Tom Stevenson has been writing about wine for more than 30 years and is regarded as the world's leading authority on Champagne. He has written 23 books, the most important of which have been published internationally by more than 50 publishers and translated into over 25 languages. In 1986, his book Champagne (Wilson, Philip Publishers, Limited) became the first wine book to win four literary awards, establishing Stevenson's reputation as a serious author, a fastidious researcher with a talent for divining future issues, and a critic bold enough to take on the establishment. He is also the author of Sotheby's Wine Encyclopedia (DK Publishing, Inc.), with sales of more than 1.5 million in all editions worldwide. Essi Avellan MW is one of the world's most exciting and talented young wine writers. She is the first Master of Wine from Finland and the second ever from the Nordic countries, and received the Tim Derouet Memorial Award and the Lily Bollinger Medal for excellence in the Master of Wine examination.

She is the author of A Journey To Champagne (Tammi Class) and a cofounder and managing editor of FINE Champagne Magazine . Learn more about her at essiavellan.com (website is in both Finnish and English).