MEET CHARLES

Author, journalist, and consultant, Charles Curtis is a Master of Wine and the former Head of Wine for Christie’s auction house in both Asia and the Americas.  He joined Christie’s in 2008 from Moet Hennessy USA, where he was Director of Wine and Spirit Education.  In 2012 he set up his fine wine consultancy WineAlpha to provide advice on varied topics of interest to wine collectors and the trade. 
 
His first book, The Original Grand Crus of Burgundy, was released in 2014, and the second, Vintage Champagne 1899 – 2019 in 2020.  In 2024 he authored the chapter ‘Appraising Fine Wine and Spirits’ in the book Appraising: The Definitive Guide’ from the Appraisers Association of America, and his forthcoming book, An Atlas of the Côte des Blancs (with cartographer Steve De Long), will appear later this year.  He is a board member of the Appraiser’s Association of America, and since 2020 has been the Burgundy correspondent for Decanter magazine and a contributor to other publications. 
 
He is the regional chair for Burgundy for the Decanter World Wine Awards (and since 2024 has also been the acting regional chair for Champagne), and an instructor for Fine Vintage, teaching WSET classes and leading visits to Champagne and Burgundy.  He began his professional career as a chef, training at Le Cordon Bleu, Paris, and apprenticing there at the Crillon Hotel and at other restaurants.  He hung up his toque at the age of thirty to pursue a career in wine.