Arabella Woodrow MW joined the wine trade in 1979 after leaving university with a BA and a PhD in biochemistry. She worked first in the fine wine division of Harveys of Bristol, which gave her an excellent grounding in all the classic wine regions, and after taking the WSET higher certificate and diploma examinations in the early 1980s, Woodrow was awarded the Vintners’ Scholarship in 1983 and passed the MW exam in 1986, winning the Tim Derouet Award for the top marks.

Since then, Woodrow has worked in many different sectors of the trade and has been based in various locations from the south of England to Scotland including stints at the Co-operative Group, Forth Wines, Halewood International. Myliko Wines, Morrisons Supermarkets and latterly at Broadland Wineries. Her career has given her an excellent grounding in tasting wines from all over the world, and putting together bespoke blends with local winemakers. She is a regular judge in wine competitions. She loves cookery, as well as wine tasting, and has developed an expertise for wine and food matching over the years.

She currently resides in West Yorkshire. Outside of wine-related activity, she has been a keen sportswoman for a number of years and has run over 40 marathons and numerous triathlons, but her main athletic challenge currently lies in orienteering events.

Primary area(s) of work: Retired

Industry sector(s): Winemaking, QA/QC, Consultant, Wine judge

Wine styles: Fortified wines, Port, Sherry, Still wines

Wine region expertise: Argentina, Chile, South America, France, Languedoc, Roussillon, South-West France, Italy

Specialisms: Blending, Preparation of finished wine for bottling, Packing and labelling, Quality assurance and control, Bulk shipment, Bottling, Supplier/customer relationships, Routes to market, Supermarket and multiple retail, Food and wine pairing, Wine labels, Wine judging