Jay Whiteley is a sommelier, wine writer, educator, and assistant winemaker based in Prince Edward County. His career in wine began almost accidentally while working at the Fairmont Chateau Whistler, where taking a wine course to move from breakfast service into dinner service — and spend more time skiing — quickly became a lifelong obsession.

That curiosity led him from British Columbia to Europe and South America, travelling through wine regions, visiting producers, and developing a global perspective on wine shaped as much by culture, geography, and history as by what is in the glass.

Jay later worked in the UK with the Gordon Ramsay Group at Savoy Grill and Pétrus before returning to Canada to work as a wine buyer in Whistler. During the region’s quieter seasons, he worked multiple harvests at Orofino Winery in the Similkameen Valley, eventually joining the winery full-time as a cellar hand and assistant winemaker.

He later joined the opening team at Hawksworth Restaurant, helping build one of Canada’s most acclaimed wine programs before moving to Toronto, where he contributed to several major restaurant openings including Colette Grand Café, Peter Pan Bistro, and BlueBlood Steakhouse at Casa Loma.

Today, Jay continues to work between wine production, hospitality, education, and writing in Prince Edward County, with harvest experience at Trail Estate Winery, The Grange of Prince Edward County and Rose Hall Run.

He holds diplomas through the Wine & Spirit Education Trust and the International Sommelier Guild, and specializes in Italian wine through certification with Ian D'Agata’s 3iC program. His writing has appeared in Eat Magazine, Good Food Revolution, and The Wellington Times.