French born Master sommelier Claire Thevenot has been working in the wine trade for over 20 years.

Gaining her qualification from the notorious Sommelier school of Tain l’hermitage in 2000, she started her career in France working for the famous Chef Bernard Loiseau and Michel Gerard both 3* Michelin before exploring Germany and Switzerland.

She moved to the UK to work under Gerard Basset at the Hotel du Vin Group in 2002.

She became the first french female to pass the notorious Master Sommelier diploma in 2006 the same year she won the UK sommelier of the year.

Wanting to learn more about all aspects of the wine business she moved in 2008 to a commercial role. In 2022 she set up her own company Vins-Clairs focused on importing and distributing artisanal French producers in the UK.