Karen Magner
Greetings from Colorado, where I am a professional marketer by day and an aspiring wine writer by night. My love of wine took off when I was a student living in France beaucoup de years ago. Now that I’m older and finally realize what I want to do with my life, I know that my destiny lies in writing about wine – from the soil that influences the flavor profile, to the vineyard manager who uses various techniques to produce the highest-quality fruit, to the winemaker who coaxes the grapes into something magical.
A taxi driver in Paris once told me that he was nowhere near mastering his way around all of the city’s thousand little streets, despite decades of driving around the city. The same is true of wine, which can be intimidating. With that in mind, I have two goals with my writing. One is to take subjects that many find complex and weave a story that brings them to life and makes them understandable and relatable.
The second is to help foster appreciation of smaller wineries. During my time as a student in the Sonoma State wine business management program, I realized that there are so many small growers who produce superb quality wine for the price. You never hear about them because their marketing budgets are too small, or they simply don’t have the staff. It dawned on me that I could use my professional marketing skills to help smaller wineries promote their wines – even if I only do so one wine at a time.
In November 2019, I launched my website and Instagram account PQ Wines, short for best price-to-quality wines. I hope to support the small grower’s craft to help make sure this way of life doesn’t disappear. I also believe that the next generation of wine drinkers can be fostered among the millennials, who care about provenance, sustainability, and quality. We just have to reach them with our stories.
I’m excited and humbled to be part of the incredibly talented Vintner’s Project contributor community.
Follow me on my website, and please connect with me on Instagram, so that I can support you too!