Sarah Bray, DipWSET, is a wine-focused communications professional with a background in editorial and brand content creation, strategic development and implementation, event planning and execution, and digital marketing.
Currently at Meadowood Estate in Napa Valley, she is the Associate Director of Wine Education for The Learning Center, a private education service for members of The Napa Valley Reserve and guests of Meadowood Napa Valley. Sarah is also a co-founder of the Bâtonnage Forum, a platform to discuss issues affecting women throughout the wine industry, and of the Bâtonnage Mentorship Program, launched in 2020. In her spare time, she helps where needed at T. Berkley Wines, a Loire-varietal project launched by her partner and winemaker Taylor Boydstun in 2016.
She has spent the past several years focusing on strategic planning for wineries and regions, from private customer development and event planning to website and communications strategy, for brands including Tenuta di Trinoro (Tuscany), Passopisciaro (Mt. Etna), and Iron Horse Vineyards (California).
She has served as the European Director of VinConnect, liaising with top estates in Europe to develop their direct-to-consumer marketing channels. These wineries include: Champagne Philipponnat; Clos de Tart, Louis Michel, and Vincent Girardin in Burgundy; Château Pape Clément and Château Léoville Poyferré in Bordeaux; Georges Vernay and Domaine du Pégau in the Rhône Valley; Canalicchio di Sopra, Fontodi, and Il Carnasciale in Tuscany; E. Pira – Chiara Boschis, Massolino, and Pelissero in Piedmont; Dr. Loosen, Robert Weil, and von Schubert — Maximin Grunhaus in Germany; ARTADI and Emilio Moro in Spain; and more. She was also a part of the team that implemented Sherryfest, an event promoting the wines of Jerez to American audiences.
She formerly worked as the director of digital marketing and development for SAVEUR magazine and brand strategist for the wine auction and retail divisions at Sotheby’s. She is a contributor to Food & Wine, The Sommelier Journal, Departures, SAVEUR, SevenFifty Daily, The Tasting Panel, and other publications.
She holds the highest-level recognition from the internationally-renowned Wines & Spirits Education Trust, Level 4 Diploma in Wine and Spirits and is a Master of Wine candidate.
photo credit: RJ Mickelson
Coverage:
- Drinking On The Job: Episode 31: Sarah Bray on Mount Etna’s live volcano, the brilliant wines of Sicily, and her love of Tuscany, as well as role in leading Bâtonnage Forum
- SevenFifty Daily: Coverage for the 2019 Batonnage Forum’s panel on women’s sexuality in wine sales
- Mise en Abyme: On Sarah’s work as brand ambassador for Vini Franchetti