Michael Raebel, head sommelier of London’s Holborn Dining Room, on his journey to wine via theatre directing, taking out a member of the Chaplin family with a tray of Champagne, what to pair with steak and kidney pudding, and serving Hilary Clinton.

Head sommelier of Soho’s Swiss-inspired Heritage Restaurant and Bar, Elena Serban, recalls trying a bottle of 1982 Cheval Blanc, how she almost ended up as a human rights lawyer and why a tray of Bellinis still gives her shivers.

Ex-opera singer, sommelier and owner of The Laughing Heart, Charlie Mellor, recounts an out-of-body experience with a Grand Cru Riesling, his heart-warming food and wine pairing and an embarrassing encounter with 25 Riedel glasses.

Charlie Blightman, head sommelier at Noble Rot wine bar and restaurant in Bloomsbury, tells WLC about meeting Beastie Boy Mike D, why he’s proud to be a sommelier in London and a dramatic incident with a bowl of soup.

Seamus Williams-Sharkey, head sommelier at The Ledbury, reveals how it was a trip to the Mosel that sparked his passion for wine, why he enjoys being a sommelier in London and his love of pairing fine wine with junk food.

Head sommelier at Michelin-starred Japanese restaurant Umu, Ryosuke Mashio, tells WLC about his love of Champagne, why he’s proud to be a sommelier in London, and what he has learnt from judging saké at the International Wine Challenge.

Antonio Di Schiena, head sommelier at private members club Oswald’s in Mayfair, discovered his love for wine during a stint spent working at a Michelin-starred restaurant in Tuscany while still at school. Since then, he has worked in London, Monaco and Ibiza before joining Oswald’s in 2017.

Restaurateur and co-owner of restaurant group Gilbey’s, Michael Gilbey, reveals his love of French wine, why he believes in importing directly and how the restaurant trade has changed since Gilbey’s first opened in 1975.

The inimitable chief winemaker of d’Arenberg in the McLaren Vale Chester Osborn reveals his fondness for the food and drink offering at the Mandarin Oriental and explains how London has the most diverse wine scene.

Following the publication of our guide to the best restaurants in London for wine, we felt it high time we shone a brighter light on those responsible for those lists. Here, we offer a run down of WLC’s Top 10 Most Powerful Sommeliers in London.

Andreas Rosendal, director of wine at Flemings in Mayfair, on unlocking his love of wine with a bottle of Trimbach, tasting a 1984 La Tâche from Domaine de la Romanée-Conti and his first ‘celebrity somm crush’.

Matteo Montone, director of wine at Berners Tavern, shares his dispassion for Sauvignon Blanc, recalls what it was like to serve Rod Stewart, and how working in London’s wine trade is like playing in the premier league.