Cha McCoy is a highly recognized beverage professional and the founder of Cha Squared Experiences, LLC, a hospitality company that focuses on events, tourism, and education. She is a Certified Sommelier with the Court of The Master Sommeliers and holds an Executive Certificate in Wine Management from Universidade Católica Portuguesa. She has been honored by Wine Enthusiast Magazine as Top 40 Under 40 Tastemakers and Wine & Spirits Magazine Rising Black Voices in Wine. McCoy’s list of clients includes prestigious organizations such as The James Beard Foundation, Facebook, and NBC as well as a quality selection of wine and spirit brands.  Recently, adding to her list of achievements is her new consulting role as the Beverage Director for  Charleston Wine + Food Festival for 2022 and 2023 following her time as Cherry Bombe Magazine’s first Beverage Director & Editor. Pre-pandemic she worked as a wine merchant for a boutique wine shop in Harlem, New York, The Winery followed by a role as a sommelier for Michelin Star restaurant in Lisbon, Portugal.

McCoy’s work has been celebrated for making wine more accessible, through initiatives like her signature beverage pairing dinner series, The Communion, which has been held in 5 countries since its inception in 2017. With roots planted in  Lisbon, Portugal, this native New Yorker has returned to Upstate New York to conspire with winemakers, brewers, and distillers on ways to disrupt the beverage industry. She remains active in the beverage industry providing sommelier services for hospitality along the East Coast and educating new wine drinkers as an adjunct professor teaching wine and beer history and appreciation at Syracuse University, her alma mater.