Summits of Ermitage & The Chapoutier Story @ Marco Polo Restaurant

Born and raised in rural Maine, USA, Lisa graduated from Colby College, ME, with degrees in English Literature and Performing Arts. Her wine career began by happenstance when, living as a struggling playwright in London after college, she was offered a job as the manager of a wine bar. Upon acquiring the position, she promptly enrolled for classes at the WSET (Wine and Spirit Education Trust) and continued her studies with them until achieving the institution’s highest accreditation level: Diploma. Lisa progressed through wine sales and marketing roles in the UK wine trade throughout the ‘90s and early noughties before moving to Tokyo in 2002, where she worked as a wine buyer for one of Japan's top fine wine importers and a wine educator at Tokyo's Academie du Vin. In 2008, Lisa moved to Singapore and began writing a column for Robert Parker’s website, eRobertParker.com. Later that year she achieved her Master of Wine (MW) qualification and the Madame Bollinger Medal for excellence in wine tasting. In 2013, she became the Editor-in-Chief for Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate and RobertParker.com. She is also the publication’s critic for the wines of Bordeaux, Napa Valley and Sonoma County Bordeaux Varieties. In 2015, Lisa’s first book, Taste Like a Wine Critic: A Guide to Understanding Wine Quality, was published. Recently, she relocated to Napa, California, to set up the new office for The Wine Advocate. She now lives in Napa with her British husband, two young daughters, their Border Collie and three sheep.

Michel Chapoutier, while pursuing the wine making heritage of his family based in Tain l’Hermitage in southern Rhone, has been credited with his entrepreneurial and innovative approach which among other things has led to the introduction of biodymanie in their vineyard management. His focus on producing very big style wines from Northern Rhone, especially Hermitage, has paid off as Chapoutier now holds about one third of the appellation and is famed for his blockbuster wines. His Burgundian approach to single vineyard management has resulted in wines of very distinct character which are often mono varietals, not only with reds but also with whites. His wine making ventures have now expanded to Ardeche, Roussillon, Alsace, Portugal and Australia. Michel Chapoutier is not only a driving forces in the Rhone viticulture but also an emblematic figure in the French wine industry for his progressive views.