Nicolas Quillé was born in Lyon, France, into a family with three generations working in the wine business. Nicolas holds a master’s in oenology (Diplôme National d’Oenologie) from the University of Dijon in Burgundy, a postgraduate degree in sparkling winery management from the University of Reims in Champagne and an MBA from the University of Washington in Seattle. Nicolas has worked for wineries in Burgundy, Provence, Champagne, the Rhône valley, the Douro valley, Oregon, Washington and California.

Nicolas has more than 30 years of experience in the wine industry with an emphasis on winemaking, quality control, winery management, wine portfolio management and merger and acquisitions. Nicolas judges at wine competitions, he speaks at wine conferences, he lectures for WSET and Spanish Scholar classes. Currently Nicolas is the Chief Winemaking and Operations Officer for the Crimson Wine Group based in Napa, California. At Crimson, Nicolas is responsible for the operations and the quality of six wineries and estate vineyards located in California, Oregon and Washington.

Nicolas has a keen interest in transforming wine into the most natural and carbon free beverage. Therefore, he spends much time on worrying about saving our planet in relation to how grapes are grown and how wines are made. Nicolas shares his thoughts on LinkedIn several times a month and is the co-author of “Understanding Wine Technology, 4th edition” with David Bird MW, one of the most recommended books explaining how wine is made to a broad audience.

Nicolas lives in Portland, Oregon with his wife and two children.

Current employer: Crimson Wine Group

Primary area(s) of work: Wine production, Strategy

Industry sector(s): Author, Business owner, Consultant, Educator, Project management, QA/QC, Viticulture, Wine business strategy, Wine judge, Winemaking

Wine styles: Cremant, Fortified wines, Natural, Orange wines, Sparkling wine, Still red, Still rosé, Still white, Still wines, Sweet wines

Wine region expertise: Bordeaux, Burgundy, California, Canada, France, Languedoc, Loire, Mosel, New York, New Zealand, Okanagan Valley, Oregon, Provence, Rhone, Rioja, Spain, USA, Washington

Market expertise: France, North America

Specialisms: Acquisition of vineyards, Cultivation of the vine, Environmental impacts, Establishment of vineyards, Factors affecting grape growing, Financial, Harvesting of grapes, Life cycle of the vine, Maladies of the vine and their control, Rootstocks and grafting, Startup and profitability, Structure and composition of grapes, Sustainability, Vine burial, Vine propagation, Wine species, Wine varieties, Economics of wine production, Fermentation, Legal compliance with authorised oenological practices, Maturation and blending, Stabilisation and clarification, Processing of grapes, Production costs, Production of sparkling wines, Production of fortified wines, P&L, Whole cluster fermentation, Wine pigments, Wine styling, Winery design and construction, Blending, Bottling, Bulk shipment, Elevage / maturation, Legal compliance on authorised packaging and labelling, Preparation of finished wine for bottling, Packing and labelling, Quality assurance and control, Sensory evaluation , Supply chain efficiency, Branding, Corporate sustainability reporting, Education, Financial and commercial structures, Motivation, Routes to market, Supply chain efficiency, Wine laws and regulations, Wine judging