Tim O’Hare, CWE, and Certified Sommelier has a favorite quote from Ernest Hemingway that just about sums up his relationship with wine and grapes. “Wine is one of the most civilized things in the world and one of the most natural things of the world that has been brought to the greatest perfection, and it offers a greater range for enjoyment and appreciation than, possibly, any other purely sensory thing.” Ernest Hemingway, Death in the Afternoon. Tim O’Hare was born in Washington, D.C. and now resides in Towson, Maryland. He is married with two children and enjoys spending his off-hours cooking, reading, and gardening, and is passionate about baseball.
A graduate of the Baltimore International Culinary College and was a former Salesman of the Year with Breakthru Beverage Group, where he was employed for over 29 years. Has completed and passed the Certified Specialist of Wine exam, Certified Specialist of Spirits exam, and the Certified Wine Educators exam through the internationally recognized Society of Wine Educators. In October 2009 Tim became a Bordeaux Wine Trade Educator through the prestigious Bordeaux L’Ecole Du Vin.
In 2013 Tim completed the 3rd level of the Advance Program of the Wine & Spirits Education Trust with Merit. Also, Tim has previously been a judge in Virginia’s Governors Cup Tasting which is associated with Jay Youmans, MW, and the Capital Wine School. Recently Tim attained the first and second levels of the Court of the Master Sommelier to become a Certified Sommelier and achieved his certification with the Cicerone Level 1 Beer Servers Program in 2018. This past year Tim passed the WSET L3 Spirits program. Currently, he is studying for the Diploma Level for the WSET and will complete this program in 2024. In May of 2022, Tim passed the TiPS program as an instructor and he can now facilitate and certify food and beverage industry associates in the safe practice of serving alcohol.
Tim was the Director of Learning, Leadership & Sales Solutions for the Breakthru Beverage. In this role, he directed, designed, and implemented the development of multi-level, multimedia, wine, spirit, and beer educational programs that are utilized in the 17 markets where the Breakthru Beverage Group distributes alcohol beverages. In addition to these duties, Tim guided the sales education department for the Mid-Atlantic region. The Breakthru Beverage Group is the third-largest wine and spirit wholesaler in the United States and Canada with over 7,000 employees.
At present Tim is the owner and operator of the Charm City Wine School, which is the only Approved Program Provider for the Wine and Spirits Education Trust in the State of Maryland. His school also offers classes in the Society of Wine programs along with TiPS and fun interactive noncertification classes.