Bob Watt

My wife often says that I read restaurant wine lists like they are my favorite novel – I’ve learned to at least order the first course so we don’t starve to death while I peruse the list. I began collecting wine nearly 25 years ago, and to this day, I still feel like a novice. There’s always so much to learn and experience, but I’m happy to be a constant student in the world of wine. In my day job, I am a G.I.A. Certified Gemologist, importing diamonds and gemstones as well as providing custom jewelry design for my wholesale company, Exact Gems in Seattle, Washington. Both my occupation and my wine interests are true passions that require great attention to detail and acquired expertise – and both lead to many celebratory moments with family and friends! I look forward to sharing a little of what I’ve learned through the years as well as our noteworthy new wine experiences along the way. While our preferences tend to lean old world (Bordeaux!), I am also always on the lookout for great values in wine, both new and old. Please share what you find with me too!

Christina Watt

Christina knows exactly when I really fell for her.  It was at the end one of our first dates, and she offered me a glass of port after dinner.  An open bottle of Fonseca Bin No. 27 Port was on the kitchen counter – she even had the right glasses for the occasion.  I suspect she knew she was in trouble when in return, I showed up a few days later with a decanted bottle of 1977 Smith Woodhouse Port to “try.” Since that time, Christina has expanded her palate and developed a love for all things expensive in wine – Krug! Chateau d’Yquem! All things Bordeaux! – but also a true appreciation for the labor of love that is winemaking.  Christina has spent her career in Communications after getting her degree in Journalism, and is getting a kick out of helping me put my wine blog together.  She has worked in strategic communications with many major Northwest brands – Starbucks, Amazon, Nordstrom (she was even Howard Schultz’ writer at Starbucks for a number of years), but some of the brands she has loved working with the most are in wine.  She helped friend Chris Figgins with the launch of his new Figgins Family Wine Estates and Drew Bledsoe’s Doubleback wine, and she spent several years doing PR for the Yakima Valley Wine Association.  In addition to working in Communications, she is also an Executive Coach, a wonderful mother of our now 12 year-old boy/girl twins, AND she’s also my partner in crime with this blog!  It makes me happy to see she’s just as passionate about wine as me.