Committee

The West of England Wine and Spirit Association Committee

The Committee is made up of members of the Association and meets quarterly to discuss education, events, trips and industry news.

Current committee members include:

 President: John Moran

 Tel: 0117-9735174 Email: johnmoranwine@blueyonder.co.uk

 Chairman: Susan McCraith MW

Well you may have spotted from the photograph that your Association has a lady chairman for the first time in its history! I'm very proud to hold this position and am looking forward to meeting as many of you as possible over the next two years. One of my aims is to see some younger members of the wine industry coming to our tasting events so do please spread the word to those people in your organisation who would enjoy and benefit from our educational events. It is a great opportunity to meet other people in the trade as well as the growing number of members who simply share a love of wine.

Following a degree in French at Exeter University, Susan's career in the wine and spirits industry began in 1987 working in France for Lillet in Bordeaux and then looking after duty free sales for Jas Hennessy in Cognac. On her return to the UK in 1990 she came to Bristol to work for Howells of Bristol Bin Club where she progressed to Director and became a Master of Wine in 1994. She moved to Waitrose as Senior Buyer in 1996 and stayed for ten years before leaving to set up her own business, Ethical Fine Wines. Susan also lectures the Wine MBA programme at the Royal Agricultural College in Cirencester and is a University of Bath qualified coach and mentor. She is a liveryman in the Worshipful Company of Vintners. She is married to Richard McCraith below (they met at a wine tasting!) and they have two children. 

 Vice-Chairman: Ed Adams MW

Ed Adams MW joined the wine trade in 1983 working at the long since gone Howell’s wine shop in Bristol. After working a while with Ted Hale MW near Bath he moved to London where he worked for a wine warehouse and then Wines From Spain. It was then 7 years as a wine buyer in Manchester with the Co-op until 1994 (passing the MW in 1991) and then a move to sleepy, rural Shropshire and Western Wines. Ed helped to establish the Kumala brand and by the time Western Wines was sold in 2004, annual turnover was 7 million cases.Since 2006 he has been working on his La Báscula Spanish wine range with South African winemaker Bruce Jack. The best, he says, is yet to come…

 John Durston

After National Service with The Life Guards, John became a Police Officer, retiring in 1984 with the rank of Divisional Commander. He then took up a post as Regional Inspector (South West) with The Wine Standards Board and when he retired (for the second time!) he set up his own wine business, Newbridge Fine Wines. John has been a member of our Association for many years holding the post of Honorary Secretary and Education Adminstrator. He holds the WSET Diploma and his principal interest outside the wine trade is bowls. He is Somerset County Secretary and serves on several National Bowls England Committees.

Tel: 01225 480996 Email: j.durston1@sky.com 

Treasurer: Geoff Collins

Geoff worked for Joseph Travers and Sons selling wines and spirits before joining Matthew Clark & Sons where he went from salesman to National Account Manager. Geoff one of our past chairman following in the family tradition,started working in the wine and spirit trade joining his father at Joseph Travers and Sons in 1960, Geoff's father had worked for this company for 35 years. Geoff then went on to join Matthew Clark and Sons for nearly 25 years working up from a salesman to a National Account Manager. When Martell was sold to Seagram, Geoff moved to Atkinson Baldwin and then to Direct Wine Supplies who were launching Freixenet Cava in the UK. Latterly Geoff worked for Arkells Brewery and then set up his own company called Grape Choice which he passed on to Beer Seller when he retired in 2004. Geoff has also held the post of Vice-President of the Licensed Victuallers.

Tel: 0770 2671456 Email: geoffandsally@btinternet.com 

Secretary and WSET Education Officer

Tim Johnson

Having been an enthusiast for many years, Tim followed all of our courses and obtained his Diploma, and is now an AIWS and a member of the Association of Wine Educators. He tutors the level 4 course and is a member of our teaching team. he was, like Robert Parker, a lawyer in  a past life, but apart form their mutual enthusiasm for wine, there, he says, the resemblance ends.

Tel: 07567 969062 email: tim@dedansvintners.co.uk

Richard McCraith

Richard has spent all his working career in the wine trade, starting with Gough Bros in Brompton Road in 1982. By 1986 he was working for Eldridge Pope and in 1989 came to Bristol to manage the Wine Library where he hosted many tastings for the Association. Richard established his own Off Licences in 1993 called Corks. He sold the Corks business in 2000 and created a new B2B internet business, winebinends.com. He was Chairman of the Association from 2006/7 leading trips to Austria and the South of France.

Tel: 07973 864968 Email: richard@winebinends.com 

Bruce Wilson

Bruce Wilson retired after forty years in the Wine Trade after a career primarily with Harveys of Bristol and Cockburn's.  In his last working years he was Director of Trade and Industry Affairs at Allied Domecq.  He served for many years as Chairman of both the Sherry Shippers Committee and the Port Wine Trade Committee of the Wine and Spirit Association in London.  In the year before he retired he had the pleasure of being the President of that National Association and he was also President of our regional Association in 2007. He has been married to Jill for 50 years and has four children and eight grandchildren.