Other
Jill Zimorski
Master Sommelier
- Discipline
- Other
i. Biography
Master Sommelier, 2018, Jill Zimorski built her reputation through the disciplines that define serious wine work: service, floor management, cellar leadership, and category specialization. University of Virginia, 1999, is the starting point on the record, and from there the career moves in a clear line through Charlottesville, Washington, D.C., Frederick, Chicago, and ThinkFoodGroup. The throughline is not spectacle but command—of timing, guest reading, list structure, and the operational demands that sit behind beverage leadership.
The Path
University of Virginia gave Jill Zimorski the academic start; the dining room gave her the operating vocabulary. Early work in Charlottesville, Virginia, placed her inside hospitality’s basic mechanics, where composure and pace matter as much as taste. At a boutique hotel with a fancy restaurant, the management position demanded oversight. At a small French restaurant in Charlottesville, VA, service sharpened the table-side instincts that wine leadership depends on: attention, timing, and the ability to work a room without interrupting it. As the work moved into Washington, D.C, the scope widened and the roles became more explicit about leadership. General manager at Palette at the Madison Hotel in Washington, D.C, then restaurant manager at Charlie Palmer Steak in Capitol Hill, Washington, D.C, put Zimorski in the operational center of the business. Those positions call for coordination across service, guest experience, and staff flow. The next step, sommelier and beverage director at Café Atlantico and minibar by José Andrés in Washington, D.C, and later beverage director at ThinkFoodGroup in Washington, D.C, shifted the emphasis fully onto beverage as a primary language of the room rather than a supporting detail. From 2010, wine director at VOLT Restaurant in Frederick, Maryland, marked a deeper specialization in list oversight and cellar stewardship. Wine director at Alinea in Chicago, IL, extended that authority into a new market and a different dining context. By 2016, champagne specialist at Moët Hennessy portfolio signaled narrower category focus within one of wine’s most technically specific and service-driven segments. Today, Jill is host of SOMM TV's Reading & Drinking Podcast and host of SOMM TV's Study Hall, carrying that expertise into media and education.
The Work Today
Her profile reads as senior wine and beverage leadership across restaurant and hospitality groups. In each setting, Zimorski’s work sits at the point where a list becomes a tool, not an object, and where leadership means translating wine for guests while keeping the service team aligned.
Acclaim
Jill's honors include Master Sommelier and WSET Level 4 Diploma in Wines & Spirits (2019). Those credentials point to the study behind the work: formal evaluation, technical depth, and the consistency required to hold a high-level wine career over time. In Zimorski’s case, recognition tracks with the same geographic and professional movement that defines the rest of the record—Charlottesville to Washington, D.C., Frederick to Chicago, and then into wine education and media.
Profile updated July 2026
FAQ
Asked of Jill
What is Jill Zimorski's current role?
As of 2026, Jill Zimorski is Host of SOMM TV's Reading & Drinking Podcast.
Where did Jill Zimorski train or study?
Jill Zimorski trained at University of Virginia.
What recognition has Jill Zimorski received?
Master Sommelier (2018).
