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Adam LaZarre never expected the U.S. Navy to prepare him for working with wine. The former electronics technician, however, credits his military service with giving him the discipline and problem-solving skills that now define his award-winning winemaking.
“My military experience and the training that I got, particularly as an electronics technician, certainly helped my ability to craft wines correctly,” LaZarre told Fox News Digital in an interview from his winery in Paso Robles, California.
One of the things the military taught him, LaZarre said, was “how to break problems down.”
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“Having that military background — first off the discipline, the ability not to panic under pressure, but also to be able to take a problem and break it down into something that you can manage — was an enormous help.”
LaZarre began developing his palate while stationed on the island of Diego Garcia in the Indian Ocean.
Alcohol was forbidden on the island, but he confessed to finding creative ways of smuggling Guinness and wine from Singapore.
“We’d hold wine tastings, and I really worked to develop my palate and just [have] a base knowledge of wine while I was there,” he said.
After his time in the Navy, LaZarre went to college to study enology — the science of wine and winemaking — eventually becoming vice president of Hahn Wines in Monterey, California. There, he discovered his passion for pinot noir.
“It’s a sexy grape,” LaZarre said. “It’s very lush and very pretty.”
His work there pushed him to launch his own signature label in 2003, even as he continued producing larger commercial wines.
The Fox News Wine Shop currently offers LaZarre Wines’ pinot noir and cabernet, both of which are featured in the Fox News American Wine Club.
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For every case sold through the American Wine Club, money is donated to U.S. VETS – a charity organization whose mission is to end veteran homelessness.
LaZarre said he likes to align himself with organizations that focus on helping those who serve the nation.
LaZarre’s father and sister also served in the military, making his connection to veteran-focused causes even more personal. His father landed on the beaches of Normandy during the allied invasion in World War II, while his sister was a captain in the Navy.
“I think it’s just an honor to the people – men and women – who serve in the country,” he said. “So, yeah, I’m very happy to be a part of that.”
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