Ordering Food at Sauer Grapes

Reid Harper Bio

Eastern Regional Sales Director- Trione Vineyard & Winery

Experienced Wine Sales Director on both The Supplier and Distributer Sides of the industry. Specializing in small/midsize family owned/managed wineries. After attending the University of Colorado entered the restaurant industry before entering the wholesale wine and industry. Lives in Fairfax County, Virginia with his son Cole, wife Mariann and faithful dog Finn! Also my daughter Christy lives in Seattle teaching anatomy at The University of Washington after attending and playing D-1 Volleyball at GWU and earning her PHD from John Hopkins.

• On Premise Wine & Spirits sales management – Several Washington, DC Wholesalers

• NE Regional Sales Manager – Jordan Winery

• National Sales Manager – Jordan Winery

• National Sales Manager – Palmateer Wine Group

• East Coast Division Sales Director – Boisset

• Mid Atlantic Sales Director – Accolade Wine Group

• East Regional Sales Director – Trione Vineyard & Winery

Ricardo March Bio

Ricardo March has pursued his passion for wine for more than two decades, establishing himself as one of the preeminent professionals in the world of wine and spirits sales and marketing. Born into the wine business, Ricardo graduated from the University of Barcelona with a degree in Business Administration and Management, and then moved to the States to earn a Master of International Business from Florida International University. In Florida, he experienced the challenges of the wine and food industry from a business standpoint. As a new wine and spirits manager, he excelled at marketing, sales and customer relations, more than tripling his sales volume in just two years’ time. He then became a territory manager with another company and successfully took his territory to number one in sales in a year. Since 2000, Ricardo has applied his formidable talents to Beni di Batasiolo as Vice President for North America and has established a successful business presence in the United States, Canada and the Caribbean. Ricardo is an experienced sommelier, certified by the European School for Sommeliers. He is fluent in English, Spanish, Italian and French.

McKenzie Schmitt, WSET III, CSW, CS

Banfi Vintners, District Manager North Carolina and South Carolina

McKenzie Schmitt is a dedicated wine professional with over 12 years in the industry, having held positions in restaurants, alcohol wholesale, and winery suppliers. She has achieved several industry standard wine certifications including the Level III Award in Wines from the Wine & Spirits Education Trust, Certified Specialist of Wine from the Society of Wine Educators, and Certified Sommelier from the Court of Master Sommeliers-Americas.

Beginning her career at Le Cordon Bleu Culinary School in California, McKenzie worked in Michelin star restaurants in San Francisco before returning to Charlotte to attend Johnson & Wales University, where she graduated Summa Cum Laude with a degree in Restaurant, Food, and Beverage Management. She then transitioned from the restaurant industry to pursue a career in the alcohol wholesale industry, ultimately finding a position with Empire Distributors, specializing in selling their high-end fine wine portfolio to some of Charlotte’s best fine wine shops, restaurants, and country clubs.

McKenzie Schmitt now represents a diverse premium wine and spirits portfolio as the Banfi District Manager for North and South Carolina. Banfi has a long and storied history of not only producing world class Brunello but also offering an array of fine wine and spirits from around the world, while championing uncompromising quality and environmental responsibility. Banfi firmly believes in creating a better wine world for everyone, something that McKenzie Schmitt is extremely proud to be a part of.

Jorge worked the Hospitality industry for 23 years running restaurants, hotels and working with celebrity chefs in highly regarded restaurants in NJ & NY. Many of the early years in hotels and restaurants allowed Jorge to self-pay for his education to gain his Bachelor of Science in Medical Technology and a degree as a Clinical Scientist at the University of Medicine and Dentistry of NJ and Kean University.

The relationship with Biochemistry created a passion for wine. he became a Certified Sommelier from the Court of Master Sommeliers and the Sommeliers Society of America in 1999, WSET in 2012.

While working in NYC, he decided to become that Sommelier that mentored, teach, and inspire other Somms towards South American Wines. During this time, he met Dr. Nicolas, his wife Elena and daughter Laura and immediately understood the message of a Pioneer Family that wanted to do so much for South America. Dr. Nicolas was very inspiring, Elena very supportive and proud of her Wine Country, and Laura was enthusiastic about applying her science to research and development in many aspects of wine growing and winemaking.

Jorge promoted Catena Zapata during the 1990’s buying their wines and showing them to other winemakers and wine industry people with lots of success. In 2003 he went to the importer for Catena in USA as a Supplier & Relation’s Manager and the rest is history. He participated in the collaboration in educating Master Sommeliers and Masters of Wines about Argentina to make them ambassadors not just for Catena but for the wine producing counties in South America.

Jorge joined Winebow in 2009 and have performed several positions, South America Brand Manager, Director of Portfolio Sales Management also assigned to Direct the Catena Task Force (CTF), South America Portfolio Specialist and coming back in April 2022 to reunite with the CTF.