Our Corporate Leadership Team

Tim McChesney

SVP, Marketing & Strategy

Mr. McChesney oversees the marketing, strategy and brand development activities for both Diamond Estates Wine & Spirits Inc. and Trajectory Beverage Partners. Tim has over 30 years experience in marketing, marketing communications, brand strategy and development in the communications services business as well as the advertising and marketing communications industry.

He has held leadership positions as Chief Marketing Officer, head of brand strategy and development and as president of a national brand strategy consultancy and worked in Canada and the United States.

Peter Toms

Director of Sales and Channel Development

Favourite wine: Syrah – “I find sometimes that other varietals can be one dimensional, but that Syrah has a lot of versatility. It can be surprising how different a Syrah can taste from different vineyards.”

When you see a bottle of wine from the Diamond Estates portfolio on a wine list in your favourite restaurant or hotel, it is Peter’s team that put it there.

A veteran in the wine industry with a solid background in the restaurant and hospitality sector, Peter likes to joke that he has been with Diamond “since Day 2” — not there at the very beginning, but long enough to see Diamond grow from a start up to a national brand.

He’s now leading the sales team and managing the ever evolving aspects of the wine industry, from having to deal with just one retail customer — the LCBO — to several with the opening of sales channels for Ontario wines in grocery stores.

But that constant change is what drives Peter. A 3/16th nut hasn’t changed since they invented the 3/16th nut. But wine is agriculture. It is ever changing.

Fiona Buchan

Director of Marketing

Favourite Wine: Lakeview Cellars Viognier — “It is such a unique wine, and it is incredibly aromatic.”

Fiona was still in high school when she knew she wanted to work in marketing, and she knew she wanted to do it in the wine industry. Growing up in Niagara, with vineyards and wineries essentially in your backyard, developing such an appreciation for wine is almost natural.

While studying marketing at Sheridan College, she specifically asked the school to help her find a co-op placement with a winery, and she landed at EastDell Estates in 2004. She has been with the company ever since.

While she is responsible for coordinating marketing and advertising campaigns and managing Diamond’s tourism outreach, it is the breadth of the Diamond Estates wine portfolio that drives Fiona — the variety of brands ensures there is never a dull moment.

Thomas Green

VP, Winemaking
& Winemaker Operations

Favourite Wine: Sauvignon Blanc — “The flavour profile from Niagara Sauvignon Blanc’s is inspiring.”

When it comes to winemaking, Tom believes the best wines start out with great grapes from great growers.

Aligned with a dedicated and dynamic group of growers, Tom works to ensure Diamond Estates wines have a bold profile and flavour character. Sourcing grapes from different appellations and offering multiple brands and blends not only allows Diamond Estates to create a diverse family of quality Ontario VQA wines, but it also feeds into the nomadic nature of winemakers who aspire to make wines that please a diversity of palates.

A chemistry graduate from the University of Western Ontario, it was his parents’ purchase of a 50-acre vineyard in Beamsville, Ont., as a retirement project that sparked his interest in the wine industry. He enrolled at Brock University’s Cool Climate Oenology and Viticulture Institute — a member of its first graduating class — and put his roots down as first a co-op student and then assistant winemaker at Lakeview Cellars, and has been with the Diamond Estates ever since.

Scott McGregor

Winemaker

Favourite Wine: Viognier — “It is new to us and new to the area. There isn’t a lot of it planted in Niagara, but it does really well here.”

Spending time and effort to control the winemaking process from grape to bottle is a priority to Scott.

As Diamond’s winemaker, Scott actively cultivates consistent wine profiles and ensures Diamond Estates delivers high quality Niagara VQA wines. Collaborating with a diverse team, Scott is able to produce large volumes of diverse wines with quality and character.

Starting in the wine industry in 1996 after studying oenology at a private college and taking a job at Hillebrand Estate Winery in Grower Relations and Viticulure, Scott eventually entered the lab at Peller Estates as a technician overseeing wine-quality.  Scott moved on to become winemaker at EastDell Estates, where he joined the Diamond family when it acquired the winery in 2005.

Jessica Wallace

Assistant Winemaker

Favourite Wine: FRESH Riesling-Gewurztraminer — “This is one of those wines that I make sure I always have a bottle on hand every time I have people over.”

Jessica sees the wine making process as a fine balance between science and creativity, allowing for a wine to fully express itself from vintage to vintage.

Using equipment and functional technologies, Jessica puts profiles to the test and oversees Diamond Estates’ product standards. Executing quality control measures is important to allow winemakers to continually improve and produce progressive, quality wines. Analyzing everything from sugar levels to volatility, Jessica is determined to deliver wines of the highest caliber.

A chemistry graduate from Wilfrid Laurier University, Jessica went on to earn a certificate from the Cool Climate Oenology and Viticulture Institute at Brock University. She began working with Diamond winemaker Scott McGregor at EastDell and became the resident oenologist for Diamond Estates in 2015.