In our latest blind tasting episode, host and Master Sommelier Christopher Tanghe speaks with Cokie Ponikvar and Omar Lima. They discuss the importance of blind tasting, the challenges they've faced in their tasting journeys, and how they apply blind tasting skills.
Cokie Ponikvar runs the wine education platform @cokiesworldofwine, which has 299,000 followers on Instagram. She began her wine career while studying at the University of Toronto and working as a sommelier at the Four Seasons Hotel. Today, her approachable wine videos have over 52 million views. Cokie is a Certified Sommelier through the Court of Master Sommeliers, Americas.
Omar Lima is a sommelier at Sushi Note Omakase in Beverly Hills. Previously, he worked at several other Los Angeles restaurants, including Augustine Wine Bar, the Montage Hotel in Beverly Hills, and Spago Beverly Hills. Omar is a Certified Sommelier through the CMS-A and a Certified Sake Advisor through the Sake School of America, and he has the WSET Level 2 Award in Wine.
After their tasting conversations, Cokie and Omar taste the same red wine. Listen closely and guess along with them! We reveal the wine at the end of the episode.
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Cokie runs the wine education platform @cokiesworldofwine, which has 299,000 followers on Instagram. Her wine videos have over 52 million views. Cokie began her wine career while studying at the University of Toronto and working as a sommelier at the Four Seasons Hotel. She initially started her wine platform to share what she was learning with her parents and their friends. Cokie is a Certified Sommelier through the Court of Master Sommeliers, Americas.
Follow Cokie's World of Wine on Instagram.
Omar is a sommelier at Sushi Note Omakase in Beverly Hills. He was born and raised in Los Angeles and began his wine career there at Augustine Wine Bar in Sherman Oaks. He has also worked at the Montage Hotel and Spago, both in Beverly Hills. Omar is a Certified Sommelier through the CMS-A and a Certified Sake Advisor through the Sake School of America. He has the WSET Level 2 Award in Wine.
Follow Omar on Instagram.
Follow Omar on LinkedIn.