I was born and raised in the Mosel region of Germany and moved to the United States with my parents in my teens.

I studied history at San Francisco State University but a part-time job at a wine shop in San Francisco lured and funneled me into a lifetime career in the wine industry.

I became the wine buyer at the Oakville Grocery in Stanford Shopping Center and after a few years in that position was recruited by Chambers & Chambers wine distributors to call on top accounts in San Francisco and the San Mateo Peninsula, then became in-house import specialist and educator.

After five years I moved to work for Estate Wines Ltd, representing an extensive high-end import and boutique portfolio of wines for eleven years.

Then was hired by Epic Wines and when they were bought by another company, moved back to the retail world as the wine director of the Draeger’s Market in San Mateo for six years.

I was then brought on as an import specialist by the Estates Group, the fine wine division of RNDC, before they decided to pull operations from California.

I have been the wine director for the Roberts stores since John Akeley retired last year after a thirty two year stint here.