As vice president of global brand and wine education for Beam Wine Estates in Healdsburg, Evan Goldstein oversees training and trade messaging for all the company’s winery hospitality and educational programs, including those of Atlas Peak Vineyards, Buena Vista Winery, Clos du Bois, Haywood Estate, J. Garcia Wines, Geyser Peak, Wild Horse Winery & Vineyards, Canyon Road Winery, Gary Farrell, Wattle Creek and William Hill Winery. He also participates on the global brands team, which manages the worldwide marketing, sales and distribution for the global wine brands, including Cockburns Port and Harvey’s Bristol Cream Sherry.
For his latest book, Perfect Pairings: A Master Sommelier’s Practical Advice for Partnering Wine with Food, Evan collaborated with his mother, renowned chef and cookbook author Joyce Goldstein. “It was a joy,” he says of the partnership. “She knows my palate, and I know hers, so it was seamless and effortless.”
On the homefront, this happily married father of two enjoys family time (“We try to do one big vacation a year,” he says) and proudly wears a coach’s cap (soccer, fast pitch softball and, informally, little league). Perhaps he’s secretly hoping to someday fill the hole on his favorite team of all: “If the Giants can just get a first baseman who’s consistent at the plate….”
Are you a high or low maintenance person?
That depends on who you ask! Most people I work with say I’m low maintenance, easy to get along with, a consensus builder, that type of thing. My family might argue that I’m higher maintenance, too deferential and incapable of making the most basic decision (Where should we go for dinner? What do you want to do today? What movie should we see?). But I think that’s because I make sooo many decisions in my day-to-day.
At what time of day do you feel your best?
I’m clearly a morning person from a work and productivity standpoint, though I love dining late and being the last table in any given restaurant.
Do you have any superstitions?
Yeah—silly stuff. If I’m rooting for my beloved SF Giants, for example, and they’re doing well, I won’t move for fear of jinxing them. And I always approach wines in blind tastings with the exact same method, every single time.
Have you had an experience that completely changed your life? If so, what was it?
Unquestionably the births of my children.
If you could go back in time to any era, what date would you choose?
Even though I was born in the early 1960s, I was really too young to appreciate them. I think if I could have been born 20 years earlier, it could have been even more fun. That said, I really dig being in the here and now.
If you were to be executed in the morning, what would be your last meal?
Given that this is it and cholesterol and such be damned, two dozen Hog Island oysters, a couple freshly grilled Maine lobsters with drawn butter and all the trimmings, anything decadent with white truffles, a pint or two of Ben & Jerry’s Cherry Garcia ice cream (full fat) and a bottle each of Romanee Conti Montrachet and La Tache, aged properly and from stellar vintages, to wash it all down. And the time to enjoy it all (a few hours plus…).
What did you want to be when you grew up?
As a child, a dinosaur. As I got older, a rock ‘n’ roll drummer.
What item in your office has special significance for you?
A photo I took of my wife Barbara at a great little restaurant/locanda in Venice, Italy, when we were dating about 20 years ago.
What would your ideal celebration look like?
Simple, at home with great friends, great food, great wines, no budget constraints and someone to clean up the house afterward.
What’s your favorite local nonprofit organization and why?
I donate to a lot and support a lot of them, so it’s hard to pick one, but I can say that I’m a sucker for anything benefiting children in need.
Who’s the closest friend you’ve ever had? Describe that relationship.
My best friend, Giles DesChamps, is a Parisian chef whom I worked with in the late 1970s. He’s sincerely one of the most compassionate, loving, thoughtful and caring folks I know—and he’s a boatload of fun to hang with. All these years later, we’ve evolved and grown together and ensured that our families are part of each others’ lives. We may only see each other once every year or so, but it’s as if nothing has lapsed.
Who was your favorite teacher and what simple lesson did he or she leave you with?
It was a fifth grade European history teacher who connected with me and instilled a passion and love for European culture which unequivocally shaped who I am today, both professionally and personally.
What’s your first memory?
I was three or four years old. I remember riding a tricycle at full speed down the hallway and crashing into a wall. That was fun!
