Jeffrey Birkemeier

About Jeffrey Birkemeier

I am the owner and sommelier at Amapola Kitchen and Wine Merchant in Salinas, California. We opened our doors in 2021. Our goal is to bring great food and wine to all who visit Amapola! My wine selections focus on boutique producers using sustainable production practices. I have been in the food and beverage industry since In 2005 I developed a passion for wine while working at Cafe Napoli. To expand my experience, I left the restaurant industry for The Wine Merchant, which is the premier wine retail outlet in St. Louis. In 2009 I relocated to the Central Coast of California. After working as a sommelier for two years at Casanova Restaurant I was promoted to the Beverage Director position for both Casanova and the sister restaurant, La Bicyclette. In 2015, Casanova was nominated for the James Beard Award for Outstanding Wine Program. I then took the position of Wine Manager at the Pebble Beach Company. I was responsible for the retail wine outlets including Stave Wine Cellar where I was the manager. Additional responsibilities included consulting on our restaurant wine programs and educating the Pebble Beach staff on wine. I am a Certified Wine Educator and an Advanced Level Sommelier actively pursuing the Master Sommelier Diploma.

Experience

1. Lead Sommelier

   Pebble Beach Food And Wine

   Dec 2025 — Present · Pebble Beach, CA, US

   Selected as Lead Sommelier for the Pebble Beach Food & Wine festival, providing leadership oversight for wine service operations across multiple events.• Recruit, schedule, and coordinate sommelier teams, ensuring appropriate staffing coverage and service continuity throughout the festival.• Serve as primary liaison between festival organizers, resort leadership, and sommelier teams to align service expectations, logistics, and operational needs.• Support on-site execution by maintaining service standards, resolving issues in real time, and facilitating clear communication across departments.• Previously served as Team Sommelier in 2024 and 2025, contributing to wine service execution across multiple tastings and culinary programs.

Skills

• Alcoholic Beverages
• Wine
• Inventory Management
• Filemaker
• Beverage Industry
• Cocktails
• Sales
• Restaurants
• Customer Service
• Fine Dining
• Retail
• Food
• Winemaking
• Purchasing
• Banquets
• Event Planning
• Sommelier
• Cooking
• Wine Tasting
• Culinary Skills
• Hospitality Management
• Typesetting
• Gastronomy
• Food Service
• Microsoft Excel
• Event Management
• Food & Beverage
• New Restaurant Openings
• Viticulture
• Wineries
• Restaurant Management
• Wine Pairing
• Hospitality
• Champagne
• Catering
• Databases
• Wine & Spirits Industry
• Beer
• Hospitality Industry
• Food Pairing