Patty has a very friendly, accessible and unintimidating presentational style which makes her a popular speaker with many wine societies and corporate clients. She feels passionately that tasting wine is fun, informative, engaging and relevant.

Hosting themed food and wine events is a particular favourite, though Patty enjoys sharing her infectious enthusiasm on any wine-related topic – be it a prestige wine masterclass, a fiercely competitive blind tasting quiz or something in between (a few favourites are summarised below). Throughout she brings an entertaining, humorous approach to every occasion.

Recently Patty has developed a unique wine and fragrance experience in association with the prestigious fragrance brand, Jo Malone™ – a stimulating, interactive experience perfect for corporate entertaining with a difference.

Coming from a catering background her passion for food and cooking stimulated an early interest in wine, they are natural companions! In 1992 she joined the wine trade working for a regional supermarket group as consultant wine buyer and trainer. She subsequently relocated from Yorkshire to London and set up Grapetaste, specialising in entertaining wine events and menu consultancy http://www.grapetaste.com/.
WSET Diploma with Honours and City & Guilds Teaching qualifications were gained along the way.

Patty considers herself extremely fortunate to have travelled extensively, visiting many wine producing regions throughout Europe and more exotic locations further afield such as North & South America, South Africa and Australia, where she has enhanced her understanding of the wines produced there.

From the start Patty has delivered training for those concerned in the sale and service of wine. She designs and implements bespoke wine training programmes as well as WSET qualifications as a Certified Educator.

Patty is also an experienced wine development consultant to a number of retailers throughout the UK, working with pub/brewery groups, restaurants, gastropubs and bars, creating tailor-made, commercially successful wine menus for a wide variety of hospitality operators. Her expertise includes supplier liaison and negotiation, menu content (wine & food menus), design input, web content, and copy for marketing activities.

Understanding the needs of the individuals on both sides of the counter helps Patty ensure she can maximise quality and value for retailers and consumers alike.