Elise Cordell, Senior Brand Ambassador
Hailing from Northeast Ohio, Elise called several places ‘home’ before settling in Dallas, Texas. The one constant through the various changes has always been WINE. Through family gatherings at the several local vineyards in Ashtabula County and a diverse cellar courtesy of her father, she developed an understanding and appreciation for the craft. The epiphany of a career did not come until much later, when she took the famed ‘Introduction to Wines’ course at Cornell University. Enjoying the experience so much, she became a TA the following semester.
After working abroad post-graduation, she returned home to find that economic climate was less than hospitable and looked to her parents for advice. Her father introduced her to the Executive Director of the Ohio Wine Producer’s Association, where she was exposed to more than 100 wineries around the state, and developed a ‘Wine Trail’ podcast, broadening her skills as a wine educator. Now with fifteen years of experience in the wine industry spanning from non-profits and retail to managing iconic restaurant lists and working for a boutique portfolio of producers, she is living her true passion of sharing the stories of the wine world and enriching the palates of her guests.
After joining Pernod-Ricard USA in 2016 she was able to focus on the illustrious region of Champagne and the historical houses of Perrier-Jouët and G.H. Mumm, and recently added the iconic Provence rose house, Chateau Sainte Marguerite to the portfolio.
Chef Travis Watson
As a former University of Arizona football player, "chef" seems like an unlikely career choice for a guy who also loves competition shooting and Brazilian jiujitsu. But then he was inspired at 14 by his first football coach who was also an Executive Chef at a restaurant where Watson was employed as a dishwasher. Cooking seemed much cooler and definitely more fun, and once he was promoted to prep cook a few months later, the die was cast.
After high school, Watson attended Scottsdale Culinary Institute. Upon graduation, he did an impressive externship under Chef Jacques Paccard in Paris. Upon his return to the States, enrolled in the University of Arizona in Tucson. Bit by the travel bug, he spent summers and the years after graduation traveling, working and learning in cities like Seattle, Los Angeles and Denver and countries such as Japan, France, Italy and Mozambique. He was fortunate enough to work at some of the finest hotels and restaurants across the world.
In 1999, Watson settled back in Arizona, working for Fox Restaurant Concepts as Corporate Pastry Chef where he was responsible for opening 27 restaurants across the country over the next eight years. He left Fox to take over the helm as Executive Chef of Avalon, where he and his team were named "Best New Restaurant" and "Best New Chef." From there Chef Travis worked at the Royal Palms Resort and Spa, the Ojai Valley Inn and Spa, the Stanley Hotel, Rancho Bernardo Inn and now Chef Travis leads the team at the acclaimed Hotel Californian in the American Riviera, Santa Barbara.
