The well-known British wine expert, publicist and auctioneer Michael Broadbent has died at the age of 92.
Broadbent initially trained as a wine merchant from 1952. Already at that time he created his first book with tasting notes. According to his own information, he collected more than 85,000 entries in 133 notebooks by 2004.
He completed his training in 1960 with the title "Master of Wine". From 1966 to 1992, he was Senior Director of the Wine Department at the prestigious Christie's auction house in London and became one of the most important experts on the wine scene for rare, long-aged and historic wines. From 1992 to 2009 Bradbent worked for Christie's as a Senior Consultant.
He also published extensive books on wine topics, wrote for the wine magazine Vinum and published tasting notes in the British magazine Decanter from 1977 to 2012. Broadbent was also Chairman of the Institute of Masters of Win, a sought-after speaker and head of tastings of old and rare wines. Since 1986, he has been President of the International Wine & Foods Society and an honorary member of the Academie du Vin de Bordeaux as well as many D wine brotherhoods in France.
Broadbents first wife Daphne, with whom he has two children, died in 2015. In 2019, at the age of 91, he married Valerie Smallwood, the widow of Simon Smallwood MW.
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