I’m from Liverpool originally, but I’ve been living in France for 30 years. As a creative strategist and copywriter, I’ve worked for several wine & spirits brands, but my personal wine journey really began in Southwest France.

In 2018, my partner and I moved to Espinas, a little village near Saint-Antonin-Noble-Val, between Toulouse, Montauban and Albi. It didn’t take me long to fall in love with the local wines —organic, biodynamic and natural wines from the Tarn, the Tarn and Garonne, Cahors, the Aveyron and Fronton. Artisan wines made from native grape varieties by a new generation of committed growers.‍ ‍

During covid, I visited the vineyards, went to wine fairs, read voraciously and passed a few wine exams*. I explored the Southwest from Bergerac to the Basque Country, the Massif Central to the Pyrenees, and discovered a wonderful world of wines that seemed to be unfathomably off the radar.

So in 2023, I opened a wine shop in the stables beneath our home and began to host tastings - and in 2026, I became an export agent for a selection of growers, supplying importers and trade buyers in the UK and Europe.

If you’re in the trade, don’t hesitate to request my portfolio!

* Joanne hold the WSET 3 in Wines and Franck Thomas Certificate in Intuitive & Geo-sensorial tasting.