Laura and Gusbourne

Laura’s career in wine started as a Sommelier over twenty years ago. The early years were spent alongside the industry’s finest, including World Sommelier Champion Gérard Basset MS, MW, where she earned her wine stripes at prestigious competitions and in Michelin starred dining rooms. 

In 2009 Laura won the highly respected “UK Sommelier of the Year" title and in 2010 achieved Master Sommelier status from the Court of Master Sommeliers - one of just 267 in the world. Of those, 34 are women, with only 6 based in Europe

Inspired by the passion of the English winemakers she met as a sommelier and excited by the quality of the wines she tasted, Laura continued her career at the pinnacle of the rapidly evolving English wine industry, joining Gusbourne in 2015, as Global Ambassador, where her role encompassed ambassadorial and development duties both in UK and internationally, whilst also working closely with the winemaking and vineyard teams.

Gusbourne planted their first vines in 2004 with a single-minded vision: to craft the world’s finest sparkling wines. This means being detail-focused and quality obsessed, pushing the boundaries of what’s possible in English wine, whilst crafting vintage-only bottlings from estate-grown, hand-harvested grapes

After more than ten years at Gusbourne, in her current role as Head of Wine communication, Laura continues to work closely with the winemaking team in Appledore taking a key role in base wine grading, blending and trials. In addition to continuing her responsibilities as Global Ambassador, she also leads on communication and education of Gusbourne’s wines, both internally and externally, as well as active involvement in sales and marketing strategy and new product development.

Aside from her role at Gusbourne, Laura judges for Sommelier competitions as well as national and international wine competitions and is an active member of the Court of Master Sommeliers Europe.