
James Molesworth
About
James Molesworth joined Wine Spectator in 1997 as tasting coordinator and was promoted to senior editor in 2004. He is lead taster for California Cabernet and Pinot Noir, France’s Bordeaux and Rhône Valley regions, and Port.
A native New Yorker, Molesworth was raised by parents who loved wine and entertained often. He studied anthropology and Afro-American studies at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst and, after graduating, landed his first job with a Manhattan specialty wine retailer, Burgundy Wine Company. He later became cellarmaster, and then sommelier, at the '21' Club.
Based in Wine Spectator’s New York office, Molesworth travels regularly to Napa, Bordeaux and the Rhône to taste and visit wineries. When he’s not tasting or writing, he’s usually listening to his vinyl collection or hitting the gym.

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The Sonoma Coast Shines at Raen
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Fine-Tuning a Sonoma Standout at Arista
The McWilliams brothers, with winemaker Matt Courtney, have sharpened the focus at this …

Exclusive: Northern Rhône's E. Guigal Expands in the South, Buying Tavel's Château d'Aquéria
Philippe Guigal believes there is great potential for Tavel's deeply colored rosés

Eva Dehlinger Steers Her Family's Sonoma Estate into the Future
The Russian River Valley Pinot Noir star moves ahead without eschewing the winery's past

Promontory Is Ready to Soar
After more than a decade of change and experimenting, Bill Harlan’s third Napa Cabernet …

Alain Graillot, Who Led France's Crozes-Hermitage to Prominence, Dies at 77
In mid-life, he left a career in Paris to make wine in the Northern Rhône Valley

Etude 2.0
After winemaker Tony Soter sold Etude in 2001, the brand had to prove itself all over …

Moving the Bar at Hyde de Villaine
This high-profile joint venture between Napa's Larry Hyde and Burgundy’s Aubert de Villaine …