The eldest son of a continental chef, Marcello’s was fortunate to begin his understanding of the relationship between fine foods and fine wines at an early age. During casual lunches in the wine cellar of his fathers restaurant, Marcello was encouraged to describe what was in his glass, and weigh in on what might make it on that week’s wine list.

Later while in college the father of a close friend came home from a long day at work and caught his son and Marcello raiding his bar. Rather than chastising the boys, he took the time to explain that whisky should be savored rather than swilled. He then poured two drams of fine blended scotch, demonstrated proper nosing and tasting techniques, handed the boys the glasses and asked them to talk about what they tasted. That moment of enlightenment set off a love affair with whisky that has blossomed over the past 25 years.

Like many enthusiasts, Marcello collects and samples a wide range of whiskies across categories. He keeps his cellar well stocked by perusing honey holes, winning auctions, trading and sharing with friends and keeping his nose and his ear near the glass. He enjoys finding obscure, offbeat and sometimes polarizing whiskies that offer unique flavor profiles so he can geek out on tasting notes over stuff like esters, terpenes, thiols, and pyrazines and post the perfect whisky porn pic to the Gram, @mandrinkswhiskey.

Today Marcello Grande is the Chief Creative Officer and one of the partners at First Person Inc, a San Francisco design and storytelling company for enterprise and when not with clients, he serves as the host of “The Quality Pour”, the official, tasting program of the San Francisco Whisky Bourbon & Scotch Society.