Slate Wine & Spirits Academy

About Jean K Reilly, Master of Wine

Jean started her career in wine as the sommelier for a small French restaurant in Manhattan in 2001. She moved on to work as a wine journalist, eventually visiting over 1000 wineries in 60 wine regions and working the harvest in 3 different countries. Jean has shared her passion for wine on television and radio with readers of magazines such as Fortune, Wine Enthusiast, and American Airlines Latitudes.

She has also run the purchasing departments for such prestigious retailers as Morrell & Company in New York and JJ Buckley in California. In 2010, Jean became just the 5th American woman to become a Master of Wine after seven years of study. Currently, Jean divides her time between educating wine professionals and consumers through Slate Wine & Spirits Academy and hosting wine, beer, and spirit events for business groups through her company, Masterful Wine Events.

About Lee A Pancake

Lee was originally a student at this school, earning his Level Three certification. He soon began teaching at Slate Wine & Spirits Academy in 2017, working as the lead instructor. He purchased the school in January 2020. He is also the general manager of Tim’s Wine Market.

The mailing address for Slate is next to Tim’s Wine Market, but classes are held at another location about two miles down the road.

Wine Programs Offered

Slate Wine & Spirits Academy offers WSET wine, spirits, and sake courses. Their offerings are in-person and up to level three. They are one of the better WSET franchises and are not affiliated with one of the growing monopolies in the WSET world.

However, like most Wine & Spirits Education Trust schools, they do not offer state or regionally accredited programming. In Florida, the Commission for Independent Education (within the State Department of Education) has approval and licensing authority for independent institutions. However, this school is not listed in the commission’s database.

For these reasons, this school does not claim that its Wine & Spirits Education Trust classes offer degrees, professional certifications, or industry credentials.