Talent

A curated gathering of the visionaries behind the glass and the plate. Join world-renowned chefs, master vintners, and industry icons as they bring their craft to the heart of the Steamboat Springs, Colorado.

The People Behind the Festival

Steamboat food & Wine Festival brings together a diverse group of culinary leaders, winemakers, sommeliers, and hospitality experts whose work reflects craftsmanship, collaboration, and mentorship. Throughout the festival, these collaborators lead tastings, dinners, and conversations that explore the culture of food, wine, and hospitality from multiple perspectives.

Our Talent

chef

Cameron Baker

2026 MICHELIN Guide Colorado Young Chef Award winnner and Partner and Chef de Cuisine of Rootstalk and Radicato, Chef Cameron “Cam” Baker helped build the culinary program behind Rootstalk’s James Beard Award-winning success. His cuisine is defined by Colorado’s seasonal ingredients, refined technique, and meaningful relationships with local producers.

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Erasmo Casiano

Denver-based chef and restaurateur Erasmo Casiano brings more than 20 years of experience to culturally grounded Mexican and pan-Latin cuisine, earning consecutive James Beard Award semifinalist honors for Best Chef: Mountain Region.

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CHEF

Alberto Collarte Pindar

Chef Alberto Collarte Pindar cooks from a Baja point of view shaped by coastal ingredients, open fire, and the rhythm of shared meals. At Rhythm of the Ranch, his perspective adds smoke, spice, seafood, and a deep sense of place to the evening.

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CHEF

John Courtney

Chef John Courtney, owner of Chop Shop and The Bake Shop Park City, built his career from finance to fine dining. Former Culinary Director of Block 16 at The Cosmopolitan Las Vegas and Chef de Cuisine at DB Brasserie and Yardbird, he is also a Chopped Champion.

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CHEF

Chris Curren

Chef Chris Curren is known for high-energy cooking, sharp technique, and bold seasonal flavor. At Culinary Collective Dinner, he joins Collin Kelley and John Courtney in an open-kitchen collaboration built around personality, timing, and the kind of dinner guests feel as much as taste.

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CHEF

Taylor Frankel

Slope Room Executive Chef Taylor Frankel became Sweet Basil’s youngest and first female Head Chef after seven years in its kitchen. With Michelin three-star experience and six Food Network appearances, she brings refined technique to bold, seasonal mountain cooking.

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SOMMELIER & MIXOLOGIST

Chad Michael George

Chad Michael George is a sommelier and mixologist connecting spirits, storytelling, and hospitality, making him a natural guide for an agave-focused tasting rooted in flavor, place, and the culture behind the glass.

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CHEF

Russell Goodman

Chef Russell Goodman works at the intersection of farm, pastry, and seasonal cooking at Elkstone Farm. Across the chocolate seminar and Terroir to Table Dinner, his perspective connects ingredients, technique, wine, and place with quiet precision.

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CHEF

Miguel Angel Guerrero

Chef Miguel Ángel Guerrero is the award-winning author of BajaMed Cuisine. His accolades include Gastronomic Forger of the Year, first place at the Sabor a Cabo Gastronomic Festival, the Tijuana Tourism Merit Award, and the Estilo Gourmet Award. He has represented Baja California gastronomy at leading culinary events around the world, from Madrid and Paris to Tokyo and New York.

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CO-Proprietor

Caren Hatton

Caren Hatton is co-proprietor of Arietta, a family-owned Napa winery known for limited-production wines from carefully chosen cool-climate vineyard blocks in Carneros and Coombsville. Arietta pairs a passion for classical music with a deeply site-driven approach to wine.

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Co-Founder

Caitlin Holesinsky

Caitlin Holesinsky is a chemist, winemaker, WSET Level 2 and co-founder of Holesinsky Family Brands, an Idaho-based winery she leads alongside her husband and collaborator, James. She brings a scientific precision to the craft and a deep commitment to advancing Idaho wine while serving on the Idaho Wine Commission and holds a WSET Level 2 certification.

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SOMMELIER

Patrick Houghton

Sommelier Patrick Houghton of Wine Down Selections leads with candor, curiosity, and a clear point of view. At What You Should Be Drinking, his role is to challenge safe choices and spotlight wines that feel exciting, relevant, and worth talking about now.

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CHEF

Collin Kelley

Chef Collin Kelley leads from the center of Primrose’s open kitchen, where hospitality, pace, and seasonal mountain cooking meet. His role in Culinary Collective Dinner anchors the evening with a local Steamboat perspective and a menu designed for collaboration.

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Jonah Kim

Chef Jonah Kim brings together the bold heritage of Korean cuisine with the disciplined refinement of Japanese technique. Known for precise sushi craft and omakase-style dining, his cooking reflects balance, seasonality, and deep respect for tradition.

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WINE EXPERT

Cameron Kraft

Cameron Kraft brings AXR Napa Valley’s luxury wines to life through storytelling, hospitality, and deep wine expertise. With roots in winemaking, viticulture, and sommelier studies, he shares a passion for small-production wines shaped by place, craft, and connection.

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SOMMELIER

Jane Ledford

Sommelier Jane Ledford brings clarity, curiosity, and an approachable edge to the glass. At What You Should Be Drinking, she helps guests move past default choices and into wines with character, energy, and a stronger point of view.

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WINE EXPERT

Jimena Lopez

Chief Winemaker at Andeluna Cellars, Jimena Lopez brings global experience and a vineyard-first philosophy to Mendoza, crafting expressive wines shaped by purity, precision, and a lifelong passion for winemaking.

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Melissa McGaughey

Food Network Holiday Baking Championship winner Melissa McGaughey is co-founder of Quail & Condor, Troubadour Bread & Bistro, and Threefold Bakery. Former Hotel Pastry Chef at three-Michelin-starred SingleThread, she blends technical pastry craft with creative brand building.

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Sean McGaughey

Former Head Chef at the three-Michelin-starred SingleThread, Sean McGaughey is co-founder of Quail & Condor and Troubadour Bread & Bistro, and co-owner of Threefold Bakery in Breckenridge. He is known for thoughtful kitchen design and precision-driven cuisine.

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CHEF

David Musham

Chef David Musham is the innovative force behind Hazies, a fine dining restaurant perched atop Steamboat resort. With a passion for local cuisine and the outdoors, he incorporates seasonal ingredients with western hospitality and comfort food

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CHEF

Kevin Nashan

James Beard Award-winning chef Kevin Nashan brings the perspective of Sidney Street Cafe to Elevated Expressions Dinner. His cooking is polished, generous, and relationship-driven, making him a strong fit for a seven-course collaboration built around trust, timing, and craft.

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vintner

Jeremy Nickel

Jeremy Nickel, founder of The Vineyard House, carries a multigenerational Napa Valley legacy shaped by estate winemaking, collector culture, and stewardship of one of Oakville’s most storied wine properties.

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Sommelier

Charlie Plummer

With a career spanning Château Montelena, Paul Hobbs, DANA Estates, Merryvale, Hess Collection, and now the Global Sales Director at The Vineyard House, Charlie Plummer has become one of Napa Valley’s most respected luxury wine ambassadors, connecting collectors, sommeliers, and world-class hospitality.

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Wine expert

Matthew Regan

For 26 years, Matthew Regan has helped shape VGS Chateau Potelle into one of Napa Valley’s premier boutique wineries, carrying forward a legacy of craftsmanship, hospitality and quality without pretension alongside proprietor Jean-Noel Fourmeaux.

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CHEF

Paul C. Reilly

2025 James Beard Foundation semifinalist for Best Chef: Mountain & James Beard Foundation scholarship winner Paul C. Reilly is Culinary Director and proprietor of Denver’s beast + bottle group. Known for seasonal, farm-driven cuisine, his restaurants Coperta and Apple Blossom celebrate the connection between farmers, artisans, and the table.

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CHEF

Martín Rios

Chef Martín Rios is the chef behind Restaurant Martín in Santa Fe and a James Beard Award nominee for Best Chef: Southwest. In 2026, Restaurant Martín was selected for inclusion in the inaugural MICHELIN Guide American Southwest, adding another distinction to Rios’ celebrated career. His cooking balances refinement, seasonality, and global influence with the distinctive character of the Southwest.

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CHEF

Dana Rodriguez

Chef Dana Rodriguez is one of Denver’s defining culinary voices and the chef behind Casa Bonita’s reimagined menu. A multiple James Beard nominee connected to Work & Class, Super Mega Bien, and Carne RiNo, her cooking is bold, generous, and unmistakably rooted in Mexican hospitality.

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MIXOLOGIST

Dano Sánchez

Mixologist Dano Sánchez, the force behind Baja Roots, opens Rhythm of the Ranch with cocktails along the Elk River. His work leans into agave, citrus, salt, herbs, and the kind of hospitality that sets the tone before the first course reaches the table.

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WINEMAKER

Jon Schlegel

Jon Schlegel leads guests through Attimo wines after a morning on Marabou Ranch’s private waters. His tasting turns the fly-fishing experience into a relaxed riverside conversation about wine, craft, setting, and the stories that follow a day outside.

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CHEF

Mutsuko Soma

Chef Mutsuko Soma is a celebrated soba master and founder of Seattle’s Kamonegi and Hannyatou. Trained in traditional soba-making in Japan, her cooking pairs deep technique with Pacific Northwest ingredients and has earned national James Beard recognition.

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CHEF

Jon-Claude JC Stevens

Chef Jon-Claude “JC” Stevens is a Steamboat talent known for smoke, comfort, and local hospitality. Across Rhythm of the Ranch and Last Call, his cooking moves from fire-driven dinner to the kind of final-morning food that brings a festival weekend back to life.

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CO-FOUNDER

Sheree Thornsberry

Sheree Thornsberry is the co-founder of Innumero Wines, driven by a passion for Northern California terroir. After years exploring global wine regions, she left St. Louis to pursue winemaking, blending vision, grit, and artistry to craft exceptional wines beyond measure.

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CHEF

Aiden Tibbetts

Aiden Tibbetts, Executive Chef of Wildflower and 2025 MICHELIN Guide Best Young Chef, builds multi-course menus around Colorado seasonality at a restaurant that has held its MICHELIN Recommended designation for two consecutive years. Trained at Johnson & Wales and École Ducasse, he pairs his technical precision with ingredient-driven cooking.

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CHEF

Matt Vawter

James Beard Award winner for Best Chef: Mountain, Matt Vawter is the chef/owner of Rootstalk and Radicato in Breckenridge and co-founder of Threefold Bakery. His cuisine is defined by refined technique, seasonal ingredients, and close relationships with Colorado producers.

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Co-Founder

Kevin Webber

Colorado native Kevin Webber co-founded Carboy Winery with a vision to elevate Colorado wine and connect people more deeply to place. A certified sommelier, he has helped shape Carboy’s story into one rooted in landscape, hospitality, and the evolving identity of Colorado wine.

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CHEF

Lee Wolen

2025 James Beard Outstanding Chef semifinalist Lee Wolen is Chef Partner at Michelin-starred Boka in Chicago. A five-time Best Chef: Great Lakes finalist, his broader portfolio includes Alla Vita, GG’s Chicken Shop, Zarella, and Elliott Aster.

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