Porthos is the name of the fun loving, wine drinking musketeer from Alexandre Dumas’ novel, The Three Musketeers. Porthos Wine Ventures was founded by three wine lovers now dedicated to seizing the finest undiscovered small production “boutique” wines in Napa and Sonoma and rescuing them for your cellar!
Why "The Wine Insiders"
Our mission is to build long term, personal relationships with our clients by providing…
Porthos is perfectly located at the crossroad between Napa and Sonoma and we’re here to offer you “insider” connections to the finest hard-to-find and small production, “boutique” wines not normally available in regular retail stores.
At Porthos, we're committed to providing you “insider” information about the best new up-and-coming wines before they are discovered by the wine critics and collector crowds!
HistoryPORTHOS was established in June, 2000 in Sausalito, California by Hal Oates and his business partner Nick Moult. Porthos originally started as a newsletter for co-founder Hal Oates' thirsty friends and family in Texas looking for hard-to-find California wines and has since grown to become the #1 "wine personal shopper" service in California. Since the original clients of Porthos were all friends and family, our team established a highly personalized customer service attitude which we’re proud to maintain today with our extended “family” of fellow wine lovers. While many of our colleagues in the wine world love to pontificate about what wines they love, our purpose is to help you find the wines you already love and then introduce you to new wines according to your individual tastes!
Our Guarantee If you're not happy with a purchase or one of PORTHOS’ recommendations, we'll do what it takes to make you happy. But we ask our customers to acknowledge that wine is a living thing, easily bruised, damaged, or killed in a variety of ways. All wine sold by us is maintained at optimum conditions.
We consider wine to be out of our control once it has been successfully delivered and you've had a reasonable time to sample it. We cannot be responsible for improper storage (storing on top of your refrigerator, in your car, next to your oven, for example).
Know your palate: Older wines (ten years or more) may differ from their characteristics on release - and still be great wines. If you purchase older wines, be patient and allow your mind - and the wine - to open.
We cannot accept returns for sound wines that do not coincide with personal tastes.
In general, PORTHOS will make every effort to resolve any wine issues to your satisfaction.
FAQ's
LEGAL AGE
By submitting an order to PORTHOS Wine Ventures, Inc. you are also submitting that you are 21 years of age and legally able to purchase and consume alcoholic beverages. Wines may be delivered to persons of 21 years of age or older only. You will be asked to provide positive ID by the shipper or carrier. PORTHOS is not responsible for the return of shipments due to lack of positive ID, and return shipping charges are your responsibility. All wine is sold in the State of California, and the title passes to the buyer in California. PORTHOS makes no representation to the legal rights of anyone to ship or import wine into any state outside of California. By placing an order with us, you are stating to us that you are in compliance with your local laws governing alcoholic beverages.
PRIVACY
We promise to protect your privacy. Please review our privacy policy for details about what information we collect from you and how we use it. Questions or concerns? Contact us.
SHIPPING POLICIES
Due to some arcane, prohibition-era interstate shipping regulations that remain in a few states, PORTHOS cannot mail wine to all 50 states. Thankfully, these laws are changing rapidly (well, sort of), but if you ask PORTHOS to send wine to a state that is included on the current "black list" of off-limit states, we’ll contact you directly in order to make other arrangements.PORTHOS reserves the right to hold shipment of your wine during extreme weather conditions. Although unlikely, we reserve the right to raise prices for shipping/handling without notice. PORTHOS cannot be responsible for damage to wine (including leakage or damaged corks) shipped to you against our express protestations in regards to weather conditions. PORTHOS cannot be responsible for wine damaged by a shipper or inappropriate storage/handling on the part of the buyer, although we will make a reasonable effort to resolve any disputes. We reserve the right to refuse sales if we deem it to be inappropriate and/or unsafe.
PORTHOS RETURN POLICY
If you're not happy with a purchase or one of PORTHOS’ recommendations, we'll do what it takes to make you happy. But we ask our customers to acknowledge that wine is a living thing, easily bruised, damaged, or killed in a variety of ways. All wine sold by us is maintained at optimum conditions. We consider wine to be out of our control once it has been successfully delivered and you've had a reasonable time to sample it. We cannot be responsible for improper storage (storing on top of your refrigerator, in your car, next to your oven, for example). Know your palate: Older wines (ten years or more) may differ from their characteristics on release - and still be great wines. If you purchase older wines, be patienwt and allow your mind - and the wine - to open. We cannot accept returns for sound wines that do not coincide with personal tastes. In general, PORTHOS will make every effort to resolve any wine issues to your satisfaction.
PRE-ORDER POLICY
Occasionally, we offer our most highly-sought-after wines to our loyal clients on a pre-order basis before the wine is released*. In the wine industry this policy is also sometimes referred to as a “futures” offer. We believe this is the most democratic manner to guarantee thirsty “friends of Porthos” a specific quantity of a particular wine they desire. In order to guarantee the wine purchase, Porthos will charge the client’s credit card for wine, shipping, and sales tax (if applicable) at the time of the order. At that time, Porthos will advise the client of the estimated shipping date. Then, Porthos will re-notify the client once the pre-ordered wine ships. Timing may range from several weeks to a few months before the winery delivers their wine to us.
What should I do if I find a bottle of one of PORTHOS Favorites at the corner wine shop for $1 less than listed on your website?
Buy it from the corner wine shop! Seriously, some retailers (small or large, in any state) may have special connections with one of PORTHOS’ Favorite wineries (or that winery’s local wholesaler) from California or around the World that enable that retailer to purchase an occasional case or two of wine at deeply discounted prices. PORTHOS’ prices are normally less than most "bricks and mortar" wine retailers because we have minimal overhead. However, if you ever feel that you have paid an unfair price for one of our wines, let us know and we’ll be happy to give you a credit on your next purchase representing the difference between the PORTHOS price you paid and any published price from any retailer.
Hal Oates || Co-Founder and President
Hal grew up in Texas with a large, loving family that was/is obsessed with sensational food and wine. Hal's first trip to Napa was at age 10 and his only regret is that he didn't return to start Porthos sooner. After college at the University of Virginia and business school at Wharton, Hal spent ten years in consumer advertising and promotions with PepsiCo. Hal relocated from Texas to northern California for his last assignment as V.P. of Corporate marketing working with George Lucas and the Lucasfilm management team to develop all corporate advertising and promotions for Star Wars. Hal quickly became more interested in wine sampling than film marketing and began an "insiders" newsletter raving about the best undiscovered wineries in Napa and Sonoma. That newsletter led to the development of Porthos after enough friends and family complained they couldn't purchase (locally) any of the new wines Hal recommended. Today, Hal and his team are dedicated to sourcing and recommending the finest small production wines in California according to each clients' personal tastes.
Pamela Jessup || Director of Nat'l SalesPam works with the thirstiest Porthos clients to help them aquire their favorite wines and personally recommends new discoveries based upon each client’s individual palate. Pam is a true Napa ‘insider’. Born, raised and residing in the Napa Valley Wine Country. She co-founded Jessup Cellars in Napa in 1996. Knowing first hand the hard work and passion a first generation Napa Valley boutique winery faces to get wines to those who are looking for the undiscovered Napa Valley gems. Pam led national sales and marketing for Jessup Cellars for 10 years before deciding she was ready to expand her horizons and sell a broader portfolio of the finest wines from California’s small “boutique” producers. Pam now picks the best-of-the-best new wines for Porthos’ clients with a particular emphasis on her favorite varietals including Sumptuous, Age Worthy Cabernet, Big Chardonnays, luscious Zins and sultry Merlots to those who share the passion of enjoying excellent wine.
Eric Smith || Director of Strategic Development
One of the original inspirations behind Porthos, Eric rejoined the team in 2006 to lead client management strategy and wine acquisitions. Eric brings a wide variety of experience to the Porthos team including retail, restaurants, imports, and a very fair share of personal ‘research!’ Having been born and raised in the Chilean wine country Eric has wine history in his blood. Prior to Porthos, Eric spent 5 years in the import export side of the wine industry. Most recently he headed Artemis Wines International overseeing all national sales, marketing, distributor and public relations efforts for its import winery clients. Previous to Artemis he was Director of Export for Scott Street Portfolio where he negotiated and managed the entry of 40+ US wineries (Alban Vineyards, Kistler, L’Ecole 41 Niebaum Coppola to name a few) into the competitive Hong Kong market. At the same time he created and shipped a new brand from Chile, Viña Corral, into the UK market. Prior to his first time at Porthos, he founded Viñas International, a tour company that pioneered wine tourism combined with Patagonian adventure travel in Chile and Argentina. Additionally Eric sits on the board of Directors for the non-profit Under One Roof, where he created the acclaimed San Francisco Champagne & Sparkling Wine Tasting & Auction Benefit.
Nick Moult || Co-Founder and Director Of Operations
Nicholas Moult, Co-Founder and V.P. of Operations, grew up in England and became a wine lover while working in kitchens around Europe and, prior to Porthos, Lulu's and Plumpjack's in Northern California. In the early 1990's, Nick managed the construction and operations of a wine bar in Austria, several restaurants in New Zealand and hospital units in Kuwait during the first Gulf War. Nick utilizes his diverse culinary and logistics experience to help Porthos select California + wines with an international flavor as well as make sure our valuable clients receive the wine they order in a timely manner.
Ryan Lee || Webmaster/Multimedia
Ryan leads all creative and technical developments for Porthos.com. Prior to Porthos, Ryan scored movies and television commercials for several years as well as successfully launching a new restaurant concept for Gap, Inc. A native Californian, Ryan arrived at Porthos with a palate for Sauvignon Blanc and Pinot Noir and continues to enjoy these varietals immensely. However, Ryan has more recently developed a passion for Napa Cabernet, BIG Chardonnay, and decadent Zinfandel. Ryan is also producer for Thewineinsiders Podcasts available for download on Apple iTunes.
Mitcie Hanson || Wine Club Manager
Mitcie is a true California wine gal! Raised locally, she enjoys nothing more than a glass of wine from the Golden State. After graduating from the University of California at Davis, Mitcie dedicated herself to a career selling "Apples" (computers). She lived in England for a short time but missed the wines of California so much she had to return! She decided that working in hi-tech left her 'dry' so she followed her passion into wine.
Cathy Phillips || Finance Manager
Cathy is a native of Northern California born in the Russian River Valley at a time when apples were the rage before being replaced by Chardonnay and Pinot Noir. She graduated with a major in Latin American Studies from UC Berkeley in the early 90's only to spend more than five years in the dot.com/hi-tech sector. She spent so much time cooking and visiting local wineries, that a career in the hospitality industry was inevitable. Once she switched careers to Accounting in 2002, she embarked on her chosen path fulfilling an endless passion for numbers and wine.
Maria Newman || Client Relations
A vivacious Napa native, Maria's passion is to play 'matchmaker' and pair new friends with favorite new wines. Maria's career in wine began at the Napa Wine Lab where she gained tremendous experience sampling hundreds of new wines and working with many of the most talented (and renowned) micro-production winemakers. More recently, Maria served as hospitality and tasting room manager for several private wineries. When Maria's not working with thirsty Porthos clients, she loves to read recipe books, spend time with her kids and husband, go on new adventures with her family.
