my wine peeps
Staff of Wine Gourmet
Brian Powell
Owner
Brian is the new owner/operator of Wine Gourmet. His passion for wine started when he made his own as part of a microbiology class at Virginia Tech. He plans to expand the wine selections under $15 as well as Wine Gourmet’s luxury collection. He also loves beer. Look for more exciting choices on the beer racks too.
A lover of the outdoors, you can find Brian on a local hiking trail, running down the road or traveling to the nearest mountain to snowboard.
Mike Harper
Maitré d’Shop, Certified Culinarian, Certified Specialist of Wine
Food & Wine Pairing Instructor, Wine Buyer
Mike graduated Magna cum Laude from Le Cordon Bleu College of Culinary Arts in Atlanta, Georgia. He completed Le Cordon Bleu’s accelerated course schedule in which two years of study are compressed into one. He moved to Roanoke recently for love and soon discovered Wine Gourmet. In February 2007, Mike passed the Certified Specialist of Wine (CSW) exam making him our 3rd CSW. His background in food and retail sales (25 years) make him a valuable addition to our staff.
Melinda Hayes
Wine Consultant, Wine 101 Instructor
Melinda lights up Wine Gourmet with her smile. She is our lead instructor for WINE 101 & WINE 102 class. She has four years of recent experience with Virginia’s most popular winery, Chateau Morrisette. She is also the Virginia Outreach Director of Recording for the Blind & Dyslexic. She is a huge fan of the Virginia Tech Hokies and Atlanta Braves. Melinda loves driving her green Mini Cooper. Melinda is one smart cookie and faculty of Virginia Tech.
Aaron Layman
Beer Buyer, Wine/Beer Writer, Instructor
Aaron completed his studies at University of Mary Washington and, fortunately for us, moved back to Roanoke. Beside consulting on issues of wine and especially beer, Aaron writes our newsletter, Wine Club informational sheets and runs the Beer of the Month Club. Aaron’s depth of knowledge on beer borders on the scary. His quest to quaff all that can be quaffed has been aided by his expanded access to our extensive array of malt beverages.
Pam West
Wine Buyer, Wine Club Coordinator, Instructor
Pam has been in the wine business longer than any of us. She brings a dynamic, experienced component to our team. Pam manages the largest Wine Club in southwest Virginia as well as our exclusive Connoisseur Club. Pam loves wine, talking about wine and placing the right wine in her customer’s hands. She also teaches several seminars.
Mechelle Gillispie
Food/Gift Buyer, Special Order Facilitator, Instructor
If you’ve bought wine in Roanoke in the last 12 years, you’ve met Mechelle. Before joining Wine Gourmet, Mechelle served the customers of Lee & Edwards Wine Merchants and Trio Wine Bar/Bottle/Bistro downtown. Now, Mechelle juggles her duties at Wine G with her fast-paced life of a mother of two active boys and wife of a devoted husband. We are lucky to have Mechelle – she is a treasure trove of wine knowledge.
Emily Fielder
Wine Consultant
Emily, a graduate of Hollins University, is as charming and lovely as she is erudite. She graces us with her presence occasionally as our helper when we need more depth on the field. Her regular day job is as a member of the faculty at Virginia Tech. Go Hokies!
