Benchmark Wine and Spirits, affiliate of Benchmark Wine Group, hired Jason Whiteside as head of business development in Washington D.C. As business development manager, Whiteside will be responsible for building brand awareness and increasing sales and acquisitions of wine and spirits for the company by working with private collectors, restaurants and other entities.

“We selected Jason based on his unique experience in service, distribution and retail in the top-end wine, rare wine and spirits space,” said David Parker, owner and president of Benchmark Wine & Spirits and Benchmark Wine Group. world for collectors, investors, top restaurants and other buyers.”

Whiteside brings over 20 years of experience in all tiers of the fine and rare wine industry with him to Benchmark. He most recently served as the senior wine buyer for Company Fine Wine and spent over 11 years at Winebow managing the wine sales team. Prior to that he was one of the top salespersons in off-premise and restaurant accounts for Henry Wine Group, one of the top distributors in the country. Whiteside earned his Level 4 Diploma in Wine and Spirits and taught at The Washington Wine Academy and Capital Wine School, where he became the primary WSET instructor and certification specialist in Washington, D.C.