The Real McCoy
Cha McCoy, MBA, CS, LEED AP is a Certified Sommelier, Public Speaker, and Event Producer. She is the Owner of The Communion a boutique wine and spirits shop located in Upstate, NY. In addition, she leads a beverage experience company Cha Squared Consulting, LLC, with a focus on curated events, tourism, and education.
Her work has been celebrated for making wine more accessible, dismantling what she calls palate discrimination in food & beverage, through her initiatives, including but not limited to her signature wine dinner series ‘The Communion’, which she has hosted in 5 countries since 2017. Her work continues through her highly anticipated book, Wine Pairing for the People: The Communion of Wine, Food, and Culture from Africa and Beyond, scheduled for release in Fall 2025.
Cha is the tastemaker of today’s generation, leading as the Beverage Director of the Charleston Wine + Food Festival, the first Beverage Director and Editor of Cherry Bombe Magazine, and the Brand Ambassador for the New York Wine & Grape Foundation. These roles exemplify her championing of change within the beverage community.
Cha is a Certified Sommelier with the Court of Master Sommeliers and holds WSET Level 2 certification, as well as an Executive Certificate in Wine Management from Universidade Católica Portuguesa in Lisbon. Her studies also include an M.B.A. with St. John’s University in Rome, Italy, and a B.S. in Engineering from Syracuse University. Cha has been recognized by the Wine Enthusiast as a Top 40 Under 40 Tastemaker and by Wine & Spirits Magazine’s Rising Black Voices in Wine. Her clients include the prestigious James Beard Foundation, and she has also made guest appearances on NBC’s Today Show, Comedy Central, and Netflix's High on the Hog: America’s Historic Foodways, Season 2.
Now with roots planted in Portugal and Italy, this native New Yorker is currently collaborating with chefs, winemakers, distillers, and hoteliers on ways to disrupt the hospitality industry on both continents by making the food, beverage, and tourism industries more accessible, accountable, and relevant.
