The judges

Pedro Ballesteros Torres MW

Ballesteros Torres is a DWWA Regional co-Chair for Spain and Sherry. He studied in Jerez, Burgundy, Napa and Bordeaux, and has a masters in viticulture and oenology. A columnist at Vino y Gastronomia and Planeta Vino magazines, he is on the council of the Institute of Masters of Wine and the governing board of the Spanish Tasters’ Union.

Sarah Jane Evans MW

Evans is co-Chair of the DWWA. An award-winning journalist and writer since the 1980s, she became a Master of Wine in 2006. In 2010 Evans was knighted into the Gran Orden de Caballeros del Vino for services to Spanish wine, and she held the role of chair of the Institute of Masters of Wine from 2014 to 2016.

Christine Parkinson

Parkinson started her career in the kitchen before moving into wine and creating the first wine list for Michelin-starred Hakkasan in 2001. She is now wine buyer for the restaurant and others in the group, including Sake No Hana and HKK, and Michelin-starred Yauatcha.