Paul & Emily Michael — Peter Michael Winery; A British Knight, Knights Valley, and One Hundred Years of Family
Paul Michael didn't plant his first vines by choice. He was seventeen years old, on a family holiday in California, when his father climbed out of a rented Cadillac in the middle of Knights Valley and announced they were coming back to plant. That was 1982. What followed is one of the great origin stories in American wine.
Sir Peter Michael, British tech entrepreneur and founder of Quantel — the company whose graphics technology first appeared at the 1976 Montreal Olympics — discovered California wine the way most great love stories begin: by accident. Two bad bottles of Burgundy at the Fairmont Hotel in San Francisco led to a single question asked of a waiter, which led to a glass of Chateau Montelena Chardonnay that changed the course of his life. Right around the time that same bottle was winning the Judgment of Paris.
Forty years later, Peter Michael Winery produces sixteen wines across three estates in Knights Valley, the Sonoma Coast, and Oakville, and operates under a singular philosophy: one hundred percent family ownership for one hundred years. Every decision in the vineyard, the cellar, and the boardroom flows from that commitment.
Paul Michael and his wife Emily join Matt Weiss at Fearrington House in Pittsboro, North Carolina for a conversation about what it actually means to build something designed to outlast you. They talk about the naming of Au Paradis, what six winemakers across four decades were each told on day one, why the family still lives in England, and which four bottles Paul would open for someone who had never heard of Peter Michael Winery. Vintage specific. Write them down.
This episode is brought to you by Fearrington House, one of only five Relais & Châteaux properties in the American South, located in Pittsboro, North Carolina.
GUEST BIO
Paul Michael is the son of Sir Peter Michael, founder of Peter Michael Winery in Knights Valley, California. He planted the winery's first vines — Les Pavots — at eighteen years old in the spring of 1983 alongside his brother and a small vineyard team. He has been instrumental in the winery's growth and stewardship ever since, overseeing operations alongside his wife Emily from their home base in England. Emily Michael brings a background in events, hospitality, and hotel management to the partnership, and has become increasingly central to the winery's direction over the past decade. Together they are raising the next generation of Peter Michael stewards.
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EPISODE PARTNERS:
We're grateful for the support of our episode partners:
▪️Fearrington House: https://fearrington.com/
▪️Glasvin — THE PREFERRED GLASS OF THE WINE CENTRIC SHOW: Use code WINECENTRIC for 10% off: https://tidd.ly/41vgdSQ
KEYWORDS:
Peter Michael Winery, Napa Valley, wine history, long-term stewardship, California wine, vineyard management, winemaking philosophy Winery management, vineyard practices, wine closures, Peter Michael Winery, wine production, vineyard history, wine aging, wine marketing, wine industry trends
