Six new Masters of Wine announced

By Gemma McKenna

Published: 08 September, 2014

Applications to the Masters of Wine programme have shot up 26% for the next intake, as the six latest MWs to pass the gruelling exams are announced.

Four women and two men make up the new cohort of MWs - two Britons, two Americans, a German and a Swede. There are now 319 MWs, and in the last 10 years almost 50% of new MWs have been women.

The new Masters of Wine are:

Natasha Hughes MW (UK): freelance wine and food writer, consultant and educator.

Rob MacCulloch MW (UK): MacCulloch started at Oddbins in 1995, then moved to Montana Wines in New Zealand, and then for Hatch Mansfield and Bibendum in the UK. He now works for Burgundy importer Domaine Direct as well as consulting for Taurus Wines.

Anne Krebiehl MW (Germany): London-based freelance wine writer and lecturer. Krebiehl writes for international trade and consumer publications (including frequently for this magazine) as well as lecturing, mostly on German wines, and consulting for a number of restaurants.

Natasha Hughes MW

Robin Kick MW (US): Originally from Chicago, Kick works for fine wine broker, ARVI SA, in Lugano, Switzerland. Following studies at the Université du Vin in Suze-la-Rousse, France, she entered the wine trade in 1999. She was previously employed by Christie's auction house and Burgundy-specialist, Goedhuis & Co.

Nicholas Paris MW (US): Connecticut-based Paris is the senior education manager for E&J Gallo Winery in the US.

Louise Sydbeck MW (Sweden): Sybeck lives in France and after working as sommelier and wine tour guide in Sweden and France she set up her own business with her husband in Antibes supplying wines to luxury yachts along the French Riviera.

Penny Richards, executive director of the Institute of Masters of Wine, said: "We are thrilled to welcome these outstanding individuals; their diligence and commitment to excellence will be great assets to our community, as will their diversity. Results day is always one of the most emotional in the Institute's calendar, full of triumphs and disappointments. We'd like to offer congratulations to all those who sat the Master of Wine Examination in June, whatever their results. We had our greatest-ever number of candidates, and overall results for the theory examination were the best we've ever seen."

The MW dissertation, which has traditionally formed the third part of the Master of Wine exam, is being replaced from next year by a research paper.