Meet The BTI Team

Jerald O’Kennard, Director, Editor-in-Chief, Man of the World jerald@tastings.com

Jerald O’Kennard is the Director of the Beverage Testing Institute, one of the world’s foremost authorities on alcoholic beverages. The Beverage Testing Institute (BTI)—was founded in 1981, as America’s premier independent alcoholic beverage review organization with a mission to create fair and reliable reviews of wines for consumers. In 1994, BTI began reviewing beers and spirits and founded the World Beer Championships and the World Spirits Championships—now named the International Review of Spirits. BTI regularly reviews thousands of beverages every year.

BTI was the first organization to publish wine reviews online —managing the America Online Food and Drink Network from 1989 to 1999. All of our reviews, including over 30,000 of our most recent reviews, plus hundreds of articles, now appear on our website, Tastings.com. Leading producers and marketers participate in BTI’s reviews and competitions because they recognize the Institute’s ability to identify and describe the best products and get that information out to consumers. Additionally, BTI partners with many other websites and media that feature its reviews. Examples include: CNBC, BusinessWeek TV, the Chicago Tribune, WGN Radio, Martha Stewart Radio, BBC Radio International, All About Beer magazine, Restaurant Hospitality magazine, and many others.

Jerald received his bachelor’s degree in economics from the University of Chicago, completed post-graduate work in the arts, and has over a decade of food & beverage management and event management experience. He has developed beverage programs and lists for many of the Midwest’s major cultural institutions and trained thousands of service personnel in all facets of wine, spirits, and cuisine.

He began his relationship with BTI in the late 90’s as a taster and quickly established himself as a senior panelist based on his remarkable sensory abilities. He then worked as a consultant for BTI, helping to develop e-commerce applications for BTI’s product review databases. In 2000, he was hired as Tasting Director. As a man experienced in both the arts and business, he brings a robust palette of organizational and creative skills to the Institute and is directly responsible for administering and marketing all of BTI’s tasting and private consultation programs. His writings on spirits, wine, and beer can be regularly found on Tastings.com and in All About Beer, the Chicago Tribune, and Restaurant Hospitality magazines. He is a beverage contributor to the CNBC television network, BusinessWeek TV, and BBC ‘s Radio International and is often consulted on and quoted by the New York Times, Business 2.0, Wall Street Journal, Men’s Journal, Reuters, and other national and international publications on the subjects of wines, beers, and spirits.

He loves to travel and learn from wine, beer, and spirits producers around the world and is developing a beverage television show that will share his insights and discoveries. In what little spare time he has, he is a musician and composer with several albums and movie soundtracks to his credit. He also has an intense passion for pursuing what he calls the “Three C’s” of the beverage and entertaining industries: culture, cuisine, and celebration. However, wherever he goes, he seems to spend an inordinate amount of time trying to convince people that he actually works for a living.

Bob Bansberg, Senior Wine Panelist, Keeper of the Flame

Robert (Bob) Bansberg is an award winning sommelier and wine educator, formerly at Chicago’s four star restaurant Ambria for its full twenty-five year run, and currently a faculty member at the School of Culinary Arts at Kendall College in Chicago. Since 1992, Bansberg has taught a Wine and Beverage Management Class at Kendall College’s School of the Culinary Arts and for five years has hosted the The Wine Series, a wine appreciation and food-pairing course for the community. Since 2000, he has lectured at the Alliance Français and The Calphalon Culinary also based in Chicago. He is an active board member of the “Toast to Humanity” charity and has donated his time to the National Charity “Share our Strength”.

In 2004, Bansberg was one of five nominated for “Best Sommelier” in the Jean Banchet Awards for Culinary Excellence. In their July 2000 issue, Food & Wine magazine Bansberg selected in a national poll of their readership as “The Best Sommelier in Chicago”, Chicago Magazine also listed Bansberg as the cities best in their August 2000 issue. In 1999, Bansberg was nominated for the highly coveted James Beard Award.  He has won regional French sommelier competitions.  He is a senior wine judge at the Beverage Testing Institute and has judged for the National Restaurant Association’s Wine Classic, and has served on numerous panels for the Chicago Tribune and Chicago Sun-Times.

He has written for Wine & Spirits and The Wine Enthusiast, and has lectured at the Midwest International Wine Exposition as well as Northwestern University and the University of Chicago. He has been writing wine tasting notes for Santé Magazine in 2004. Bansberg is a graduate of Northwestern University and studied in the Neurophysiology Graduate Program at the University of Illinois Medical Center.  He resides in Evanston with his wife and their two children.  He continues to be a leader and educator in his community. A gifted and gracious man in many respects, he is truly the "Sommelier’s Sommelier."

Sir Charles Stansfield, Senior Wine Panelist, Defender of the Faith

Charles Stansfield is truly a champion of the wine industry. In 1986, he took a position at Sam’s Wines & Spirits in Chicago (one of the nation’s largest volume wine retailers) running their warehouse and in 1989 was elevated to the store’s vaunted wine staff, considered by many to be the best in the city. He now serves as department head for kosher, sparkling, and South African wines and expertly assists in any area of the store, armed with 30 years of industry experience. Charles has represented the United States as a delegate for the South African wine expo Cape Wine 2000 & 2002 and 2006 and was bestowed a knighthood (Ordre Des Coteaux De Champagne) for his work with the great wines of Champagne in 2002. In 2003, Charles received an award in Italy for his work with the sparkling wine prosecco. Charles is considered by many to be one of the world’s top authorities on Champagne and sparkling wines and is also a noted expert on kosher and South African wines. He does free-lance writing and teaches private wine classes in Chicago and nationwide always making sense of the intricacies of wine for everyday consumers. He is frequently contacted by many major publications for wine advice. Charles has visited France, Italy, South Africa and California’s wine regions and still finds many new and interesting things to keep his job fresh, fun and exciting. We are thankful to have Charles on our tasting panels as he always freely shares his great knowledge, insights, and superb tasting skills on every occasion. Your can reach Charles at wineforthepeople@yahoo.com.

Mike Miller, Senior Spirits & Beer Panelist, Tavernista Party Whip

Michael Miller, one of The Beverage Testing Institute’s longest serving and most outspoken judges, is owner and operator of Delilah’s Nightclub in Chicago. This Rock & Roll Mecca, and America’s most recognized whiskey bar (2004 Whisky Magazine, Best Whisky Bar Award), is equally world famous for both its jukebox and its unparalleled selection of beer, wine and spirits. Miller has published dozens of articles concerning all things Drinks, Music, Travel, and Nightlife. Mr. Miller has one feature film to his credit, a cutting edge bar in Spain in the works, and a tremendous dedication to offering the best experience possible for his many patrons and friends. BTI is proud to have Mike on board our panels and thankful for his considerable sensory skills, product knowledge, and thought provoking opinions.

 Trudy Thomas, Spirits & Wine Panelist, "First Daughter of Bourbon"

Trudy Thomas is president of Liquid Remedy Inc , which provides beverage consulting and promotion services to independent and small chain restaurant and hotel groups as well as drink development, training, and support for suppliers and distributors.  

Her ten years of experience as a nationally known beverage director includes four years working closely with Chef Wolfgang Puck in his Casual Dining Division; two years with the ten unit Rosebud Chain, where she continues to work as a beverage consultant; and other project with chefs Jean George Vongerichten, Charlie Trotter, and Ruth Van Waerebeek.

A Kentucky native, she grew up in an area rich in the tradition of moonshine which inspired an early fascination, not just with the whisky industry, but with the people who make up the remarkable community that crafts, lives, and breathes bourbon. She has a unique insight into the bourbon world through her long friendships with bourbon’s master distillers and has committed herself to teaching consumers about America’s native spirit.

Her ability to quickly and cogently assess the commercial viability, customer affinity, and practical serving or cocktail application of anything she tastes is a highly prized asset that she brings to every BTI tasting. 

Edward Hamilton, Spirits Panelist, The Minister of Rum

Edward Hamilton, widely considered the world’s foremost authority on rum, is the author of the legendary books Rums of the Eastern Caribbean, The Complete Guide to Rum and the Ministry of Rum website. He has shared his research on the pages of Yachting, Drinks, Nightclub and Bar and a number of other magazines and journals. When he isn’t sailing, writing and visiting his colleagues at distilleries in the lush Caribbean basin, he’s busy sharing his passion for sugar cane spirits with people around the world. To quote the Minister: “When I dream up a better job, I’ll take it.” 

Terry "Iron Wrist" Sullivan, Spirits & Wine Panelist, Dean of Drams 

Terry Sullivan is a free-lance writer with a specialization in spirits, wine, cocktails and humor. He is a contributing editor with regular drinks/beverage columns in North Shore Magazine, Plate Magazine and The Malt Advocate--and a regular contributor to the Chicago Tribune Sunday Magazine and Chicago Magazine.

His Mixology column was a monthly feature in GQ for five years, where he wrote from 1987 until 2002, and his work has appeared in Whisky Magazine, Playboy, Polo On-line and many others. He believes himself to be the only living writer whose work has appeared in both Brides Magazine and This Old House Magazine, although he’s not proud of it. 

 David Soto, Spirits Panelist, Purveyor of Palatable Pleasures

David has twenty-seven years retail and marketing experience in a range of industries, nine years specifically related to spirits. As the spirits specialist and buyer for Sam’s Wines & Spirits, America’s preeminent spirits retailer, he approves the acquisition of new products and coordinates events from formal sit down tastings to Sam’s massive Annual Spirits Night. Always on the hunt for exciting new products, he travels regularly to Europe, Mexico, and Kentucky and oversees Sam’s private barrel program, selecting premium barrels from award-winning distilleries around the world. His talent for recommending items customers enjoy has earned him a large, loyal, national following that anticipate his next find. This talent manifests itself in our tasting room through his clear insights and no-nonsense approach to tasting and appreciating spirits, always with an eye as to what the average consumer as well as connoisseur might enjoy.

 Adam Seger, Wine & Spirits Panelist, The Wizard of Bars

At Chicago’s Nacional 27 Adam Seger takes a chef’s approach as he creates a culinary-mixology fusion, bringing together the bar and the kitchen to take cocktails to a new level. Seger stretches the boundaries of cocktail flavor profiles, incorporating new kitchen technologies which have a natural home at the bar. Driven by the ingredient obsession of a chef, Seger not only uses specialty and boutique liquors for his drinks, but also sources artisan products, such as the organic agave syrup from Peru. He even makes his own bitters and maraschino cherries. Seger’s culinary approach to cocktails was inspired by his tenure with world-class chefs like Thomas Keller and Rick Tramonto. He was also mentored by the industry’s top mixologists, including Dale Degroff and Francesco Lafranino. Seger, who also serves as General Manager and Sommelier of Nacional 27, is an Advanced Level Sommelier, and co-founder of Chicago Blind Tasters, a group of talented young sommeliers who are preparing for Master Sommelier accreditation. 

Craig "Meathead" Goldwyn, Maverick, Guru, Savant

Craig Goldwyn is a freelance writer and photographer currently working on a book about barbecue and running the website AmazingRibs.com. Since 1970 he has written hundreds of articles about food and drink as a syndicated columnist for the Washington Post and the Chicago Tribune. A pioneer in digital media and communications, he began and hosted the Food & Drink Network on America Online, taught at Cornell University’s famous Hotel School, and at Le Cordon Bleu in Chicago. He founded the Beverage Testing Institute in 1984 and served as its president for 16 years. He has judged wine and food around the world, and highlights of his year are judging wine at the California State Fair and barbecue at the Jack Daniel’s World Championship Invitational Barbecue. He calls himself an "omnivore" and says he’s got wine and sauce stains on all his shirts and the well-marbled waistline to prove he does it well. We are grateful to have the dynamic Craig Goldwyn back on BTI’s tasting panels as he continues to be a source of wisdom and inspiration for us all. 

Stuart Bander, Wine Panelist, Master Wine Maven 

Stuart has been in the food and wine business for over twenty-five years and has worked in almost every capacity in the wine industry: importer, distributor, retailer, restaurant manager, and educator. He worked as a French-trained chef for many years: from the three Michelin star Alain Chapel restaurant in Mionnay France, to the best of the best in Chicago: Everest, Ritz-Carlton, and Café Provençal. He has traveled through most wine regions of the world and for the past ten years has taught wine classes for large importers, local distributors, and retailers. In the last four years he has focused exclusively on the development and marketing of New World Wines, specializing in South America. A stalwart of the community, Stuart never fails to impress with his passion, insights, and outspoken command of the issues in the world of wine.

 Jeff Siegel, Guest Blogger, Wine Curmudgeon

Jeff Siegel writes the “Wine Curmudgeon” column for the Star-Telegram newspaper in Fort Worth and is the wine columnist for Advocate Home & Heritage magazines in Dallas. He likes to do blind tastings featuring regional wines, which often results in people who should know better feeling certain that the wines are from California, Australia, or France. He brings his regional and value oriented perspectives to Tastings.com as our first non-panelist, guest blogger. Reach him at jeffsiegel.info.

Debra Bernstein, Office Manager, Disciplinarian-in-Chief

Debra began her food career serving hash and flipping burgers at the local Woolworth’s, at the tender age of 15. Her passion for food led her to restaurant management school, where she received an A.S. in Applied Sciences. She has worked in the food industry for more than 20 years, including a stint with Arnie Morton and 15 years with the Chicago Caterers and Culinary Enterprises. Debra left the brutal schedule of food industry to become a mother, an occupation in which, by comparison (she says), the hours are minimal and the pay is great. Breaking her nine-month abstinence from drink led her to the perfect job; she can organize and rally the troops all day long, and taste the day’s leftover samples at leisure.

Gary E. Nei, CEO, Cellar Master

A Northwestern University MBA graduate, Gary has served as CEO of biotech and pharmaceutical companies NPI, Lyphomed, Eon Labs. In his role as serious wine buyer, he has few equals. In addition to his current role as CEO of BTI, he consults to Welsh, Carson, and Stowe , a private investment partnership, and sits on the board of several other companies. Somehow, he still finds time to play a lot of golf, chase fish with a stick, and worry that he might not have enough Burgundy.