In 2011, MWS proudly announced its new identity, My Wine School; a "one-stop shop" for wine education, where you can tailor your wine experience to meet your objectives. This site is dedicated to making, "Wine. Your Way."

My Wine School offers the unique opportunity for wine enthusiasts of all levels to learn about and explore wine through interactive online wine tastings, accreditation courses, wine travel and more - anytime, anywhere. Unlike most online wine offerings, we taste/learn/discuss with you, not just at you.

My Wine School evolved into a dynamic wine education organization to address the demands of its students. From The Milwaukee Wine School (founded in 2007) which expanded to The Midwest Wine School (2009), My Wine School is still based on MWS's founding principle of unbiased wine education. MWS founder and owner, Jessica Bell, has tapped into her extensive wine education experience and the feedback she has received from her thousands of passionate wine students to construct a wine school that meets wine enthusiasts desire to learn how they want, when they want, and where they want.

We want to continue to hear feedback from you! Please let us know how else we can help you with your quest for wine knowledge and engagement! Send us or post comments/questions via: Contact Us, Facebook or Twitter.

Four years after starting her small, local wine school, Jessica Bell, is more excited than ever about the prospects of wine education with the evolution of her business to My Wine School.

In 2000, Jessica graduated from Duke University with a degree in Economics and Spanish and went on to work for Goldman Sachs in New York City. After 3 years in New York, she decided to give the other half of her degree some use, and moved to Spain. She found work at a winery and found her true calling. Upon returning stateside, Jessica began her formal wine studies with several New York-based wine and spirit education programs. She now holds the Diploma in Wine & Spirits from the Wine & Spirit Education Trust and a Viticulture and Vinification Certificate from the American Sommelier Association. She is an accredited Spanish Wine Educator and French Wine Educator. Jessica has been invited to many French regions, funded by each respective region, to learn first-hand about the region and be certified by their respective wine boards.

Jessica also has experience as a Sommelier at The Modern Restaurant in New York City and with a boutique importer for whom she sourced Spanish wines. In recent years, she has travelled to several wine-making regions from Champagne to Sherry, Maipo to Mendoza, Santa Barbara to Sonoma and most everything in between. Jessica is a co-host on the emmy-nominated television program Wisconsin Foodie, a host on Time Warner On Demand Wine Tips, and a regular contributor to the podcast "Life Between the Vines".

Karen began her culinary career in Chicago, after completing her studies at the Milwaukee Area Technical College. She also received a culinary grant to study at Le Cordon Bleu in Paris. While studying in Paris, she spent time in the Michelin two starred kitchen of Le Hotel Bristol.

Head line cook at Vong Restaurant, and pastry cook at Charlie Trotter's in Chicago, she then spent three years at San Francisco's prestigious seafood restaurant Farallon, where she was promoted to Sous Chef and Chef in charge of private dining within her tenure.

In 2003, Karen headed to Madrid, drawn by a fascination with Mediterranean cuisine and the unique Spanish gastronomic culture. For two years she was the Chef at Toma, a fine dining bistro, in addition to working as a restaurant and menu consultant and in private catering.

In January of 2006, Karen finally opened Memento, her own restaurant specializing in Californian Cuisine and featuring a changing menu of creative seasonal dishes incorporating organic ingredients and the best of both the Spanish and International gastronomic culture.

With more than 6 years experience in Spain's capital city, Karen has returned to the midwest to share her in-depth knowledge and love of Spanish food and wine.

Karen is presently the consulting chef/manager of the Plaza Café, where she has revamped the menu, highlighting seasonal and local ingredients to produce creative and delicious twists on classic café dishes.

A native Wisconsinite, Emily graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 2002 and enjoyed a brief stint on the west coast before moving back to her hometown of Milwaukee in 2005 to attend a nursing program at Marquette University. Ironically, it wasn't until Emily left California that she caught the wine bug and began to elevate her wine knowledge and develop her palate. After completing Jessica's Intermediate & Advanced WSET classes "just for fun", her pastime soon became her passion and Emily found herself immersed in the world of wine. Emily has since worked for several reputable wine importers, distributors, and retailers and continues to expand her wine knowledge through trips to various wine regions in the U.S. and abroad. Additionally, Emily recently completed the French Wine Society's French Wine Scholar program and plans to conquer the WSET Diploma program next.

 

After several years of living in her beloved hometown of Milwaukee, Emily finally succumbed to the attraction of a life sans snowy winters and now works in wine sales & marketing in San Francisco. If it were possible, Emily would marry Grenache and move to the south of France, but for now she very much enjoys residing in the Bay Area and explaining Midwest-isms to native Californians.

Tobin Wardell is a wine professional with over 10 years of fine wine experience. She holds an Advanced Certification from the Wine and Spirits Education Trust (WSET) and a French Wine Scholar certification from the French Wine Society.

 

Formerly the Assistant Sommelier at Chicago's acclaimed NoMI Restaurant and the Wine Director at Pittsburgh hot spot, Spoon, Tobin has extensive food and beverage experience gained throughout her career. She is experienced in fine and rare wine acquisition and sales and works with private cellar clients to develop and manage their collections. Tobin loves creating wine tastings and seminars for private clients, corporations and not-for-profit organizations and tries to bring common sense and fun to the often complex subject of wine.

In addition to her wine education, Tobin graduated magna cum laude with a BS in Psychology from the University of Arizona and holds a JD from Loyola University Chicago, School of Law.

Brian taught music in the Wisconsin Public School system for thirty two years. In 2007, he retired from Cedarburg High School after a twenty six year tenure as director of bands. Iconic musicians having worked with Brian and his students have included Maynard Ferguson, Jon Faddis, Warren Wiegratz and Chris Botti.

Travel and varied social exposure was a big part of the CHS music experience under Brian's guidance. From state marching band competitions and college jazz festivals to music venues across the Atlantic, Brian and students performed and learned across the US from California to the Bahamas. European tours included London, Paris, Edinburgh and Maastricht.

Brian has a Bachelor's of Music degree from the University of Wisconsin - Madison and a Master's of Music in trumpet performance from the University of Wisconsin – Milwaukee. Throughout his teaching duties, Brian continued to perform on trumpet within numerous local ensembles. He also was an active clinician and judge throughout the state, as well as Paris and London.

Wine became a topic of interest for Brian just before the millennium. Wine education became a passion while attending Jessica's first WSET class. Having since become certified at the WSET Advanced level and acquiring French Wine Society Scholar status, Brian worked part time at VINO 100 in Grafton for over 2 years. He became wine club manager and fulfilled duties running group wine tastings.

Brian is married to Loey and has 2 sons, Michael and Tim. The newest family member is the magnificently handsome and spirited Winston.