Martina Doglio Cotto

I design journeys the same way I choose a restaurant: by asking questions, listening carefully, and trusting a well-trained instinct.

I am a biologist by training, a sommelier and wine educator by profession, and a travel advisor by vocation. People say I have a sixth sense for finding real food. I call it research, curiosity and a refusal to settle for the obvious.

Wine and food are never just pleasures to me — they are culture, health, responsibility and identity. My work often feels like a small investigation: meeting the farmers, artisans, agronomists and cooks who quietly make Italy what it is.

Background

Born and raised in Asti — like a DOCG — in the heart of Piedmont, I trained as a biologist specialising in ecology and food production, and became a professional food & wine educator. I work as a consultant for wineries, Italian wine consortia and private companies, organising educational activities, masterclasses and tours.

I am a professional wine evaluator and sommelier, member of the Italian Sommelier Association (AIS) and WSET 3. Within the AIS I serve as an official taster and professor, training the next generations of sommeliers. Since 2014 I have been Global Sommelier of the Campari Group, and I led the Riccadonna heritage research project.

I have shaped projects on communication, storytelling and education around wine and food for public and private institutions — among them the Cinque Terre National Park and Slow Food International — and I train restaurant teams on wine-list management and presentation. As a licensed tour guide and organiser I manage press tours and study trips for international wine and food academies, export companies and wine clubs.

In 2020 I founded Grape Stories, an educational travel practice specialising in wine & food for professionals and curious travellers alike.

Smell Camp

I co-founded Smell Camp with my partner Silvia — a project built around the olfactory sciences. Using molecules, botanicals, essential oils and a rigorous blind-tasting approach, we create tailor-made classes, games and team-building for professionals, and increasingly a cultural format for wider audiences.

I am also the presenter of the “foodies moments” at the International White Truffle Fair in Alba — the Michelin-star events with more than a hundred cooking shows across October and November every year.

Off the clock

I have travelled widely and lived abroad — Argentina, Australia, New Zealand — quietly carrying elements of an authentic Italian lifestyle with me. I am a runner, a cyclist and a tango dancer; my latest endeavour was Paris to London on a gravel bicycle. I like to find always new ways (and roads) to wine and conviviality.