional way as France’s first female Master of Wine, she later decided to dedicate her work to changing the way people think about wine and promoting the need for transparency. In 2012, she founded Raw Wine, a travelling fair spotlighting some of the best natural wine talent in the world, promoting organic farming practices and ‘living’ wines. Originally considered a misfit by her traditional-thinking peers in the early days of her career, Legeron is now seen as a true innovator of the wine world, which is representative of the industry’s rapid evolution in recent years.
Maria Eneida Fuentes
With a decade of experience navigating Latin America’s wine industry, Eneida Fuentes’ career began at one of the oldest active wineries in the American continent, then onto the foothills of California, before eventually ending up in one of the region’s most important restaurants, Pujol by Enrique Olvera. In the process, Eneida Fuentes had to deal with misogyny – roles only open to men, uncomfortable situations, and sometimes even customers voicing their preference for a male sommelier. When she isn’t overseeing her wine bar in Guadalajara which highlights small producers committed to soil regeneration, she’s developing wine lists for restaurants in Mexico City and beyond, as well as consulting as a wine expert on various projects.
Martina Marini
Born and raised in Rome, Marini has boundless knowledge of the Italian terroir and what it produces. After various stints honing her expertise in sommelier roles at independent wine bars and restaurants in London – Ombra, Bottles and Battles, The Remedy Wine Bar – she worked closely with importers and got a taste for the trade side of things. After a stint at Sager & Wine, a London importer specialising in expressive natural wines made by passionate people, she joined Les Caves de Pyrene, one of the biggest wine importers, agents and distributors with a biodynamic focus. Marini recently opened her own wine bar in North London, Rolling Grapes, pouring only the best natural bottles from under-the-radar producers.
Alex Price
When Price started out, she was very much immersed in the male-dominated, old boys club world of wine, pouring glasses from the cellar of a renowned West London private members’ club. Today, she’s heading up the wine program at neighbourhood restaurant group Crispin, using wine to refine the offering of each location, while keeping sustainability at the forefront. At Bar Crispin, the wine list is organised by climate, allowing the team to offer recommendations in a stylised way which suits the client’s palette, and prompting conversations around what to expect from various parts of the world. Last year, Price introduced wine on tap which reduced recycling tenfold, simultaneously offering a house bottle at brilliant value. She’s currently collaborating with Modal Wines to develop Crispin’s own signature blend with an Austrian producer, which will be served across all restaurants.
Winnie Toh
Head Sommelier at The Aubrey at The Mandarin Oriental in London, Toh’s journey started back home in Singapore at The Raffles Hotel, where chefs and iconic winemakers first planted the sommelier seed in her head. Having worked across eight countries in some of the world’s finest establishments, Toh says her gender is her advantage: while her male counterparts are busy stroking egos, she says, her focus on creating memorable guest experiences has propelled her forward. Toh’s understanding of the nuances of Asian and European drinking cultures has equipped her with the tools to develop wine lists perfectly suited to guests. At The Aubrey, she has developed an interesting list that reflects her travels and her commitment to regenerative viticulture: there are plenty of sustainably produced wines as well as timeless classics, native wines from smaller regions, and even a sake offering.
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