Karen MacNeil


Karen MacNeil is an American author, journalist, wine educator and consultant based in Napa Valley. MacNeil is also the creator and chairman of the Rudd Center for Professional Wine Studies at the Culinary Institute of America at Greystone in St. Helena, California.
MacNeil wrote The Wine Bible and was the host of a 13-episode PBS series titled Wine, Food and Friends with Karen MacNeil, for which she won an Emmy. The show was done in tandem with the publication of a companion book, Wine, Food & Friends. MacNeil was also wine correspondent on NBC's The Today Show, has published articles in a wide range of publications, and works as a private wine education consultant.

Career

MacNeil's first article, on the subject of the best butter on offer in New York delis, was published in The Village Voice. She transitioned to wine writing in the mid-1970s, when she was commissioned by Elle magazine to write a wine article. In 1991 she signed a contract with Workman Publishing Co. to write a book on wine, The Wine Bible, which was released in 2001. As of 2002 it was the best-selling wine book in the U.S. Her second book was Wine, Food & Friends.
MacNeil's articles have appeared in The New York Times, Food & Wine, Saveur, and Town & Country. In her work as a private wine education consultant, she has had clients such as firms Merrill Lynch, Lexus, General Electric, Time Inc. and American Express.
MacNeil was named Outstanding Wine and Spirits Professional of the Year in 2004 by the James Beard Foundation. In 2005 she was named Wine Educator of the Year by the European Wine Council, in 2007 she was given the Wine Literary Award by the Wine Appreciation Guildand, and in 2008 the International Wine & Spirits Competition Communicator of the Year award.