Welcome welcome to The Best 5 Minute Wine Podcast with Forrest Kelly, our.

Guest founder of avidvines.com Avid Vines organic champagne standing apart.

The Best 5 Minute Wine Podcast

You went to college, you graduated a degree in.

Yeah, I graduated from the University of Texas with a degree in economics and minored in French. I studied for a period of time during that experience in France and in the city of Toulon on the Mediterranean. That's where I learned how to drive a stick shift. That's where I kind of placed my roots and became very integrated into a wonderful family, the mother of which also was an amazing cook. And I truly, I felt like I was, you know, there was a sort of renaissance for me in understanding like, whoa, this is an amazing way to live. Get close to ingredients. Just her cooking was incredible and greatly, you know, influenced me and my time for the whole year. Most people spend a semester, I spent the year and then summer and again. Keep in mind the context is my, my father is fren. So I'm a dual citizen as well. I've raised my children to share and to participate in this rich cultural, you know, heritage of the Mediterranean, the southern France that I've enjoyed. And so they subsequently now are fluent in French. But it all stemmed from that year, you know, living and visiting my family. Yeah, so when my teenage years we would visit, you know, with my, with my parents, this family that had, that was also in France, my cousins and aunts and so forth, great aunts and the like. When I lived there for the year, I saw them as well, but I lived apart from them so that I could at least develop my own kind of identity. And later as I had my career, I always kept in mind this idea of how do I continue to bridge these two cultures together in my life? That explains for a period of time after college, just about eight or so years ago, I was the. I was fortunate enough to privilege to lead the French American Chamber of Commerce for the southeast of the U.S. and for two terms and, and that was an incredible experience just to kind of again keep me vested. And then all the while when, when one particular aspect of my career had reached its, you know, conclusion grow a software company. I decided to put my efforts into importing the Champagne based on a, on a trip that I had made to to Champagne in around 2018 with my family and extended family. We're very fortunate enough to, to be able to travel and a lot of my immediate family, my sister and her family, they, they weren't as knowledgeable about the Champagne. So I was like all Right. And then my nephews and such and my, even my, my, my children were of the age to appreciate it. But like let's baseline this. Let's go to a big house, see how champagne is made. And they're exceptionally well, they're, they're, they' fantastic at presenting the way that champagne is made in English. You know, it's kind of like a Disneyland experience. You should go. You know, Tati J is a great example and, but you should also, if you can find someone and like we do with our, those who join our, our website and our eat and our newsletter, we have you know, an itinerary and refer to it often and polish it and update it about. Go to the big house. Then go to a small house, find these owner growers, find the ones like I'm importing and they will welcome you with open arms. They don't speak as English but they make up for it in like hospitality like pouring champagne and, and you know, everyone starts to understand each other when that happens.

Yeah.

And, and you just see how different it is. But you understand at least how it's made because you just had that presentation. Then they'll take you on the tour and they'll show you their, you know, modest but expensive capital and resources that they use to make their champagnes and you suddenly start to realize like, wow, they don't have to buy the grapes there. They, it's their own. And they, you know, they go through the same process but the result is pretty amazing.

Certified organic sustainable products, chilled importation only. Otherwise no ticket to ride. You can join the exclusive connoisseur wine club. Go to avidvines.com so that you can start to receive the very best certified sustainable organic champagne from their carefully selected artisanal owners and growers in France. Why? Because self care starts@avidwines.com don't wait for the special occasions in your life. You are the occasion. We've got more episodes coming up with owner and founder David of avidvines.com.

The Best 5 Minute Wine Podcast

Don't forget my favorite part.

Please, please like and won't.