Collective Fine Wine founders Steve and Shelly Friend redefine what it means to invest in wine.
With a 6,000-bottle collection of predominately French wines, Buckhead residents Steve and Shelly Friend are more than casual oenophiles. After noticing how wine can enhance food many years ago, the couple honeymooned in Napa Valley and fell further in love with vino. Now part owners of Brick & Mortar winery in California and founders of Collectible Fine Wine, a company that connects connoisseurs and retailers with rare and specialty wines, they’ve turned their focus to matching people who make wine with those who collect it.
In Atlanta in October, they held a Paulée, a luxurious wine dinner inspired by Burgundy’s post-harvest feast in which attendees bring prized bottles to share. A first for the city, the Friends of Collectible Fine Wine Paulée attracted notable guests including the vice president of esteemed French wine producer Domaine Leroy, Eric Espuny. The Friends share their approach to wine and explain why the event was significant.
What made the Paulée so successful?
STEVE: It was very innovative and transformational for the city. We did something that nobody’s done before. Typically, fine wine has been shrouded in mystery and luxury, and not everybody’s comfortable with their acumen in it. Seldom do you find wine makers, distributors, sellers and consumers at the same table, sharing wine. We thought, “Let’s get everybody who enjoys wine for what it is in the room and share with each other.” It’s going to be an annual event.
How did Collectible Fine Wine come to be?
STEVE: It was the output of being collectors ourselves. It had become difficult for us to get the wines we wanted, so we went to California and invested in the appropriate licensing infrastructure to allow us to buy wine from France and bring it back to the U.S. That grew into helping restaurant friends in Atlanta and partners in distribution and retail shops get access to cool wines.
How did you learn so much about wine?
STEVE: A lot of people collect wine that sits on a shelf and collects dust. Because of the time I spent in France in my tech career, I met the people who make these wines. As artisans, they want people to drink their stuff. We have drunk more of these than most.
What do you like about wine?
STEVE: You can put people who think entirely differently around a table with a shared bottle and have a common experience. [Wine] breaks down barriers.
What do you look for in a winemaker or vineyard before adding it to your collection?
STEVE: We’re really after elegance: wines that are soft, pretty, lower in alcohol.
Who are your customers?
STEVE: People trying to build cellars, divest their cellars and those who are new to the journey and want some level of education. Others just want wine for a holiday function.
What advice do you give them about selecting wine?
SHELLY: If you like it, that’s the wine you should be drinking.
STEVE: We drink across the spectrum —every price point and location. It’s not about pomp or circumstance. It’s about what’s in the bottle and where you derive pleasure.
What kind of wine do you like to drink?
SHELLY: My desert island drink is Champagne because it goes with everything.
What are your favorite local restaurants and bars that understand fine wine?
STEVE: Atlas, Lion’s Head, Lyla Lila and Umi. We like Fifth Group Restaurants, too. They’re really invested in their wine programs.
COLLECTIBLE FINE WINE
707.710.3088
collectiblefinewine.com
@collectiblefinewine
PHOTO: Joann Vitelli
