Christian Ries, Building a Community Through Wine!

In this episode of Tharon’s Take, Tharon Johnson sits down with Christian Ries, founder and CEO of The Perlant, for a conversation about entrepreneurship, wine culture, and building intentional community in Atlanta.

Born in South Africa and originally coming to Georgia on a golf scholarship, Christian shares his journey from professional golf to entrepreneurship and the mindset shifts that came with reinventing himself after injury. The conversation explores the sacrifices behind building companies, recognizing “authentic demand,” and what it really takes to create something people genuinely want.

They also dive into the vision behind The Perlant — a private social club rooted in wine, hospitality, and human connection — and discuss why spaces like this are resonating right now. Christian explains how The Perlant is working to bring the feeling of wine country to Atlanta while creating a culture centered around humility, generosity, and kindness.

This episode is about more than wine — it’s about community, reinvention, and creating experiences that bring people together.

🎧 Watch the full conversation now on Tharon’s Take.
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Transcript

SPEAKER_01 0:00

When I go to a social event, I'm not the most confident person to walk up to anybody. It sometimes I just need a little confidence or like a instead of saying, hey, what do you do for a living? Um, where'd you get that wine from? Why'd you pick that one? Tell me about that story. And suddenly it's like, hey, well, my wife and I, we were in Italy and for our honeymoon, and this is we got a we met this winemaker and we got a case, and this is I want to share this with you. And before you know it, you start talking about wine and traveling and family, and it really changes the dynamics of the conversation. And what we have seen at the Perlant, and even at your in your home, um people start interacting and they start becoming friends. And that is that is really the key to to building that community.

SPEAKER_00 0:54

All right, today we're joined by Kristen Reese, uh, somebody who I've developed a great friendship with. And full disclosure, um, what we're about to talk about today is the PRLunt. Uh, it is something that I am very passionate about. I invested with you in this. I am a founding member. And Kristen, before we get into the prolunt and how I believe it's been in a positive way that it's met a demand and it's solving a problem that we've had in Atlanta for a very long time. But before we get into the Prolunt and you doing business in Atlanta, I want you to tell our listeners and viewers about you. So just to kind of set it up, born in South Africa, came to the U.S. on a golf scholarship to Columbus State, had an injury, played professional, and then you made a transition into a couple business ventures.

SPEAKER_01 1:43

Yeah, Theron, thanks for having me. I appreciate it. Um, yeah, I think it started when I was 12 years old in South Africa. Um, one of the stories that I like to tell is that uh my mom and dad sat me down and said, Hey, um, we're not sure of the direction which South Africa is going into, and uh we need you to pick a career. And I picked golf. I said, I want to be a top hundred per hundred player in the world. And uh my dad's like, Are you sure you want to do that? And I said, I do. And he's like, Well then we're gonna have to put our 10,000 10,000 hours in. And uh, I remember distinctly that we would wake up at 4:45 in the morning, and uh that I grew up in Cape Town, so the wind is always blowing, and the only time it's not blowing is early in the morning or late at night. So uh to really work on your swing and and get through the technical um transitions that you gotta get through as you progress and grow. Um, we were on the range at five o'clock from five to seven, and I was at school at 7:30.

SPEAKER_00 2:40

So when we were doing our research, I wonder like why 445 and you know, it's so dark, but I did not know that. And by the way, you know this. I've never been to South Africa, so you have offered to uh help curate an experience for me. But that was why, because the wind was not at its height during the mornings and night. That's why you went out that early.

SPEAKER_01 2:59

100%.

SPEAKER_00 3:00

Now, did you feel that it instilled a lot of discipline in you as a kid?

SPEAKER_01 3:05

I didn't really realize what I was doing. I just wanted to get better and achieve my goals. So my dad and I would sit down every year at the beginning of the year and say, okay, what are the goals that we're gonna achieve this year and what do we need to do kind of back into it? Um mine was always very um, very lofty goals. Sometimes, most of the time, I almost could not achieve them. But uh representing my country was what was a goal, and for a kid like me, it didn't really make sense and just almost out of reach. But you know, my dad put work ethic around me, and you know, through through grace, I've got a little bit of talent. Uh, so you put those two together, and um, I was able to represent my country in Japan with uh Louis Ursteisen and Charles Schwarzl and Albert Krueger uh way back when we won the world championships, we beat America by by two shots. Um, and that was a that was a that was a catalyst moment for me.

SPEAKER_00 3:57

All right, so you fall in love with golf, you are uh very close to your father and your mother. They instill discipline. You clearly are like, all right, I want to go to the United States to play golf, you go to Columbus State. How was that transition and how was that experience at Columbus State?

SPEAKER_01 4:11

Well, yeah, I I kind of share this, but I did not know the difference between Arizona State and Columbus State University.

SPEAKER_00 4:17

How do you not know that, Kristen?

SPEAKER_01 4:19

Uh well, we're from Africa. I know, but it's two different like we're from Africa. Uh it's you know, we don't really follow college sports. It's not a big thing to follow.

SPEAKER_00 4:27

You didn't know like one was in the Southeast and the other one was. Yeah, we knew that.

SPEAKER_01 4:30

We knew that. I came over in uh I think it is 2099 and played the World Championships in San Diego and finished 27th. And Coach Lane, the head coach from Arizona State, walked nine holes with me. And by the time I flew back to South Africa, there was a package from Arizona State with a letter of intent. And um, we knew Mark Ilmerman was the head coach in um Trev Immerman's brother, master champion. And I knew Mark and the family from a young age, and he became the head coach at Columbus State, and my parents felt a little bit more comfortable going somewhere where we knew somebody. Um, so that's why I ended up there and had a good career. I was a uh three-time All-American and won the NCAAs individually. So that kind of set me up for you know my my golfing journey in the in the professional ranks.

SPEAKER_00 5:16

So you're at Columbus State now, amazing golf career. Um, like many of us, when you matriculate through college, you gotta figure out what's next. But there was a part in the research where I think you went back to your parents and said, okay, now golf is here. I want to go out and make a you know living for myself and go into business. But you you said your mom told you something very special that sticks with you to this day.

SPEAKER_01 5:37

Yeah, so I I played professional golf for about five years after college. Um got injured in Asia, didn't make it, missed final stage of a PGA tour school by two shots and four shots. And um, they say you gotta be comfortable and good enough to walk through the door uh to get on the tour. And I think I was good enough, I just wasn't comfortable enough on those last nine holes, and it is what it is. As I kind of transition out of that uh into the working world, I I called my mom one day and I said, you know, mom, if I wasn't a professional golfer and didn't pour all my effort into that, what do you think I would have done would have done? And she's like, Oh, sweetheart, that's so that's such a simple response or question. You'd have been a winemaker. Um, I just we grew up in Stellenbosch in the in that area, and I was always just fascinated by it. And uh, we've been drinking wine and uh at our kitchen table for as since I can remember. So it's just always been integrated into our family.

SPEAKER_00 6:32

You are now in Atlanta and you had another business venture that you started first, and that didn't kind of pan out. And then I want you then to take us through how did your mom's advice really push you to, on a second go at it, meet some guys. I know you're gonna tell the story about how you met David Cummins and John Burzong, but I want to go back to that first experience that didn't work out that ultimately led you to following your mom's advice to be a winemaker. Or to be in winemaking.

SPEAKER_01 7:00

Yeah, I mean it's I think as a youngster, you you're trying to find your passions and you're trying to align your passions and your skill set. And if they can make uh create resources for your family and for your life, then I think that's great. Um, the first business that I started was um in the home services technology space. I didn't know anybody in Atlanta. I came here and and raised 1.4 million between three coffee shops uh for over a year and a half and um met to some wonderful people, got kind of plugged into the ecosystem through Atlanta Tech Village. And sadly, after about two and a half years, we we we got it up and running. Um, COVID came down and I made a critical mistake as a founder and ran the company too close to the edge from a cash flow perspective. And sadly, as soon as COVID hit, um our investors backed out and I had to let everybody go and ultimately shut the company down. That kind of transitioned me into thinking, okay, should I go get a real W-2 job and go work for somebody, or should I try again? And um that's when I met um David Cummings and John Birdsong and the team there at Lana Ventures, and I sat down with them one day and they're like, hey, you've got a big company inside you, we've been watching you for three years, and um, we just like the way you recruit, we like the way you sell and hustle and and kind of get get something over the line. Um would you be open to go start something else? Kind of at that point um where after another failed venture, um, we shut it act, we shut it down. Uh David did one of the kindest things to me. I didn't think it was very kind at the time, but he was like, Hey Christian, you know, we run a for-profit. Um, this is not a charity. So you got six months or you fired. Um DC said that to you? Basically, in those words. Um, and at the time I was like, wow, okay. He's like, we believe that you've got a big company inside you.

SPEAKER_00 8:56

Okay, so that that's that sounds more like DC because he always kind of a positive guy.

SPEAKER_01 9:01

He's like, you've got a big company inside you, but you know, Christian, we've we've got to get something off the ground, basically. And you've got six months to kind of figure that out. Otherwise, it it is gonna be time for you to maybe go in a different direction. And six months is not a lot of time to come up with an idea, test the market, and um and validate the market and then launch it. Uh thankfully they they were pretty patient with me, but I ran through a couple iterations of different business models, didn't really like them. And that's when I called my mom and I said, Mom, I've got a month and a half left. I think I'm done. Um, what should I have done? She's like, Well, you should have been a winemaker. And I was like, Well, winemakers are generally pretty poor. I don't want to do that. Um it's and I'm too late, I'm like in my forties, and I'd have to restart. And she said, Well, why don't you just go and get your similar exam and just do something for yourself? So I flew down to Florida and spent two days in the with four grandmasters, and uh yeah, wrote an exam and passed the level one uh exam. And that's kind of when I told a friend, I was like, you know, what I really, really enjoy is just what wine represents, right? I I say this all the time, but Theran, you and I can sit here and there's probably a bourbon behind you here, and we can have a bourbon and it'll be a great conversation. And in all transparency, I don't think we'd be able to remember the details in six months from now.

SPEAKER_00 10:26

It's probably true. The kind of burback.

SPEAKER_01 10:29

You know, a beautiful wine, a Montalcino or a Beresh or whatever it is, um, a beautiful burgundy, and have the same conversation. And it's it's funny how a year from now we could probably remember the details of it. And wine does that. It brings people together, it creates camaraderie, friendship, connection. And I just I love going back home because of it. I love traveling to any wine countries because of it. And kind of like the big aha moment was why do we have to travel so far? I'm obviously not the only one that loves us. I mean, most restaurants pour wine, and uh but you see the same people when you go to these wine farms, you see the same smiles, and you see the same um experiences, and you get they get that feeling. I was like, why doesn't that exist in Atlanta? Why don't we bring it to Atlanta? So the funny story is um I was about to pitch David on this concept on it on a different concept, and I had lunch with John Birdsong, and he was like, hey, let's have lunch before just to make sure your pitch is all buttoned up. And we had lunch and on the way back to the office getting ready for the big pitch, I said, Hey, I've got this crazy idea. If David says no to this one, I think I'm gonna go start this other company. And he's like, What other company? And I said, Well, you guys will never say yes to it because it's in the alcohol space and I get it, and it's not the sexiest of businesses, but I think it's just got legs. I want to bring the Napa Valley experience into every major city and I want to wrap it around a community of people that love food and wine. And he's like, Yeah, you're right, probably not gonna go for that. And that's what Berg Song said. That's what Birdsong said. So but Birdsong's like, but that's a really, really interesting idea. Like, let's ideate on that. And I said, Well, you know, it's good, I've got a feeling that there are more wine wine drinkers than golfers. In town golf has been has been such a success for them and Michael and and Clint and the team. And it's like, there just has to be something here. And uh turns out that Eric Spett, that is also part of uh uh the venture venture uh clang um came up with an idea of a high-end spa in Bucket and they like that. So Bert Song was like, well, why don't we do a high-end spa and then we tie the wine to the side of it and we pitch that as the idea, and then over time we'll prove that wine is gonna deliver more from a results perspective. And I was like, Yeah, I think that's a great idea. I was, he's like, Well, you should see if you know David's open to it. So I text David and I or emailed him and I said, Would you mind if I pitch you on this crazy off-the-wall idea? And he was walking in the office and he's like, How about right now? My pitch wasn't even ready. But I sat down and I was like, Well, I've got nothing to lose here. Um, I'm gonna be out of without a job here in the next 24 hours, anyways. And I said, David, listen, there are more wine drinkers than golfers. We need to bring the Napa Valley experience, that that feeling into Atlanta and wrap it around a community of people that love food and wine on a foundation of recurring revenue. So that annual dues. Um I don't think we've got any ambition being in the restaurant business. Um, but the restaurant business is can be lucrative if if you tie a annual dues or membership concept to it. And I completely forgot about the spa side of it. I was so excited, and David said, Hey, the rest of the team, why don't you guys come in the office and let's blow holes into this idea? Um, we had ideating sessions back then, and why would it work? Why would it not work? What's the financial model? Who's the customer? Who's who's not the customer? And an hour and a half later, I said, Hey guys, I really appreciate you guys entertaining this, but I really have another idea that I've prepared for and have got a business model for. Can we talk about that? And um, you know, David's like, Christian, I'm gonna just catch you up. We're not launching another business with you. We're gonna launch the wine concept with you.

SPEAKER_00 14:29

So the Perlunt.

SPEAKER_01 14:30

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 14:31

I'm gonna be honest with you. When I first heard it, DC Burgson was like, hey, would you want to be involved in a Napa experience that included a private club, wine? They mentioned Sonoma, they mentioned Bordeaux, they mentioned uh all these places, Champagne. And I was like, sorry. And I was like, yeah, I mean, but where are you gonna build it? But so the location had to be buckheaded. Um, I met you and we worked our magic and we got an awesome location, the old seasons 52 and the two buckhead plaza. But what I was most curious about before I brought I was brought in to ask to invest or to ask to be a part of this experience, would I would I pay for it, would I enjoy it? I heard the name Perlant. Tell me how did you all come up with the name Perlant?

SPEAKER_01 15:13

Yeah, so I'll back into how we got to the name.

SPEAKER_00 15:17

Okay.

SPEAKER_01 15:18

One of the things that we do just a lot of, and I think this it's no secret anybody can do it, but we do a lot of customer discovery. I think you just mentioned it.

SPEAKER_00 15:27

Um I clearly I was one of your one of your uh your projects.

SPEAKER_01 15:30

So we go out and we just talk to whoever will listen. And I probably talk to about 400 people.

SPEAKER_00 15:36

In Atlanta or in the metro area?

SPEAKER_01 15:38

In Atlanta.

SPEAKER_00 15:39

Okay.

SPEAKER_01 15:39

Tell me about your habits, tell me about how do you entertain, tell me about how does wine interact in your life, in your family's life with you and your spouse. Just what does it look like? And the other thing that we we did really early on is I couldn't really have another failure. I've just failed two companies, and I do have two young boys at home, and I've got a fiduciary responsibility to provide for them too. I said to David and John, I said, Hey, I'm gonna we're gonna charge a thousand bucks down payment on the initiation fee for the first founding hundred. They're gonna put a thousand dollars down. Not because we needed the thousand bucks, but we wanted to prove that somebody needed it bad enough. And in that journey of about seven months, we sold a hundred memberships, put a hundred thousand in the bank, and that was the indication that we had something. Not quite sure what yet, but we had something. The other interesting thing that we found, or that I that I that I kind of picked up and I went to the team and I said, hey, I think there's an opportunity here, but uh women are slightly underserved in the private club community. We don't have to talk about all the reasons why, but you know, to typically it's in the male name and um I just thought that that that's kind of unfair. So after talking to all these female executives around town, I kind of realized that there's an opportunity to honor um to really lean into our values, but also honor a female. And so we made a pretty pretty early on decision to make sure that anything that we do at the plant, we we we think about everybody. And I said, that's great. Now when it comes to building a brand and building a team and things like that, it typically follows when you it follows what whoever the founder looks like, that's typically how the team's gonna look. So I said, Well, if we're gonna build this with uh with with an intention to honor a female, I can't have a bunch of dudes on the executive team. That's just not gonna work. So uh we doubled down um on on some amazing um female um executives and talents to help us build this, and uh also doubled down on an all-female agency out of New York, uh out of Chicago that specialized in branding for wine and spirits. And we presented this to them, and um after about four months they came up with the name Prolant, which just means the evervescence and wine, the bubbles.

SPEAKER_00 18:12

So it's the actual bubbles, the evervescence that comes from the bottom of the champagne that sizzles to the top.

SPEAKER_01 18:18

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 18:18

But what do you want the membership to experience and their guests when they come to the Prolant?

SPEAKER_01 18:24

Yeah, the the easiest way for me to to kind of describe what I want our membership and our community and and their guests to experience is the feeling that I would say that I'm I I traveled to and grew up in, which is when we first started this project, um, no surprise, but there's not a lot of capital that is allocated in the beginning. So there's a small amount of capital, you've got to prove it, you've got to get this company up and running. And we were sat down with AR3, fantastic folks here in town, and uh the design and architect company, and I was like, hey guys, how are we gonna bring the Napa Valley experience into Atlanta? How do you guys do how do you guys do that from a design perspective? And I said, Well, we do mood boards, we can show you some of the things that we've worked on, uh, we can go to Chateau Lawn. Um, and I was like, Wow, that's just not gonna work for me. So I went to David and I said, David, um, I know you're gonna think I'm crazy, that's fine, but I'm gonna take $30,000 out of our very limited budget and I'm gonna fly the the AI3 team and architects and designers out to Napa. I need them to really understand that this is not about pretentiousness, this is farming. This is a we're talking about a fruit. Um, there's generally a farmer, dirty boots, big dog. Uh, if you if you if you drink wine with a farmer, it's generally around the kitchen table sometimes or outside. There's not there's just nothing pretentious about it. But it's that feeling that you get you're out in nature, and there's just so much time and effort that is put into taking this grape and putting it into a bottle. And that to me is is a wonderful feeling, and we try to recreate that. So when you walk into the prolant, we hear this all the time. Uh in fact, I got a text message about this from a guest yesterday. They're like, wow, it just felt like we weren't in the city. And it felt like we just escaped for the afternoon. And that's awesome. And that that is the the feeling is what we're trying to create. And then on top of that, if you add an unbelievable wine program, an unbelievable service, an unbelievable food, and you put that into the mixing bowl, I think you have a a fighting chance to create a successful business.

SPEAKER_00 20:47

So what I remember most about meeting you for the first time was that you were a very confident man, competitive. And now I understand why you were so competitive, uh, because I mean you're a damn good golfer and you haven't played golf with me yet. Um, because I think, you know, you probably don't want to have to, you know, do a round a little over four hours, but from from the crew from what I hear, and I won't name names, but some good golfers in our crew, they all give you respect and they say you're the best. Um, whenever you want to, you know, go out and we can go anytime you want. I love golf. But I also remember that you were very intentional in listening. Uh, you guys came to our home, uh, China and I, and listening to you talk, you really weren't targeting me. You really were targeting her. You wanted the female point of view to this. And she loves wine, she loves champagne more than any other uh alcohol drink. But you were very intentional about the guest list. Um there were people who I'd never met before who came to our home. And I remember we had to uh try the food and you brought different wines and champagne. So that that research that you were doing before you officially launched, I mean, you put a lot of time and effort into that. So my question is how many of those folks that started off kind of like, oh, I want to do it, how many of those folks actually join? And then who are some of the people or groups of folks that surprised you that in your market research that maybe you thought was going to be excited, but you weren't sure that has turned out to be very, very involved in the club?

SPEAKER_01 22:10

Yeah, good question. So for us really, it's um it comes down to I'm gonna back into it again. Um wine can be pretty pretentious. And exclusivity can also be pretty pretentious. I mean, we're a private club, but you've got to pay an uh initiation fee and you an annual dues just to get access. And uh and uh the last thing that we want to do is create an environment that's pretentious. This is I say this all the time, but if you come to the Palawn with a fancy bottle of wine and you show it off whatever you to everybody else's this is what I'm drinking, it's probably gonna be the last bottle that you're ever gonna drink there. Now, do we drink wonderful wine? Do people bring in wonderful wine? Absolutely, but they do it in a spirit of generosity and a spirit of kindness and a spirit of uh humility. So right from the beginning, we decided, okay, how do we create a community of people that are respectful, humble, generous, kind, and can we build a community around those values? And so from the really from the from the word go, we if I mean if I've said it once, I've said it 5,000 times. We're not we would love to meet your friends that are generous, humble, and kind. We are not too interested in your once-a year friends uh because we're just not interested in them. We we really want your and China's close friends because when you come to the club, we we want you to see them there and experience good food together and and the environment and the ambiance, and and that's what we're about. So that's how we started curating different pockets and different groups of people together. And then here's what is interesting. Uh we ran experiments unbeknownst to everybody else in the background. You know, as an entrepreneur, you I think you've got to be humble, you gotta be confident enough, but you also have to uh humble yourself and say, Okay, cool, I've got a hypothesis, let me prove if it's true or not true. And so we said, okay, well, what's gonna happen if we put these different people of different groups and pockets in Atlanta and we put them in the same room? Who how how are they gonna interact? And it was a bit of a social experiment. And I said, Well, a a variation of that, what if we double down on the generosity? We everybody had to bring a wine and you had to put it in the middle of the table and you had to share it. Now, when I go to a social event, I'm not the most confident person to walk up to anybody. It sometimes I just need a little confidence, or like a instead of saying, Hey, what do you do for a living? Um Where'd you get that wine from? Why'd you pick that one? Tell me about that story. And suddenly it's like, hey, well, my wife and I, we were in Italy and for our honeymoon, and this is we got a we met this winemaker and we got a case, and this is I want to share this with you. And before you know it, you start talking about wine and traveling and family, and it really changes the dynamics of the conversation. And what we have seen at the Perlant, and even at your in your home, um people start interacting and they start becoming friends, and that is that is really the key to to building that community.

SPEAKER_00 25:17

But there was an article uh that was just recently written in in Atlanta, and it and they talk about all these social private clubs that are popping up. So, what is different about the Prolant than any other private club uh in Atlanta or in the in the country? Because I don't think there's anything like a Prolant, or is there uh in the country right now?

SPEAKER_01 25:35

Yeah, so good question. Uh, I think I was having this conversation earlier with with our team. The market's really changed in the last year. I think when we started this year, this project about three years ago, we were either the fourth or fifth private club in Atlanta. I remember I called uh Chris Hall from Warhorse and Michael from it um from in town golf, and I said, hey guys, I've got this crazy idea. Um I want to bring the wine country to Atlanta and you know essentially create another private club. And but if you guys don't want me to, then we'll go to do something else. And both Michael and Chris were so gracious, and they're like, Christian, we've got a pretty good wait list. Um, we've been very humbled by the community's response to each of their uh distinctive brands. Go for it and how can we help? I mean, that's the that's just talk about generosity right there and and kindness. And I remember now, so fast forward, there's gonna be, I think the 11th private club has now popped up in Bucket. And the the choice for a consumer has completely changed. And what what I always say to our team is when a consumer walks through those doors, they've got to feel something different. And our actions need to speak louder than our words. And I think if we continue to do a good job and we create that feeling which we have, and the team's done an amazing job, we we're just different. We're the theme is wine, but our community is is a bunch of just wonderful, wonderful, wonderful people from all walks of life that are generous, humble, and kind. And we're pretty vigorous on um on those values. So I say this all the time the other private clubs, they put out fantastic products, absolutely fantastic products. But we continue to see our application list come in month over month. It's pretty strong. We're very humbled by that. Uh, we continue to grow our membership, and uh we'll be capping Atlanta in the next year and year and a bit. We slowly but surely adding a few members a month to continue to to build that community where to where we think that um it'll max out. Uh, and then the overarching vision is to take this and put it in every major city in America.

SPEAKER_00 27:53

Funny story between two of us. You know, we were in Nashville, and I and I saw you at another club that I like to visit, the SOO. And I know you were looking at Nashville, uh, and I know you got other cities, but how are you going to implement uh this overall vision to be in every city in the U.S.?

SPEAKER_01 28:07

Yeah, I think um we were we were looking at Nashville. I know, yeah, we were. I said that. Um I think the, you know, when you have a partner, a business partner like David Cummings, that is, I consider him just uh a very wise counsel and uh and patient and wise counsel. And he called me up one day and he's like, hey, uh, let's take a deep breath. Let's get everything humming in Atlanta, let's get all the systems ready, and then let's expand. And one of the things that I've learned is the Prolant's not only just a private club, we actually are transforming a neighborhood. And when we think about that, I did not think about pitching it to new developers or new landlords in other cities as well. We just said we're a private club. Now the the pitch has changed over time to where if you want to grow your neighborhood and you want to elevate your neighborhood, you've got to put a pallant in there because we're gonna bring all the most amazing people to that location, and that is amazing. And but that's taken us a year and a half to figure out how to even portray that message. So I think it's it's about the right city, the right neighborhood in the right city, and uh, we're very, very patient too. Um, I'm I am very competitive, but um, I do have great business partners that are kind of reining me in from time to time, which is fantastic.

SPEAKER_00 29:36

But real quick for our viewers, because folks will be able to see this on on YouTube and Spotify, but our listeners, explain the three bottles that you brought in to us today and why did you pick these three bottles?

SPEAKER_01 29:46

Yeah, so it's it's very, very simple. Uh I love champagne. Um the four grandmasters that we hung out with. Um, they said uh champagne is one of the most amazing wines that you can find. Uh just the process of making it. You can have it for breakfast, lunch, brunch, tea, um, pre-dinner, dinner, post-dinner. You can have champagne anytime. Um, so that's a that's a premier crew, uh, which was these are all hand selected by um Elizabeth Dames, our wine director. Yes. And I will say, like a plug there, what's a differentiator for us as well from a wine perspective, since we're talking about wine? Uh, we started uh last year, January, with 2,400 bottles in our cellar. Uh today we've got over five and a half thousand bottles, um, over a thousand bottles on the list, uh, over 40 by the glass. And um, and we honor, we we honor all our members um on our wine list. So um Elizabeth and her team has done a great job um building that team. Uh a little old world with uh it an Italian there, and then obviously we live in America. Uh I love a Pinot, and uh it's just a great producer. Both of those are pretty good producers.

SPEAKER_00 30:55

Well, you and I both um root for the dogs, UGA. Um, we had a great time down in uh Athens between the hedges, and uh you brought some really good champagnes and wines then. So definitely I was looking forward to what you selected today. Now we're gonna go into final take. This is a part of the episode uh where we ask you some questions and we want you to respond organically. All right, here we go. What's your favorite wine? Red or white? White. All right, old world or new world? Old world favorite wine region? Burgundy. What's the best wine for beginners? The wine in your glass. One underrated wine people should try.

SPEAKER_01 31:34

If you can get your hands on it, uh toll puddle pinot noir out of Tasmania.

SPEAKER_00 31:40

What is one word that describes the prelant? Excellence. Well, my brother, thank you so much for coming on Thairn's Take today. Appreciate you. Um I really want to congratulate you on all your success. I've seen this vision, this uh this cultural creation, this artwork come to fruition. I was there literally from the beginning with the groundbreaking. Um, but thank you for really just curating an amazing experience for us as members and also more importantly than for our guests. Um and I think that, you know, man, you are onto something great. And anything that, you know, we can do here at Theron's Hate uh to help you out, just let us know. And I definitely want to bring the team by to have a nice uh glass of wine, nice glass of champagne very soon.

SPEAKER_01 32:24

That's awesome, and thank you for having me. And thank you for being in our corner. Uh along with all of our you know, team members, we we work really hard so to to curate that that that experience for for you and your guests.

SPEAKER_00 32:34

So thanks for having me. Thank you. And then how do you want people to find out more about Perlant? Where should they go? What's the website?

SPEAKER_01 32:40

Other than asking you for a warm referral. Well, we know I've been turning people down lately. But yes, you definitely need to ask me for a referral. But what can they go do? We've got applications there, and uh we we just go through the interview process. So that's the probably the easiest way.

SPEAKER_00 32:56

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