Antonio Galloni

Antonio Galloni is an American wine critic. He is the founder and chief executive officer (CEO) of Vinous for which he is also the lead critic covering the wines of Bordeaux, California, Italy, and Champagne.

From 2006 to 2013, Galloni was a tasting staff member of Robert Parker's publication The Wine Advocate.

In May 2013, Galloni founded Vinous.

Early life and education Galloni was born in Caracas, Venezuela to an Italian father and American mother. When he was eleven the family moved to Sarasota, Florida where his parents sold Italian wines at retail. This early exposure to wine began a lifelong fascination with wine. Galloni's maternal grandmother introduced him to the wines of Burgundy, while his father instilled in him that "there are two great wines in the world: Barolo and Champagne".

Galloni received a degree from Boston's Berklee College of Music in jazz composition and guitar. After a stint as a musician and waiter, which led him to get to know many of the new California wineries of the time, he took a job with Putnam Investments and was soon after sent to Putnam's Milan office. This opportunity was a total immersion in Italian wine and culture. Galloni returned to the United States to acquire a formal business education, where he earned an MBA from the MIT Sloan School of Management. and became a contributor to Parker's Wine Buyer’s Guide.

In January 2011, as Parker restructured the coverage of his staff of reviewers and announced he would no longer review California wine, Galloni's area of coverage was expanded to include California, Champagne, Chablis and the Côte d'Or.

Galloni has stated in The Wine Advocate issue 186 that he will only review Champagne that provides a disgorgement date so he may accurately rate a Champagne by its release.

In 2013, Antonio left The Wine Advocate to start his own website, Vinous. launched under the brand Vinous. Aimed towards a broader demographic of wine consumers, Galloni has stated he would continue to report on the wines of Italy, Champagne, California and Burgundy and will cover wines from Bordeaux from the 2013 vintage, as well as craft spirits. The lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court in Maryland, advancing the complaint, was never served. All the articles cited in the case have subsequently appeared on Galloni's Vinous Media website.

According to Robert Parker, The Wine Advocate’s efforts were “simply a matter of retrieving a service we paid for,” rather than “an attempt to stop Antonio from moving on; we continue to wish him our very best.”