Our Story

For more than 30 years Michael Palij MW has helped artisan Italian winemakers find international markets.  Producers like Inama, La Monacesca, Ghiraldi and grapes including Timorasso, Bellone and Cesanese were all introduced to the UK - and in some cases the wider world - by Michael via Winetraders, his company based in Oxford. A Canadian, Michael emigrated to the UK in 1989 after reading English and Philosophy in his home city of Toronto.  He qualified as a Master of Wine in 1995 at the age of just 29.  After a brief stint with the legendary retailer, Oddbins, he was recruited as a buyer and Michael visited Italy for the first time in 1992.  He promptly fell in love with both the country and its wines.  With distribution in four continents and more than a dozen countries, Michael is now regarded as one of the foremost authorities on Italian wine.  He is published internationally through Dorling Kindersley and tastes for The World of Fine Wine.  Michael lives in Oxford.