Gretchen Allen

Course: The Old /World: Southern and Eastern Europe.

In her 36-year career in hospitality, Gretchen Allen has earned recognition as an award-winning sommelier, along with amassing decades of director level experience in wine and beverage.

Currently a key account sales specialist with a mid-size alcohol beverage distributor in Las Vegas, NV, Gretchen leads a team that is responsible for sales and service to all MGM properties (currently thirteen casinos and resorts) on the iconic Las Vegas Strip.

Tapped in 2018 to build one of the largest private wine cellars in the country for White Lodging (The Farm at Brush Creek Ranch), she sourced one of the largest collections of Bordeaux in the U.S. in only six months, valued at nearly $12 million. She also built a team of IoT specialists, who created a state-of-the-art RFID inventory system to maintain the integrity of the collection in the harsh and unforgiving climate of Wyoming.

Having managed three distinct Wine Spectator ‘Grand Award’ lists (Auberge du Soleil, Aureole, and Valentino), building one from scratch was the pinnacle of her wine director career. Gretchen is a certified sommelier, Vice Echanson with the Las Vegas Chapter of Chaine des Rotisseurs, a member of the Societe Mondiale du Vin and holds her WSET 3 certificate in wines, of which she passed with Merit.