Rhys is a Master of Wine who combines his time writing, judging, teaching, presenting, consulting, curating wine lists and dirtying his boots at his 4 acre vineyard and winery - Little Farm Winery - in the Similkameen Valley of BC, Canada. He runs a wine school, Wine Plus+, is curating the wine list for The Forks in Winnipeg, and judges wine competitions nationally and internationally such as the Decanter World Wine Awards, TexSomm as well as the National Wine Awards of Canada for WineAlign. In 2018, Rhys’s contribution to the industry was acknowledged as one of just five global nominees for the WSET Outstanding Alumni Award. To make sure he eats well he has also completed a Professional Culinary Diploma and has been named by Western Living magazine as one of the “Top 40 Foodies Under 40” in Western Canada. He is a regular contributor to publications such as SIP, Vitis, Macleans, Montecristo and Taste.

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

Industry sector(s): Author, Business owner, Buying, Broadcasting, Consultant, Educator, Journalism, Marketing, PR, Project management, Viticulture, Wine authentication, Wine business strategy, Wine buying, Wine judge, Winemaking

Wine styles: Natural, Orange wines, Still red, Still rosé, Still white, Still wines

Wine region expertise: Canada

Market expertise: Australia, Canada, South America, Spain

Specialisms: Acquisition of vineyards, Clones, Commercial advice on vinyard establishment, Cultivation of the vine, Establishment of vineyards, Factors affecting grape growing, Life cycle of the vine, Organic viticulture, Startup and profitability, Vine propagation, Wine varieties, Economics of wine production, Fermentation, Maturation and blending, Processing of grapes, Blending, Elevage / maturation, Preparation of finished wine for bottling, Packing and labelling, Sensory evaluation , Airlines, Branding, Broadcasting, Education, Food and wine pairing, Identifying and meeting consumer demand, Marketing wine, Restaurant wines, Routes to market, Starting wineries, Supplier/customer relationships, Training, Wine labels, Wine tourism, Wine judging