Cha McCoy |Traveling Sommelier

Wine Pairing for the People was never meant to sit comfortably within the wine industry, it was meant to question and expand it. Today, I’m honored to share that this charge is taking me and @laylaschlack to Chicago in June as Wine Pairing For The People has been nominated for a 2026 James Beard Award🏅 But to be clear, recognition is not the end goal, transformation is. This book asks us to reconsider: 👉🏿Who gets to define taste? 👉🏿Whose histories are acknowledged in wine conversations? 👉🏿And who still feels like they don’t belong at the table? If this moment means anything, it’s a reminder that the wine and hospitality industry has an opportunity, and a responsibility, to evolve. To move beyond exclusivity. To invest in cultural fluency. To make space for narratives that have always existed but have rarely been centered. I wanted to write a book for the people who have been told or felt like wine isn’t for them. ✊🏿 Thank you to everyone who purchased the book, shared it with others, hosted me in your city and came out to an event. You are proof the revolution of wine is now! Now that the book is out and I have spoken near and far to share this message the question is: Who is ready to build whats next for wine? 🍷 #JamesBeardNominated #WinePairingForThePeople #WineEducation #BeverageHeritage #HospitalityIndustry

I am honored to share that “Wine Pairing for the People” has been nominated for a 57th NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Literary Work - Instructional. This nomination by @NAACPImageAwards affirms that the power of storytelling, culture, and community at the intersection of wine, food, and history is needed now more than ever. 🙏🏿 Thank you to everyone who was part of this journey and supported the book. Please continue to spread the word, this book is not just about pairings, it is a wine revolution. 🥂 Let's celebrate by liking, sharing, and spreading the word about the book. I look forward to seeing you all at a future 2026 tour date. Continue to check for updated cities and events here on Instagram and on the website chamccoy.com (link in bio). #NAACPImageAwards #WinePairingForThePeople #Wine #BlackAuthors

A Harlem Legacy As a great-granddaughter of the Great Migration to New York City, I am thankful for the opportunity to represent Harlem on season 2 of the @Netflix documentary High on the Hog and very appreciative of the love 🖤 I have received. The image of Harlem today is often represented by the New Harlem, often known as a  second renaissance of sorts from the voice of the next wave of folks who have moved to Harlem in the last decade  I greatly appreciate being included to  honor my hood (and more specifically, my block 139th Street Lenox Avenue)  in a positive  light. As gentrification continues to plague Harlem, our legacy lives on through our storytelling and our hustle. Like many Harlemites, I was  priced out out of opening my first brick and mortar here. But I know, God willing,  I will one day have my own space at home. 🍾Like food, Champagne plays an important role in the Harlem Renaissance   I am proud to be a wine steward educating others on the untold the stories of wine related to our culture. It was a surreal moment to be invited to represent the larger Black wine community  at Madam CJ Walkers mansion sharing @StuyvesantChampagne   for  Madam Walker's  grand daughter @AleliaBundles ,  Dean Schomburg, grandson of #ArturoSchomburg, and my Harlem neighbor, restaurateur   the iconic  Alexander Smalls @asmalls777 .  🍉Shoutout to my kindergarden classmate Tyrell, owner of @BlackSeedBrothers , for returning back to our block to start his watermelon stand working and being our plug 🔌 to the  Black farmers in Georgia  reconnecting our Harlem story to our Southern roots.  🙏🏿I want to thank  Stephen Satterfield @isawstephn for this important body of work highlighting Black American culture and encouraging us to take ownership of our food and beverage stories.  #HighOnTheHog #Harlem #OldHarlem #HarlemRenaissance #TheMecca #NYC #HarlemStandUp #BlackSommelier #Netflix #ChaMcCoy #HarlemOnTheRise #Thankful #travel #BlackHistory #documentary

Due to popular demand and the overwhelming ❤️ of the Sacramento community Wine Pairing for the People book signing event at @undergroundbooks has been rescheduled from today to Thursday, May 14th. Join me for an evening of conversation and community as we gather around the stories and themes that continue to shape my wine journey. 📍 Underground Books Sacramento 🗓 Thursday, May 14th ⏰ 6:00 PM Use the ☝🏿link in bio to confirm your attendance. I am looking forward to seeing you there, SacTown! #WinePairingForThePeople #SacramentoEvents #BookSigning #BlackWomenInWine #WineCulture

I’m not letting go of the African Roots wine dinner with @cha_squared & @bintu.chs sponsored by @saveurmag during @chswineandfood . Pairing African food with African wines can be difficult but Cha made it easy. Especially when @chefbintou throws down in the kitchen. I’m glad I took notes and I look forward to another visit to Charleston soon. MUCH MUCH love to Cha on her @beardfoundation and @naacpimageawards nomination 🤲🏾

Looking forward to lecturing today at the Robert Mondavi Institute for Wine and Food Science at the University of California Davis. Tonight’s sold out public address will take a deeper academic dive into the concepts behind Wine Pairing for the People: The Communion of Wine, Food, and Culture from Africa and Beyond, exploring beverage heritage, cultural capital, pairing theory, and the construction of value within the global wine industry. Excited to engage with faculty, staff, students, and the wine community at one of the world’s leading 🍷 wine institutions. The live link will be shared this evening for those who would like to join virtually at 6PM PST. Thank you to my wine sponsors for the evening: 🍷Violet’s Paradise Wines Brenae Royal @_cabrenae 🍷@TheopolisVineyards Theodora Lee 🍷Ward Four Wines Justin Trabue @wardfourwines 🍷McBride Sisters Collection @mcbridesisters 🍷@MarthaStoumen 🍷J Vineyards & Winery @jwinery 🍷Maryam + Company @maryamandcompany #wine #wineeducation #WinePairingForThePeople #ucdavis #profcha

🍷 Upcoming Events 🍷⁠ We are thrilled to welcome James Beard Award finalist @cha_squared , for two events this May! Cha is a certified sommelier and founder of the wine dinner series The Communion. Her debut book Wine Pairing for the People: The Communion of Wine, Food, and Culture from Africa and Beyond brings her expertise to a wider audience, championing that wine is for everyone and exploring global food and wine pairings beyond the traditional European lens to include Africa, Asia, and the Americas. ⁠ ⁠ Join us at the shop on May 19th for an author talk, Q&A, book signing, and tasting!⁠ Cha will be in conversation with @urban_connoisseurs . ⁠ ⁠ On the Eastside or interested in venturing over to wine country? Join us @sparkmancellars on May 20th for an immersive, hands-on workshop guided by Cha and inspired by her book, where you’ll pair wines with food while exploring rich cultural connections, all set at a vibrant Woodinville winery with over 20 years of winemaking. Cha will guide the experience and sign and personalize your copy of the book!⁠ ⁠ 🔗 in our profile to get tickets for both events⁠ ⁠ #booklarderauthortalk #authortalk #seattleevents #winetasting #indiebookstore #cookbooks

We are absolutely thrilled to share that WINE PAIRING FOR THE PEOPLE by Cha McCoy has been shortlisted for a James Beard Foundation Book Award! 🍷✨ This first-of-its-kind guidebook makes the definitive case that wine is for everyone—and every cuisine deserves the perfect pairing. Congratulations, Cha! 🎉

WOW !🥂 It's been 6 months from today since Wine Pairing for the People entered the world, and I’ve been spreading the gospel far and wide ever since. May marks the final leg of this journey, and I’m heading West. From SacTown to the Yay Area, Healdsburg, and up to the Emerald City, I’m excited to be in conversation and in collaboration with industry peers across California and Washington wine country. Grateful for the partners supporting this chapter: @ucdavisrmi   @alaskaair , @blackvines_ @jwinery and @wa_state_wine And independent bookstores: @undergroundbooks @booklarder @napabookmine Left Coast, I’ll see you soon. 📍Tag your favorite winery on the West Coast in the comments and let them know I am coming.  P.S. If you want to see me in your city to conduct a workshop or have me as a speaker/lecturer, DM me for more information to work together. TAP IN 💻 #WinePairingForThePeople  #WineCulture #CaliforniaWine #WashingtonWine #BookTour

We’re better when we’re together! Thank you @cha_squared for giving us a reason to gather, chat, and share an evening together. 🥂 Book Bites: An Evening with Cha McCoy was presented by the Culinary Arts & Letters Literary Society, in partnership with @folkdetroit . Thank you all✨ 👩🏾‍🍳: @thekitchenista 🍷: @folkdetroit 📚: @sourcebooksellers 📸: @breannwhite #breakbreadshowlove

Who says Piedmont wines only belong with piedmontese or Italian food? 🍷🌎 At Grandi Langhe 2026, Sommelier Cha McCoy (author of Wine Pairing for the People) suggested Stevie some fun global pairings: 🇵🇸 Palestinian maqluba + Nebbiolo 🇺🇸 Lowcountry she-crab soup + Arneis 🇩🇴 🇮🇷 Dominican cake or Iranian faloodeh + Moscato Full video out now on our Youtube channel 🔗 LINK IN BIO

For our most recent Book Bites gathering we welcomed award winning sommelier @cha_squared to Detroit for a chat on her debut book, Wine Pairing for the People: The Communion of Wine, Food and Culture from Africa and Beyond 🍷✨ We enjoyed bites from around the world prepared by @thekitchenista and wines pairings curated by Cha and the @folkdetroit team. Thank you all for your time, intention and care! 👀 we can’t wait to welcome Cha back to Detroit! Thank you to Chef Vieve and the Culinary Arts & Letters team for your excellence, and Rohani and everyone at @folkdetroit for welcoming us into your home! See you all again soon ✨ #breakbreadshowlove 🎥: @curlyhandshake / @boothonecreative