This past weekend I was sad to learn that Jim Laube passed away. He and I had developed a close friendship over the last two decades, and I will miss his smile and wry sense of humor. I will also miss the great mentoring he gave me.
I first met Jim in the Las Vegas airport, flying home from the Wine Spectator Grand Tour. I was starstruck, meeting the Senior Editor of the wine world’s magazine. I asked him for his autograph and if I could take him out to lunch. After signing his business card, he handed it to me, and said he’d be happy to get together sometime soon. We soon met for lunch in Napa and began to build our friendship. Jim became an important mentor for me, counseling me on how to approach certain issues, and introducing me to his friends.
Jim and I regularly met for lunches—sharing our plates, our stories and the great wine that he would bring along. We talked about how he built his career, changes in the wine industry, what it was like to be a critic, and the future of the wine industry and journalism. I met Jim during a very dynamic time in print journalism. Newspapers and magazines were facing competition from online forums and social media. The role of a journalist was changing, with subscription levels falling and people getting their information from new sources.
During our friendship, Jim introduced me to many wonderful people in the wine industry. He had such a special relationship with Harvey Posert. They were two newspapermen who “got it”, as Jim and Harvey would say. I was happy to get to know Harvey, interviewing this master reporter and marketer for my fledgling blog back in 2012. That in turn led me to meet and profile their good friend, Margrit Mondavi.
Along with those introductions, Jim let me inside his life as a wine industry writer. He shared funny stories from the past, how he got the scoop on a story, and how he dealt with the fact that everyone loves to hate a critic, which was a big part of his role at Wine Spectator. In November 2018 Jim invited me to stay with him in Napa. He opened his house to me and my family for two weekends. During those weekends we sat and talked about his life as a journalist and his role in the evolution of California’s wine industry. We talked, laughed, shared meals and tasted many great wines those weekends.
When I wrapped up my interviewing, I put my notes together for his review. At this point he had retired from Wine Spectator and was working on some book projects. He bought a white VW van, named it “Whitey” and planned to travel to different wine regions and write about them. He also visited family and friends. Since 2018 he and I broke bread and shared beautiful wines many times. He did not however, give me his edits to our interview. I read my notes from these conversations, and it brings a smile to my face. He was a lot of fun to talk to, a good friend and a very smart man. Over the next few weeks I’ll post those interviews. I hope they bring you a smile, give you some food for thought, and perhaps help you in your wine career. Cheers to you Jim. I am so sorry to be losing you my dear friend!
