Mark comes from a military family, spending nine of his first twelve years in Italy and Germany before graduating high school in Hiroshima, Japan. Exposure to many languages, cultures, and cuisines at an early age prepared Mark’s mind and palate for some of the world’s great wine and food traditions. After college in Texas, he and wife Hillary moved to Washington, DC, where the international community ignited this inherent passion for wine and food. This inspired Mark and Hillary to travel and enjoy many of the great wine regions of the world, including Burgundy, Tuscany, Mendoza, Rioja, Victoria Australia, and of course California!

Now retired from an IT consulting career, opportunity brought him to Napa where he not only works at Biale, but also studies wine and wine culture through the Napa Valley Wine Academy, having achieved WSET Level II accreditation. A huge supporter of small, family-owned wineries making vineyard driven wines, he is a long-time admirer (and Club Member) of Robert Biale Vineyard’s Old Vine Zinfandels.