Editor’s Note: This month marks the eighth anniversary of Carl Giavanti’s Turning the Tables column in Wine Industry Advisor! It’s fitting that Carl celebrates this milestone with an interview featuring Paul Wagner, founder of Balzac Communications and longtime wine educator, author, and industry veteran. Congratulations, Carl, and thank you for eight years of engaging conversations that introduce our readers to the fascinating people and stories behind the wine industry! – Tami Christie, WIA Editor
Paul Wagner was named the McPherson Distinguished Teacher at Napa Valley College and has taught in the Viticulture and Enology department there for more than thirty years. He is a guest lecturer at many universities, including CETYS in Mexico and the Wintour MBA program in Europe, and has won many international awards for his work in the wine industry.
His books, including Wine Marketing & Sales, Wine Sales and Distribution, and Artisan Public Relations, have won numerous international awards. He has recorded a series of lectures for the Great Courses called “The Instant Sommelier,” and a series of lectures on wine for Audible: “The Story of Wine in Ten Glasses.” He currently serves as Senior Advisor, Wine Tourism, for the Expedia Wine Club Cruises and writes mystery novels set in California.
How did you come to wine, and to wine writing? Why write about Wine?
I had lived in Spain for a few years, studying classical guitar–and drinking some wine. When my wife got a job in the Napa Valley as a chef, I started working in the wine business here. After a while, I started to learn things and wanted to share them.
I read Wine Marketing & Sales when I joined the wine biz in 2009. What’s its status?
We have just completed the 4th edition of the book, with huge upgrades from Susan DeMatei. The book has won national, international, and lifetime achievement awards. But the real test is the fact that it has gone through so many editions. We must be doing something right.
What are your primary palate preferences?
I like every kind of wine and food. I tend to prefer wines with more structure, but that varies based on time, place, and food.
You founded Balzac Communications in 1991. How’d you balance writing & wine education?
I invited the wine program coordinator at Napa Valley College to go on a promotional/educational trip to Portugal. When we returned, he invited me to start teaching in his program. That was thirty-two years ago. I’m still there. The classes are in the evening, so I could still work during the day at Balzac and teach at night.
What would people be surprised to know about you?
I studied classical guitar and gave concerts in Europe for a few years in my early twenties. And I played a very low-level semi-pro soccer in Spain when I was there. Now I write mystery novels in my spare time.
What haven’t you done, that you’d like to do?
I’ve been fortunate and have been able to do a lot of things. I would like to visit more of the Middle East, but that’s a bit problematic right now.
Fast forward into the wine future. What would you like people to say about you?
Plutarch says that a mind is not a vessel to be filled, but a fire to be lit. I’d like to think that’s what my students will say about me. I do try to help as many of them as I can. And my clients–that I was professional and effective for them.
What is one thing you’d like your readers to learn from your writing about wine
That wine is like any other consumer product: you need to fully communicate what makes you different and do so in a way that matters not to enologists or viticulturalists, but to people who drink wine. It’s a losing battle.
If you weren’t writing and judging wine for a living, what would you be doing?
Teaching. I love teaching little kids, too–primary school.
Can you describe your approach to wine writing and/or doing wine reviews?
Much of what I write about wine comes from the lectures and studies I’ve done over thirty-two years at Napa Valley College. My students force me to pay attention, to stay on top of things, and to explain things clearly. When I write about wine, I think about them.
I don’t do wine reviews. Writing tasting notes on a hundred wines is a fate worse than death.
How do you develop and collaborate with sources for wine business article ideas?
I like to work with people who know more than I do, so I seek them out and we find ways to share expertise and information.
You’ve written extensively since 1986. Do you work on an editorial schedule and/or develop story ideas as they come up?
For years I had a column in an industry trade publication, and I would work with the editor there on a calendar of stories. Those columns eventually were consolidated into my book, “Artisan Public Relations.” Other articles get written only on demand–or when I get a bee in my bonnet about something interesting.
Do you consider yourself an Influencer?
I hope my writing has influenced a few people, but I am not a social media influencer. I don’t spend enough time promoting what I do to claim that role.
What are your recommendations to wineries when interacting with journalists?
Practice. Put yourself in the position of the journalist and try to understand what he/she wants to communicate to the reader. Read their stories to get an idea of what they like to write about. Then help them do that.
What advantages are there in working directly with winery publicists?
They often understand the role of the writer better than the wineries. But some wineries do that really well.
What frustrates you most about working on winery business stories?
Most wineries don’t know what news is. In a world with well over 100,000 wineries, they think their new Sauvignon Blanc is exciting. It’s not.
Which wine personalities would you most like to meet and taste with (living or dead)?
Thomas Jefferson, of course. And Socrates. Madame Clicquot. Antonia Ferreira. Pliny the Elder.
If you take days off, how do you spend them?
I spend a lot of the summer volunteering in the national forests of the Sierra Nevada, doing trail work and backcountry naturalist duties–which sometimes allows me to fly-fish a bit. I still play guitar for a few hours a day, and I still write my mystery novels.
What is your most memorable wine or wine tasting experience?
Too many to count–tasting Port with George Sandeman in the Factory House in Porto, Tasting 1959 Chateau Lafitte Rothschild at a vertical tasting for the Society of Wine Educators. Eating dinner with my wife every evening.
Do you have a favorite wine and food pairing? Favorite recipe/pairing?
A picnic with my wife across the Loire River from Chateau Menars. We had bought half a roast rabbit at the local market, while drinking a recent vintage of Cheverny straight from the bottle. No napkins. Wonderful.
I also remember eating a plate of pasta with truffles in Verona at an outdoor cafe on a warm evening, staring at the Arena there, and enjoying a glass of Amarone.
Carl Giavanti has been a Winery Publicist for over 15 years, and in business marketing and public relations for over 30 years. His background in tech, marketing and project management informs his role as a publicist and wine journalist. Clients are or have been in Willamette Valley, Napa Valley, and Columbia Valley https://carlgiavanticonsulting.com/ Today, Carl is actively writing about his wine travel experiences for several publications. Check out his author pages here: https://linktr.ee/carlgiavanti
