Madeline Triffon is an American

wine Wine is an alcoholic drink typically made from fermented grapes. Yeast consumes the sugar in the grapes and converts it to ethanol and carbon dioxide, releasing heat in the process. Different varieties of grapes and strains of yeasts are m ...

specialist and

sommelier A sommelier ( or or ; ), or wine steward, is a trained and knowledgeable wine professional, normally working in fine restaurants, who specializes in all aspects of wine service as well as wine and food pairing. The role of the wine steward in fin ...

. Upon her completion of the Master Sommelier test in 1985, she was the ninth American, the first American woman, and overall only the second woman in the world to pass. She has been nicknamed "Detroit's First Lady of Wine." In 2012, she was named IntoWine.com's 90th most influential person in the United States wine industry.

Personal life and education

Madeline Triffon was born in

New Haven, Connecticut New Haven is a city in the U.S. state of Connecticut. It is located on New Haven Harbor on the northern shore of Long Island Sound in New Haven County, Connecticut and is part of the New York City metropolitan area. With a population of 134 ...

. When she was three years old, her family relocated to

Greece Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders ...

. Triffon worked in the food industry to work her way through college. She sought to attend medical school. She graduated, in 1977, from the

University of Michigan , mottoeng = "Arts, Knowledge, Truth" , former_names = Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania (1817–1821) , budget = $10.3 billion (2021) , endowment = $17 billion (2021)As o ...

. She lives in

Southgate, Michigan Southgate is a city in Wayne County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 30,047 at the 2020 census. Southgate was incorporated as a city in October 1958, which was one of the last remaining portions of the now-defunct Ecorse Tow ...

Career

After graduation, Triffon worked for

Westin Hotels & Resorts Westin Hotels & Resorts is an American upscale hotel chain owned by Marriott International. , the Westin Brand has 226 properties with 82,608 rooms in multiple countries in addition to 58 hotels with 15,741 rooms in the pipeline. History Wester ...

. Upon the opening of La Fontaine, a new French restaurant at the

Renaissance Center The Renaissance Center (also known as the GM Renaissance Center and nicknamed the RenCen) is a group of seven connected skyscrapers in Downtown Detroit, Michigan, United States. The Renaissance Center complex is on the Detroit International Riv ...

Detroit, Michigan Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at ...

, Triffon was named sommelier. She would become wine buyer for Westin. In 1985, leadership at Westin sent her to participate in the National Sommelier Competition. She became the sommelier at London Chop House in Detroit in 1985. She took the Master Sommeliers test in 1987 and passed the test the first time she took it. At that time, she was one of nine Americans, the first American woman, and the second woman in the world to pass. The wine list she developed for the London Chop House was awarded the ''

Wine Spectator ''Wine Spectator'' is an American lifestyle magazine that focuses on wine and wine culture, and gives out ratings to certain types of wine. It publishes 15 issues per year with content that includes news, articles, profiles, and general entertain ...

'' Grand Award. In 1988, she became the wine director of chef Jimmy Schmidt's restaurants. In 1995, Triffon became the Director of Wine and Beverages for Unique Restaurant Corporation (URC). As Director, she maintained the

and cocktail lists for the company's restaurants. She also planned special events revolving around wine. Three of the URC restaurants wine lists were given Awards of Excellence from ''Wine Spectator'' in 1999. She became the wine director for Trowbridge Restaurant Group and left the company in the summer of 2011. In September 2011, Triffon became master sommelier of the Plum Market chain. She serves on the board for the United States chapter of the

Court of Master Sommeliers The Court of Master Sommeliers (CMS) is an educational organisation established in 1977 to encourage improved standards of Alcoholic beverage, beverage service by sommeliers, particularly in wine and food pairing. From the court's inception throu ...

Awards

*1999, Wine and Spirits Professional of the Year, ''iSanté'' *2012, Top 100 Most Influential People in the U.S. Wine Industry, IntoWine.com

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Triffon, Madeline Sommeliers People from New Haven, Connecticut People from Southgate, Michigan University of Michigan alumni Living people Year of birth missing (living people)