Anthony Terlato
Encyclopedia
Anthony J. Terlato is an American wine
expert. He is considered one of the icons of the American wine industry and has been called “one of most accomplished wine personalities on the planet.”. Terlato gained fame in the 1980s as the American importer who brought the Italian Pinot Grigio varietal to the United States
and made it the most popular imported wine in U.S. history.
and grew up in the Bensonhurst neighborhood of New York City. In 1955, at the age of 21, he moved with his parents to Chicago
and began working in his father's retail wine shop, Leading Liquors, one of Chicago’s first self-service retail stores. The shop carried and sold fine wines, including Burgundy and Bordeaux.
In 1957 Terlato joined his father-in-law's Chicago based bottling and distribution firm, Pacific Wine Company, and over the course of six years, transformed the bottling company into a distributor of fine wines, including those of Alexis Lichine
and Frank Schoonmaker
— long considered pioneer importers of the time. In 1963, Terlato was named president of the Pacific Wine Company.
In the late 1960s, while Pacific continued to grow, Terlato chose Paterno Imports — their family-owned and -operated wine importing company — to build his fine wine import business. At the time, Chianti
in a flask was the Italian wine most recognized by the American wine consumer. Over the course of the next 15 years, Terlato assembled a world-class wine collection from Italy’s finest producers. By the mid-1980s, Paterno was a major U.S. importer of premiere Italian wines.
in 1979. At a restaurant in the province of South Tyrol
one night, he ordered all 18 bottles of Pinot Grigio on the wine list and tasted each one to assess quality. For him, one wine stood out among the rest. It was Santa Margherita Pinot Grigio. The next day he paid a visit to the family who owned the Santa Margherita winery, and shortly thereafter they signed an agreement to import the wine.
Neither the producer nor the grape were known in the United States at the time; soon Santa Margherita became the most popular imported wine in restaurants and the top-selling wine over $15 in grocery stores in the United States
For his role in introducing Italian wines to America, Terlato was conferred the decoration of Cavaliere Ufficiale, Motu Proprio in 1984, the first American in the wine industry to receive this decoration.
Terlato was exposed to and /or befriended many of the wine and food industry’s notable participants and innovators, including winemakers Baron Phillippe de Rothschild and his daughter Baroness Phillippine de Rothschild, Christian Moueix
, Jean Michel Cazes, Angelo Gaja, Michel Chapoutier
, Michael Twelftree and Robert Mondavi
and chef/Restaurateurs Julia Child
, Jean Joho
, Charlie Trotter and Lidia Bastianich
.
Today, with his sons Bill and John, Terlato owns and operates Terlato Wines International and produces wine at the family-owned wineries in California, including Chimney Rock, Rutherford Hill, Terlato Family Vineyards, Alderbrook and Sanford.
Quotes on book jacket:
Wine
Wine is an alcoholic beverage, made of fermented fruit juice, usually from grapes. The natural chemical balance of grapes lets them ferment without the addition of sugars, acids, enzymes, or other nutrients. Grape wine is produced by fermenting crushed grapes using various types of yeast. Yeast...
expert. He is considered one of the icons of the American wine industry and has been called “one of most accomplished wine personalities on the planet.”. Terlato gained fame in the 1980s as the American importer who brought the Italian Pinot Grigio varietal to the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and made it the most popular imported wine in U.S. history.
Early life and career
Terlato was born on May 11, 1934 in BrooklynBrooklyn
Brooklyn is the most populous of New York City's five boroughs, with nearly 2.6 million residents, and the second-largest in area. Since 1896, Brooklyn has had the same boundaries as Kings County, which is now the most populous county in New York State and the second-most densely populated...
and grew up in the Bensonhurst neighborhood of New York City. In 1955, at the age of 21, he moved with his parents to Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
and began working in his father's retail wine shop, Leading Liquors, one of Chicago’s first self-service retail stores. The shop carried and sold fine wines, including Burgundy and Bordeaux.
In 1957 Terlato joined his father-in-law's Chicago based bottling and distribution firm, Pacific Wine Company, and over the course of six years, transformed the bottling company into a distributor of fine wines, including those of Alexis Lichine
Alexis Lichine
Alexis Lichine was a Russian wine writer and entrepreneur. He played a key role in promoting varietal labelling of wine, was a masterful salesman of wine, and owned Château Prieuré-Lichine and a share of Château Lascombes in the Médoc. He was married to actress Arlene Dahl from 1964 to...
and Frank Schoonmaker
Frank Schoonmaker
Frank Musselman Schoonmaker was an American travel guide writer, wine writer and wine merchant. He was born in Spearfish, South Dakota, and attended two years at Princeton University, after which he dropped out of in 1925 to live and travel in Europe...
— long considered pioneer importers of the time. In 1963, Terlato was named president of the Pacific Wine Company.
In the late 1960s, while Pacific continued to grow, Terlato chose Paterno Imports — their family-owned and -operated wine importing company — to build his fine wine import business. At the time, Chianti
Chianti
Chianti is a red Italian wine produced in Tuscany. It was historically associated with a squat bottle enclosed in a straw basket, called a fiasco ; however, the fiasco is only used by a few makers of the wine now; most Chianti is now bottled in more standard shaped wine bottles...
in a flask was the Italian wine most recognized by the American wine consumer. Over the course of the next 15 years, Terlato assembled a world-class wine collection from Italy’s finest producers. By the mid-1980s, Paterno was a major U.S. importer of premiere Italian wines.
Importing Pinot Grigio
Terlato had his first taste of Pinot Grigio during a visit to ItalyItaly
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
in 1979. At a restaurant in the province of South Tyrol
South Tyrol
South Tyrol , also known by its Italian name Alto Adige, is an autonomous province in northern Italy. It is one of the two autonomous provinces that make up the autonomous region of Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol. The province has an area of and a total population of more than 500,000 inhabitants...
one night, he ordered all 18 bottles of Pinot Grigio on the wine list and tasted each one to assess quality. For him, one wine stood out among the rest. It was Santa Margherita Pinot Grigio. The next day he paid a visit to the family who owned the Santa Margherita winery, and shortly thereafter they signed an agreement to import the wine.
Neither the producer nor the grape were known in the United States at the time; soon Santa Margherita became the most popular imported wine in restaurants and the top-selling wine over $15 in grocery stores in the United States
For his role in introducing Italian wines to America, Terlato was conferred the decoration of Cavaliere Ufficiale, Motu Proprio in 1984, the first American in the wine industry to receive this decoration.
Terlato was exposed to and /or befriended many of the wine and food industry’s notable participants and innovators, including winemakers Baron Phillippe de Rothschild and his daughter Baroness Phillippine de Rothschild, Christian Moueix
Christian Moueix
Christian Moueix is a French winemaker and the president of the négociant house Établissements Jean-Pierre Moueix in Libourne, overseeing production in several estates in Saint-Émilion and Pomerol including Château Pétrus and Château Trotanoy...
, Jean Michel Cazes, Angelo Gaja, Michel Chapoutier
Chapoutier
Chapoutier, or Maison M. Chapoutier, is a winery and négociant business situated in Tain-l'Hermitage in the Rhône region in France. Chapoutier produces wine from appellations across the Rhône region, but it is typically their top Hermitage wines, both red and white, that receive the most attention...
, Michael Twelftree and Robert Mondavi
Robert Mondavi
Robert Gerald Mondavi was a leading California vineyard operator whose technical improvements and marketing strategies brought worldwide recognition for the wines of the Napa Valley in California. From an early period, Mondavi aggressively promoted labeling wines varietally rather than...
and chef/Restaurateurs Julia Child
Julia Child
Julia Child was an American chef, author, and television personality. She is recognized for introducing French cuisine to the American public with her debut cookbook, Mastering the Art of French Cooking, and her subsequent television programs, the most notable of which was The French Chef, which...
, Jean Joho
Jean Joho
Jean Joho is a renowned chef and restaurateur. He currently heads The Eiffel Tower Restaurant in Las Vegas.Born in Alsace, France, he began his formal training at the age of 13 at L'Auberge de L'lll under master chef Paul Haeberlin. Joho continued to perfect his skill in kitchens throughout Europe...
, Charlie Trotter and Lidia Bastianich
Lidia Bastianich
Lidia Matticchio Bastianich is an American chef, author, and restaurateur....
.
Today, with his sons Bill and John, Terlato owns and operates Terlato Wines International and produces wine at the family-owned wineries in California, including Chimney Rock, Rutherford Hill, Terlato Family Vineyards, Alderbrook and Sanford.
Honors and awards
- Cavaliere Ufficiale, Motu Proprio, Government of Italy, 1984
- Wine Enthusiast’s Man of the Year Award, 2002
- Wine Spectator’s Distinguished Service Award, 2004
- Horatio Alger Award, 2006
- American Chamber of Commerce in Italy Wine Excellence Award, 2010
Books
Terlato's memoir, TASTE: A Life in Wine was published in 2008 by Agate Publishing. ISBN 978-1-57284-097-3Quotes on book jacket:
“Through his entire career, Anthony Terlato has gone against the current, following a path that was much more difficult than other winemakers’, in the effort to turn his dreams into realities that millions of wine drinkers now enjoy.” Michel Chapoutier
“It’s almost impossible to overestimate Anthony Terlato’s importance to the American wine scene. While most Americans don’t know his name they are opening millions of his bottles.”
Marvin Shanken, Wine Spectator