Steven Bate, Executive Director, NY Wine Policy Institute

Steven Bate has been Executive Director of the New York Wine Policy Institute since its inception in 2021. His experience with wine policy extends nearly two decades. As executive director of the Long Island Wine Council, Steve was instrumental in promoting that region’s public policy interests at the local, state, national and international levels.  In addition to his policy work, he operates a nonprofit that helps support small, local farm production. Steve holds a Bachelors’ degree in Government from St. Lawrence University, and Masters’ degrees in Business Administration and International Affairs from Columbia University.

Jennifer Tsyn, Member, Bond, Schoeneck & King PLL

Jennifer Tsyn is a business law attorney and serves as the Co-Chair of Bond’s state-wide Hospitality & Tourism industry group. She has extensive experience in liquor licensing matters.

Jennifer engages in a broad liquor licensing practice and has assisted many businesses and individuals to obtain liquor licenses and permits. Her practice includes clients seeking “retail” liquor licenses (including hotels, restaurants, sports stadiums, performing arts arenas, bars, vessels, clubs, and colleges and universities) and craft manufacturers including wineries, distilleries, cideries and breweries. She also frequently counsels clients regarding disciplinary proceedings before the New York State Liquor Authority, including charges such as “availing”, service in unlicensed areas, service to minors and technical violations. She appears before the State Liquor Authority full Board, and routinely works with the licensing division and counsel’s office of the New York State Liquor Authority.

Jennifer also assists her clients in the hospitality industry with other issues, including corporate and business law matters, real estate matters, commercial lending and securities law matters. She advises both individuals and business entities (both publicly-traded and privately-held) on a variety of matters, including contract negotiations, corporate governance and transactional matters (including stock transactions and asset transactions). Jennifer also assists clients with commercial real estate transactions, including leases, purchases and sales.

Karen Thornton, AVA Program Manager, TTB

Karen Thornton has been the American Viticultural Area (AVA) Program Manager at TTB since 2011. She reviews all requests for new or modified AVAs and drafts the corresponding rulemaking documents.  She enjoys working closely with industry members to answer their questions about AVAs and to help them draft AVA petitions that will meet TTB’s regulatory requirements.

Christopher Thiemann, Distilled Spirits Program Manager, Regulations and Rulings Division, Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau

Christopher Thiemann is the Distilled Spirits Program Manager in the Regulations and Rulings Division of the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB). Christopher has been with TTB since 2008, when he joined as a Presidential Management Fellow, and he also spent time in the Office of Global Health Affairs in the Office of the Secretary of Health and Human Services. Christopher led TTB’s decade-long initiative to modernize its regulations related to labeling and advertising of wine, distilled spirits, and malt beverages, and recently has been actively involved in the transition of imports responsibilities from CBP to TTB. A native New Yorker, Christopher has a Bachelor of Arts from Columbia University and J.D. and M.B.A. degrees from The Ohio State University.