Welcome to my blog!
My love for wine took hold when I was in my early 20’s. I was in college and needed to find a job with flexible hours where I could make some good money. Waiting tables was the perfect fit. It wasn’t long into this accidental career before I was working at a high-end casual dining seafood restaurant. I got my initial exposure to French whites and champagne.
Less than a year into it I moved over to one of the most popular restaurants in Dallas – Café Pacific. One of the owners was from San Francisco and the wine list was an all-California line up. Several of the waiters working there were very much in to wine. They talked about wine a lot. They would go in together and buy cases of wine. Cases, not bottles! This was all new and exciting for me. The owner offered a Steward sale to the waiters. It was here where I bought my first case of wine – Jordan Cabernet, 1978. I paid $12.00 a bottle for the case. I was hooked!
In 1985 I made my first trip to Napa Valley. I remember going to the big houses; Mondavi, BV and Berringer. They were all making unbelievable cabs at that time and that’s what I was in to. I’ve been consistent about returning to the area every year since. Sometime in the early 1990’s I made a conscious decision that I was going to focus my interests in wine exclusively on California wines, specifically Napa and Sonoma, because the area was easily accessible. I’ve since expanded my scope and have visited several wine regions throughout California, Washington, New York, Canada. I have also visited wine regions in France, Spain and Italy.
Life has taken me on an interesting, meandering journey. I’ve lived in the largest four cities in the US as well as spending significant time in Brazil and the Middle East. I have now settled in San Francisco. Proximity to the wine country couldn’t be better.
My mission in life is to visit and write about small wine makers whose wine you’re not going to find in your local wine shop, Costco or on any restaurant’s wine list outside of the region. I will travel up and down California and eventually into Oregon, Washington and beyond.