28 MONTEREY COUNTY WEEKLY SEPTEMBER 5-11, 2024 www.montereycountynow.com FACE TO FACE While both share an expertise in all things wine, sisters Roxanne Langer and Tamara Carver took different routes to their current venture. Earlier this year, the pair opened LadySomm, a boutique wine shop and education center in Carmel’s Barnyard, offering tastings, classes, seminars and other events. “We fell in love with the space,” Carver explains. The shop allows for more than just formal events. Langer and Carver also hope to host fun events, like a communal holiday party for small businesses. Langer brings to LadySomm a deep background in the industry that began with a master’s thesis on wine at the University of the Pacific, as well as a viticulture course at UC Davis. She has worked with several wineries in California. Langer also teaches, writes articles on wine and is the co-author of Churchill, A Drinking Life: Champagne, Cognac and Cocktails. Carver graduated from the UC San Francisco School of Nursing, where she remains an assistant professor and nurse practitioner. For much of her career, Carver focused on sports medicine, working alongside the San Francisco 49ers’ team physicians. At the same time, however, she co-founded the Carmel Wine School, teamed with the company WineFundamentals and earned sommelier certification. Weekly: Wine is hard to learn. Is it hard to teach? What made you want to open LadySomm? Langer: I’ve been in the wine industry my entire career. I’ve been teaching for 30 years—culinary school, art institute. It’s not that hard when you know the subject and love it. Carver: It is community, lifestyle. If we hand people a glass of Champagne, the conversation level goes up. I love the social aspect, having a glass of wine with friends—and having the ability to have people try something different. Wine can be intimidating. Langer: To be honest—and I don’t like to toot my own horn—people thank me because I put it in terms they understand. The more you do it [learn], the more fun it becomes. But it’s still a small business, and that’s not easy. Langer: [Rolls her eyes in agreement.] Carver: And we’re sisters. But it’s a fun business. What’s the most common question? Carver: Pairing is very common. Langer: Which we love, since wines should be paired with food. I once did a story pairing wine with Texas summer heat. Langer: We poured wine in Texas summer heat. It was awful. Carver: We were pouring reds. Langer: I thought, “why aren’t you drinking beer?” Carver: My husband and I were at a winery in Fredericksburg [Texas]. I asked where they got their grapes from and they said, “Monterey.” Langer: Texas now has 900 wineries. Every state has more than one, even Alaska. When I started, California had 350 wineries. Now it has a gazillion. Do you know how many women were involved in wine when I started? Probably not many. Langer: [Nods.] When I started, 7 percent of Americans drank 90 percent of the wine. I did a thesis on wine labels. Women didn’t talk about wine. Women would point at the pretty [bottle]. Now women know expensive wines. Carver: And there are a lot of women winemakers. Are there wine regions in California that are underappreciated? Langer: Amador, because people don’t know it—great wines at a better price. Lake County, Mendocino County. Monterey—a lot of people want to learn about Monterey County wines. I think of it as a bigger region. There are so many grapes grown here, although they don’t all stay here. Carver: Wine, more than anything, is about where it came from. Portuguese wines are some of our bestsellers. Langer: The Portuguese get the least amount of credit for their still wines, but they are gorgeous. Are there varietals people should know more about? Langer: Gewurtztraminer, Viognier, Grüner Veltliner. One that I like—when it’s made well—is St. Laurent. Carver: Italy is bringing a lot of old varieties back. So is Greece. Langer: Assyrtiko. Everyone should be drinking it—it’s lovely. But you can’t get it here. Did you expect LadySomm to be such a success? Langer: We are thankful. Wine Lovers Two sisters have turned their passion and knowledge into a unique Carmel wine business. By Dave Faries Roxanne Langer and Tamara Carver of LadySomm, which is part shop, part tasting room, as well as a center for seminars and wine education programs. DANIEL DREIFUSS CAT-PEOPLE PERSON WANTED! Are you a “people person” with a passion for helping animals, especially cats? Have it both ways! We need a cat person with people skills who loves to work with likeminded cat people. Golden Oldies is looking for a Volunteer Coordinator. Volunteers are the heart and soul of our organization and have enabled us to save 187 lives so far. Coordinating their efforts will help us be more effective. This is a volunteer position of a few hours a week. 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