Somm-antic Drift
Cha McCoy, MBA, CS, LEED AP is a Sommelier, Public Speaker, and Beverage Programmer. She is the founder of Cha Squared Hospitality & Consulting LLC, a wine experience company with a focus on events, tourism, and education. Cha is the tastemaker of today’s generation, leading as Charleston Wine + Food Festival Beverage Director, Cherry Bombe Magazine’s first Beverage Director & Editor for their new vertical Cherry Bombe Drinks, and the Brand Ambassador for New York Wine & Grape Foundation are just examples where she has championed change for the beverage community.
Cha is a Certified Sommelier with the Court of The Master Sommeliers and WSET Level 3 Candidate and holds an Executive Certificate in Wine Management with Universidade Católica Portuguesa in Lisbon. Her studies also include an M.B.A. with St. John’s University in Rome, Italy, and a B.S. in Engineering from Syracuse University. Cha has been recognized by the Wine Enthusiast as Top 40 Under 40 Tastemakers, and Wine & Spirits Magazine’s Rising Black Voices in Wine. Her clients include the prestigious, James Beard Foundation and most recently guest appearances on NBC’s Today Show and Comedy Central.
Her work has been celebrated for making wine more accessible, dismantling what she calls palate discrimination in food & beverage, through her initiatives including but not limited to her signature wine dinner series ‘The Communion’ which she has hosted in 5 countries over 3 years. Cha is very active these days providing virtual sommelier services and curating experiences for her wine subscription and tourism club, Flight Cru, and providing language learning resources to BIPOC hospitality workers as means for upward career mobility through her Lip Service initiative.
Now with roots planted in Portugal and Italy, this native New Yorker is currently conspiring with chefs, winemakers, distillers, and hoteliers on ways to disrupt the hospitality industry on both continents by making the food, beverage, and tourism industry more accessible, accountable, and relevant.