The search is on to find New Zealand's Top 100 Sommeliers.
The search is underway to find New Zealand’s top sommeliers, those who represent the very best in hospitality.
The Top100Sommeliers New Zealand 2025 will mark the inaugural annual list of talented wine professionals in the on-trade. A definitive guide to the best professionals working in hospitality and beverages service today.
Nominations are open now – join in to celebrate this vibrant and ever-changing industry.
Applications for Top100Sommeliers NZ 2025 are now open.
2025 Category Awards
Top 5 Young Sommeliers
Top 5 Female Sommeliers
Top 5 Ones to Watch
Innovation Award
Legend Award
How the Top 100 are selected?
Led by New Zealand’s only Master Sommelier, Cameron Douglas, the team at Top 100 Sommeliers has over 40 years wine and restaurant industry experience and have learnt a thing or two about what makes a top sommelier. We have collated our knowledge, industry contacts and experience to discover the best sommeliers working in New Zealand restaurants today.
Our database of working sommeliers*, is constantly being updated and we will continue to hone the list to find the best 100.
And, we have developed a comprehensive and meritocratic criteria for selecting the Top 100 Sommeliers, based on a unique points system.
Experience & Seniority
Candidates will be interviewed about their level of experience and their current seniority in the team.
Responsibility & Management
All applicants will be asked about their current responsibility and management experience.
Qualifications & Achievements
Achieving professional qualifications in service, tasting skills and wine knowledge will be reviewed.
Awards & Accolades
Taking part in sommelier competitions and winning wine list awards will also be accounted for and considered.
An additional review by all the judges will further assess:
Judges
For the inaugural Top 100 Sommeliers 2025 an illustrious panel of experts will judge the line up of outstanding sommeliers from around New Zealand.
Each judge brings different expertise and views to scrutinise the entrants in order to establish the highest standards.
Cameron Douglas MS
Master Sommelier
Chair Judge
Cameron is a true wine expert, with unmatched credentials and a passion for sharing his knowledge. As New Zealand’s first Master Sommelier, he holds one of the rarest and toughest qualifications in the world. He’s also an experienced wine writer, judge, presenter, and consultant, representing New Zealand wine globally. Cameron regularly teaches, travels, and judges wine across various continents, ensuring he stays connected to the industry. As an academic leader and consultant, he influences wine lists and pairings for top venues, both in New Zealand and internationally. His dedication to the craft has solidified his position as a key figure in the wine world.
Candice Chow
Wine Reviewer
Raymond Chan Reviews
Candice Chow is a passionate and accomplished sommelier with nearly two decades of experience in the hospitality industry. As the wine reviewer for Raymond Chan Reviews since 2020, Candice’s expertise and love for wine have earned her recognition in the industry. She has participated in prestigious programs such as the 50 Best “Somms of The World”, NZ Winegrowers Sommit Scholarship, and the Family Of Twelve Wine Tutorial.
Recently, she was named one of the Top 50 Most Influential & Inspiring Women in Food & Drink in New Zealand for 2023. CandiceWineChat.com was launched in June 2023. Candice is also the chairperson of the Queenstown Sommeliers Club. She is in the process of completing the WSET Diploma.
Celia Hay
Founder
New Zealand School of Food & Wine
Celia Hay is the founder of the New Zealand School of Food and Wine and a prominent figure in New Zealand’s hospitality and wine industries. A chef, sommelier, and educator, Celia established Hay’s Restaurant in 1994 and the School in 1995, both in Christchurch. Her focus on organic, locally sourced ingredients earned Hay’s Restaurant accolades, including the Wine Spectator Award of Excellence. Following the 2011 Christchurch earthquakes, she relocated the School to Auckland. Celia is a qualified chef with a range of prestigious credentials, including the WSET Diploma and an MBA. In 2023, she was named one of New Zealand’s 50 Most Inspiring Women in Food and Drink. She has authored The New Zealand Wine Guide, awarded Best in the World by the Gourmand World Book Awards. Celia is also the founding chair of the New Zealand Sommeliers and Wine Professionals Association and has received numerous awards for her contributions to wine education, including the 2022 Sir George Fistonich medal.
Yvonne Lorkin
Co-founder & Chief Tasting Officer
WineFriend
Yvonne Lorkin is a respected wine writer based in Hawke’s Bay, New Zealand. She is a founding member of the Wine Writers of NZ and serves as the Chief Tasting Officer of WineFriend, a wine subscription service she co-founded. Yvonne is also the wine and beverages editor for dish magazine. As an accomplished MC, she frequently hosts charity auctions, events, and tastings, and is a sought-after speaker for various groups and society meetings. She is the host and producer of the TV show Thirsty Work and has contributed to several media outlets, including CANVAS and Radio New Zealand. A senior judge at numerous wine competitions, Yvonne is also the author of The Really Sticky Grubby Lolly, a children’s book. She holds top honours from Adelaide University’s renowned Wine Marketing Diploma Programme and has played an instrumental role in launching and revitalising wine brands through strategic PR, branding, and copywriting. She is passionate about wine education and regularly hosts workshops and tastings for private groups.
The sign of a great restaurant is not just the food, the experience, the ambience, it also rests with the calibre of the person who serves your wine.
The job of a sommelier is not just about knowledge, it’s about the wine expert’s ability to gauge how much the customer wants to pay, getting the tone right, perhaps moving them away from staff choice to something more exciting, challenging but just right at the same time.
A sommelier is the person who uses their expertise to enable you to choose a wine to go with the food you are soon going to eat.
We have surveyed industry experts from around New Zealand and the general consensus is that what makes a good sommelier is the ability to distil all their knowledge into accessible, bite-sized chunks of information to sell, entice and engage all at the same time.
It takes skill, knowledge, and tenacity to pitch it just right. In just 30 seconds professionals need to be able to measure the level of spend and style of wine without intruding or overcompensating. A juggling act, a talent, a professionalism that can make or break the whole dining experience.
The Top100Sommeliers is a countdown of the very best sommeliers from around NZ’s best restaurants, the people who bring wine alive and excel at every level of service and knowledge. Over the past months we have called for nominations, gathering together a list of the best to be assessed and evaluated by our panel of judges to find the Top100Sommeliers.
