About JWS
John O’Neill
New York-based John O’Neill was recruited by Jeff Welburn in the fall of 2007 after selling his interest in Vintage ’59 Imports. With extensive contacts throughout the U.S. and France, John was hired to further develop the French portfolio and expand distribution nationwide.
A California native, John served as a west coast regional manager for New York-based Kobrand Corporation for seven years. He managed both California and Hawaii for the longtime importer and national marketer of Taittinger Champagne and Burgundy’s Maison Louis Jadot. In 1998, he accepted an offer from Jacques Schlumberger to help develop and establish a French wine portfolio for Sonoma County-based Michel-Schlumberger. In his five years as National Sales Manager for Schlumberger, John was instrumental in establishing distribution and the reputation of talented young winemaking stars such as Burgundy's Vincent Dancer and the southern Rhône's Louis Barruol (Saint Cosme). In 2003, John and the company's portfolio manager branched off to form Vintage ’59 Imports with the portfolio assembled at Schlumberger. After leaving V59, John spent most of the summer of '07 in France developing a new portfolio, but opted instead to join forces with Jeff and bring his French contacts into what has become a very special portfolio.