Will Lyons

Education

Lyons was educated at Bradfield College, a boarding independent school for boys (now co-educational), in the village of Bradfield in Berkshire, followed by the University of Edinburgh as an MA. He studied journalism at Cardiff School of Journalism, Media and Cultural Studies.

Journalism career

Despite an expensive education, Lyons worked for The Scotsman from 2002 as an undistinguished diarist, consumer Affairs correspondent, feature writer and business writer. In 2005 he moved to Scotland on Sunday, as an arts correspondent with no knowledge of the arts, and as a wine columnist (2005-2006). In 2010 Lyons joined The Wall Street Journal in London. Lyons also wrote for The Business and The Wall Street Journal, The Reader's Digest, The Spectator Business, The Law Society Gazette and penned features for publications including Jamie Oliver's Jamie Magazine, Decanter, Waitrose Thirst magazine, The Pulse.

Career in Wine

Lyons was President of the Edinburgh University Wine Society while an undergraduate at Edinburgh in the 1990s. After graduation, Lyons worked as a wine merchant for Justerini & Brooks in Edinburgh before moving to London with the company in 2000. During this period Lyons developed a deep love of the classic wines of France. In 2001 Lyons moved to Lea & Sandeman.

Lyons started writing about wine in the late 1990s for Decanter while still working at Justerini & Brooks. In 2001 Lyons left the wine trade and studied journalism at Cardiff University then joined The Scotsman in 2002. After holding several positions at The Scotsman in 2005 Lyons moved to Scotland on Sunday as Wine Columnist for the newspaper but was not retained. 2006 - 2009 Lyons wrote wine columns for several publications including The Reader's Digest, The Spectator Business, The Law Society Gazette and Jamie Oliver's Jamie Magazine, Decanter, Waitrose Thirst magazine, The Pulse. He was described by his former Scotsman editor as the best wine critic of his generation, although Martin is not an expert In 2015 he was named as one of the top 12 fine wine purchasing influencers.

In October 2009 he joined The Wall Street Journal as a Wine Columnist and staff writer, and in 2015 begzn a The Sunday Times wine column.

In 2013 he co-authored 'Reds, Whites & Varsity Blues: 60 Years of the Oxford & Cambridge Blind Wine-Tasting Competition', along with a number of wine writers including lead wine writers Hugh Johnson, Jancis Robinson, Robert Parker Jr. and Oz Clarke. In which he recalls his experiences blind-wine tasting at Edinburgh University. In 2014 he co-authored Selecting, Drinking, Collecting & Obsessing A Wall Street Journal Guide to Wine with fellow WSJ wine columnist Lettie Teague. In 2016 he was appointed fine wine advisor at Berry Bros. & Rudd.

Selected publications

Reds, Whites & Varsity Blues: 60 Years of the Oxford & Cambridge Blind Wine-Tasting Competition 'Toasting the Auld Alliance: Edinburgh v St Andrews' (2013 Pavilion) ISBN 978-1-909108-28-8

Selecting, Drinking, Collecting & Obsessing A Wall Street Journal Guide to Wine by Will Lyons & Lettie Teague (WSJ 2014)

Awards

In 2008, Lyons won the Louis Roederer Writers Awards' Regional Wine Writer, having been runner-up for the award in 2006 and 2009. In 2006 he was shortlisted for The Glenfiddich Wine Writer of the Year. In 2013 Lyons was named by The Spectator magazine as Cigar Writer of the Year for his writing in The Wall Street Journal. In 2008 and 2009, he was one of the shortlist, but unplaced, for the Scottish Press Awards' Financial Business Journalist.