Christine Tran, a certified sommelier, brings a wealth of experience and insight from the wine industry. Before starting The Artisan Depot and Castro Point Restaurant in Mountain View, her professional experience includes management, corporate wine buying and strategic development of beverage programs for both retail and restaurant establishments such as the Straits Restaurant Group. In addition, Christine consults for import companies and boutique wineries and has been instrumental in helping wineries introduce new wines into the marketplace and create brand awareness, distribution and international sales. She has been the resident wine and food pairing expert for the Asian TV cooking show Khai's Kitchen. Christine conducts wine and food classes and seminars for both professionals and consumers. She studied under the much-honored Master Sommelier Larry Stone and is currently preparing for the prestigious Master Sommelier exam. Today there are 150 sommeliers who hold the title of Master Sommelier, of whom only fourteen are women.