The Judges

Exciting Wine Award

Sponsored by: Bibendum

Martin Day

Having studied for a Diploma in Wine and Spirits in London, Martin has been living and breathing wine for the past 12 years. He has managed licensed premises all across Essex including The Red Lion (Latchingdon), The Oval (Great Notley), The Bandstand (Southend) but mainly at The Pipe of Port in Southend, where he was in charge of a wine list of over 120 bins. His role also included hosting wine tastings and suppers on a regular basis, and his work has taken him to vineyards all across Europe.

Martin now looks after licenced premises in South Essex for the forward thinking Bibendum Wine Limited, where he strives to both inform and stimulate people about the often over-complicated issue of wine.

Paul Cooke

Paul is Bibendum's regional manager for Central and Eastern England. After running an independent wine merchants in North London called SWIG during the late Nineties Paul left the UK to make wine in Oz, France and New Zealand.

Returning to the UK he made wine briefly in Essex and worked for an old fashioned fine wine merchants, also in Essex.

Moving to Bibendum a few years ago he now supplies wines to the finest dining establishments in East Anglia.