Who I Am

I grew up in La Jolla, California, went to Vanderbilt University, majored in public speaking, and after spending my entire youth vacationing in Park City, Utah, I moved there in 1995.

I became fascinated with wine when my oldest children hit their teenage years, (not a coincidence,) and opened my first wine education company, Fox School of Wine, in 2008.

I received the Certified Specialist of Wine by Society of Wine Educators in 2009. This is a feared exam in the wine world... only 100 multiple choice questions covering the entire world of wine... pretty easy to fail.. which I proved in 2008. Luckily I was duly terrified and more prepared the second time. 

Eventually I founded the Culinary Wine Institute in 2012, dedicated to partnering with restaurants to increase customer satisfaction, server confidence and profitability in connection with their wine programs. 

My first book  – The Profitable Wine List: Three Steps to Quickly & Easily Increase Wine Sales, published in 2015 – and online sales training have helped 100s of independent restaurants gain traction in the often confusing world of wine. (I sold this company in 2020.)

I wrote from 2013-2017 as a blogger for the Huffington Post in a column titled Wines to Pair with Life.

My academic wine studies continued in 2014 when I received my Executive Sommelier certification from the International Wine Guild.

After going through breast cancer, I opened a third company in 2015 called Uplift Gift which provides high-quality, curated gift boxes for supportive people to send friends facing bad news – divorce, medical challenges, pet loss, etc. (I sold this company in 2021.)

I was honored to accept the Park City Business Woman of the Year award in 2017.

In 2018-19, fellow wine school owner – Jim Santangelo of the Wine Academy of Utah – and I recorded a radio show/podcast each week on the Cumulus Radio Network called Twisted Cork Radio. 

Wines & Wonders, my podcast, often featuring Dannielle Bryan of Shamanic Twist, started in 2020, the year of perfect vision and changed plans.

I continue to focus my life on creating opportunities for people to connect with each other, history, stories and great wines.