By ERIC ASIMOV

BEFORE his 29th birthday, Ray Walker became the first American ever to make Le Chambertin, the grand cru red Burgundy that is one of the most revered names in wine. How Mr. Walker came to make this wine is a story of passion and perseverance, family support and great good fortune, naïveté and surprises, not least of which is that Mr. Walker had never drunk a Chambertin before he made his own.
Happily-ever-after tales are rare in the wine business, which generally operates on the more down-to-earth plane of crafty marketing and cut-throat competition. But Mr. Walker’s entry into the famously insular world of Burgundy, with little money, no connections and virtually no experience in winemaking, seems straight from the annals of fairy godmothers and Prince Charmings.
Today, Mr. Walker — tall and lean with sculptured good looks — and his wife, Christian, are the proud proprietors of Maison Ilan, a small négociant business here in the heart of the Côte de Nuits. It is named after their young daughter, Isabella Ilan Walker.
Up to now, they have made only a little bit of red wine, including two grand crus, Le Chambertin and Charmes-Chambertin. The wines are elegant, fresh, structured and graceful — astoundingly so, given they were made by a novice.
As a younger man, Mr. Walker, who grew up in the Bay Area and worked there in his family’s real estate business, was decidedly not a wine drinker. It was not until he met his future wife, who liked wine, that the subject came up.
“We’d get into heated arguments,” Mr. Walker, now 30, recalled during a recent visit to his small, spotless winery underneath his house here. “She’d say, ‘Adults drink wine with food,’ and I’d say, ‘Only alcoholics do.’ ”
Not until they traveled to Italy, where Mr. Walker proposed marriage, did he see the light. It shined so brightly that he became obsessed with wine.
At first he studied Bordeaux. But early in 2005 he sampled a 2002 Meursault Clos de la Barre from Comtes Lafon, a white Burgundy. Another bright light went off.
“Oh my God, this is nature!” he recalled saying after tasting the wine, his excitement of the moment still palpable. “From that moment on, I was certain I was going to explore Burgundy. And then we got into the reds, and I couldn’t believe it.”
For two years, Mr. Walker carried around “Côte d’Or,” Clive Coates’s magnum opus on Burgundy. Finally, in 2008, as he was training for a new job at Merrill Lynch, with his wife six months pregnant, he realized he was not happy. With her support, he quit to learn about the wine business.
Before long he was hired at Freeman Winery in Sebastopol, in Sonoma County, to wash barrels and help with bottling and the harvest.
“He’s a really bright guy, and he gets it right away,” said Ed Kurtzman, the winemaker at Freeman. “He was driven and knew exactly what he wanted to do, though I don’t think he knew where he was going to end up.”
At Freeman, Mr. Walker learned the basics of making wine. The ambition was growing to do it himself, but when he was offered some petite sirah grapes to turn into wine, he could not muster enthusiasm.
“My wife said: ‘Don’t do that. We don’t drink wines like that,’ ” he recalled. She asked him what he was most passionate about, and the answer, Burgundy, was obvious. So were the obstacles.
In the real world, people do not leave their jobs, their wives, their new babies because they fantasize about making wine in Burgundy. If the all-too-real logistical and financial difficulties are not enough to swat down such ambitions, certainly the dubious prospects of acquiring grapes and equipment and enough money would do the trick. Yet here was Mr. Walker’s wife and parents urging him to follow his heart. What else was he to do?

Source: http://www.nytimes.com/2011/07/27/dining/with-maison-ilan-an-american-winemaker-invades-burgundy.html?_r=2

Comparison of crime rates between Philippines Angeles City and Clark Freeport Zone sheds light on the difference between the twin cities of Pampanga. Regular guests of Angeles City Hotels begin to migrate on base into hotels inside Clark Philippines not only for peace and quiet but peace of mind and a sense of safety and security.

It is important to many families to feel safe in a hotel in Angeles Pampanga. That is one of the main reasons that many tourists and local visitors from Manila choose to stay in a hotel in Clark Freeport Zone just outside Manila Philippines. Many tourists traveling with families and children do not like the hotels in Subic or some of the hotel in Angeles Pampanga. The resorts in Philippines Angeles City do not make guests feel comfortable and secure.

Where to go in Clark? Hotel Clark Philippines is a De Luxe Hotel in Clark and Subic, a risk free place to stay, cozy and nice ambience, a nice function place for special occassion

Are you looking for an attractive restaurant or a nice place to eat with friends in Clark, Angeles City Pampanga? Yats Restaurant and Wine Bar is a restaurant with good food and good wines for dinner located at Clark Angeles City Pampanga. Perfect for exclusive dinner venues for groups, recommended for private dinner in Philippines. A Restaurant in Clark for business dinner meeting. Private dinner place or dinner restaurant in Clark Subic Near Manila Angeles City Pampanga. Yats Restaurant is one of the Good Restaurant in Pampanga Angeles City Clark near Manila.

The beach resorts, leisure parks and vacation hotels in Clark Pampanga offer a unique ambience that supports a laidback relaxing lifestyle. Many visitors travel north to Clark Pampanga from Manila to unwind and relax in these resorts.

New developments from Clark Philippines that may be pertinent to businesses and investments in Pampanga Clark Freeport Zone are posted on HotelClarkPhilippines web site. Clark Philippines is a fast growth economic and business city comparable to Manila Philippines.

Retirement in Philippines is an interesting investment opportunity for foreign companies. Many investors are looking for a destination near Manila that offers safety and quietness to develop residential and retirement projects and Clark Pampanga seems to be an attractive business proposition. Investment opportunities in Clark Philippines include hotel and resorts, retirement village, vacation rentals, condominiums and other residential projects, and other leisure, tourism and hospitality businesses. Land in the main zone of Clark Freeport is not easy to find and is not as cheap as before but Clark is still much more attractive compared to other investment destinations in Philippines.

For information as well as assistance with reservations in hotels and resorts in Pampanga, Clark Philippines, click here to contact HotelClarkPhilippines now

Or call us at

Hotel Clark Philippines
Creekside Road corner of Centennial Road,
Central Business District, Clark Freeport Zone,
Pampanga, Philippines 2023

Tel: (045)599-5949 0917-520-4403 0922-870-5177

Manila Sales Office
3003C East Tower, Phil Stock Exchange Center,
Exchange Rd Ortigas Metro Manila, Philippines 1605
(632) 637-5019 0917-520-4393 Rea or Chay

http://www.HotelClarkPhilippines.com

Email: Info@ClarkPhilippines.com

Getting to this hotel in Clark Philippines
After entering Clark Freeport from Subic, Manila, Dau and Angeles City, proceed straight along Clark’s main highway MA Roxas, passing Clark’s largest wine shop called Clark Wine Center on your right, continue to bear right making no turns at all, go past Mimosa Leisure Estate on the opposite side of the road, you will hit a major intersection. Go straight and the road becomes Creekside Road. YATS Clearwater Resort and Country Club is on your right just 200m down. Traffic in Clark Philippines is light so it should be quite easy for get to this hotel in Clark Philippines.

YATS Leisure Philippines is a HK-based developer and operator of clubs, resorts and high-class restaurants and wine outlets http://www.YatsLeisure.com

To inquire with the beach resort hotel in Clark Pampanga visit http://www.ClearwaterPhililippines.com

Looking for a party venue in town?
Clearwater Resort and Country Club is one of the ideal venues for birthday party because it is a risk free venue. Not only Birthday Parties but also a good place to enjoy family reunion. A good place to celebrate special occasions. Clearwater Resort and Country Club is one of the resorts in Subic Clark Angeles City Pampanga or near Manila with activity amenities, place that are nice for celebration.