The Buyer | Pétrus’ Milena De Waele on what sommeliers want from suppliers

“The most valuable suppliers are the ones who invest in staff, through training or tastings, because that has a direct impact on how confidently the team can sell.” Which even at a restaurant as lauded as Pétrus by Gordon Ramsay is still essential if the sommelier team is going to be at the top of their game, says head sommelier, Milena De Waele, who is part of a new generation of sommeliers redefining what high end wine service looks like. Since joining in 2024 she has been developing a wine programme that combines the classics with a growing emphasis on discovery. From her roots in a family restaurant in the Loire Valley to roles at The Vineyard Hotel, Texture, Annabel’s and Monarch Theatre, her career has moved through some of hospitality’s most demanding stages. Named in the Sommelier Edit’s Top 100 Sommeliers 2025 , she talks to Abbie Bennington for The Buyer about list building, emerging producers and the evolving role of the sommelier.