Having worked in hospitality for over three decades, Mark has a huge amount of experience in all things to do with food - and, especially, drink. He has a hospitality degree from Toronto, did his chef training at the Culinary Institute of America in Napa and completed his sommelier training in Calgary. He founded his drinks business, Crush Imports, in 2003, and Crush Imports - specialising in alcohol-free - in 2021.

As a trained sommelier, it's perhaps no surprise that his favourite AF category is wine, and he's spent a lot of time seeking out the best dealcoholised versions from all over the world as a result. But he's also looking forward to trying flights of RTDs and spirits at the World Alcohol-Free Awards. 

Since he admits to being accident prone in all kinds of unusual ways, his other ambition is to get through the tasting days unscathed. The team have been warned to keep a close watch on tasting glasses, bottles and the spittoons!