Victoria James

Victoria James is a speaker who focuses on wine tastings and tying the art of hospitality, sales and beverage to large audiences. From being a keynote speaker for Forbes to leading a blind tasting of wines for The Wall Street Journal to empowering women through inspiring seminars in the fields of legal and technology, James is a versatile, inspiring and funny speaker.

James is the executive director of beverage and a founding partner at Gracious Hospitality Management, the restaurant group behind Michelin-starred COTE Korean Steakhouse in New York City, Miami, Singapore and Las Vegas, as well as the cocktail bar UNDERCOTE and the Michelin-rated fried chicken spot COQODAQ, where she built the largest Champagne list in America. Her beverage programs received a James Beard nomination for Outstanding Wine Program two years in a row, and James received the Michelin Sommelier of the Year Award in 2022.

James has worked in restaurants since she was 13, fell in love with wine while bartending in college, and when she was 21, became certified as a sommelier, the youngest in the country.

James's name has appeared on many notable lists, including Forbes 30 Under 30, Food & Wine's Sommelier of the Year, Zagat 30 Under 30, Wine Enthusiast 40 Under 40, Wine & Spirits' Best New Sommeliers and Esquire's Beverage Director of the Year.

She is the author of, "Drink Pink, A Celebration of Rosé," and the national bestseller about her coming of age in the wine world, "Wine Girl: The Trials and Triumphs of America's Youngest Sommelier," which was a Fortnum & Mason Drink Book Winner and recipient of the Roederer Chairman's Award. She is also a contributing writer to Esquire, Forbes and Bon Appétit.

In 2018 James co-founded WINE EMPOWERED, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that diversifies the hospitality industry by offering tuition-free wine classes to women and BIPOC in hospitality.