Our Team

Almost everyone has that moment they can go back to and say, "This is when I knew I wanted to work in the wine business." John Kimball's moment wasn't at a restaurant any of us would know; instead it was sharing a great meal in Iraq and realizing that life is too short to waste without fresh food and soul satisfying wine. As soon as he got home, he picked up a store manager role in Florida and started his ascent through the ranks of the wine industry.

John came to Northwest Core Collection most recently from Leal Vineyards where he worked as the national sales manager for their wine and tequila lines, giving him great supplier experience (and some fantastic margarita recipes to share at the summer sales meeting, we hope.) Prior to Leal he worked with Augustan Wine Imports first as a territory manager for the panhandle, and then as a sales manager for the central and northern regions of the state. With Northwest Core Collection John will continue to cover his old stomping grounds as well as find some new roads to roam as our Florida and Georgia Sales Manager. We're looking forward to drawing on his experiences from all levels of distribution and history in brand development, as well as his distinction as our first staff Sommelier.

When he's not out peddling wine he is home enjoying it. A locavore and chef at heart, John is always ready to roll up his sleeves and get down in the kitchen - especially if it means fermenting his own sauerkraut, pickles, beer or making cheese or bread from scratch. John usually has a lot of help in the kitchen, his sous chef (new daughter Lily) is an expert on all things milk, two more little girls (Grace and Marianne) take care of dessert, and his restaurant manager (partner Amy)(ok she takes care of everything else too) keeps the whole lot on track.