© 2010 ACMEFINEWINES.
Karen Williams’ sojourn into the world of wine began while she was working in a restaurant in Breckenridge, Colorado. When she wasn’t snowboarding (and even when she was) she found herself daydreaming of living in the Napa Valley, surrounded by vines, wines and other wine enthusiasts like herself. She dropped everything and moved to St. Helena, and took a position as a cellar rat with Kent Rasmussen Winery. For two years she tended the barrels, punched down caps, racked the wines, and drove the forklift.
After learning everything she could about the inner workings of a winery, Karen began looking into other aspects of the wine industry that best suited her interests. She began her search at one of the Valley's most popular restaurants for locals and tourists alike-Tra Vigne. As fate would have it, the Cantinetta Wine Bar at Tra Vigne was about to be launched and one more person was needed to complete the team.
During the following three years, she immersed herself in learning everything she could about wines from all over the world, and was instrumental in transforming the gourmet Italian deli into a thriving Wine Bar with over 100 wines by the glass.
In addition to promoting flights of wine to excite and challenge the palates of even the biggest wine geeks (like the “Cult Flight” and the “Featured Winemaker Flight”), Karen also assisted in developing an extensive wine education program for the Tra Vigne staff and guests, as well as Wine Clubs that grew to over 400 members.
The combination of her Kent Rasmussen and Cantinetta experiences coupled with her thirst for learning more and more about wine triggered what she felt was her calling. The next step was to partner in a truly unique wine shop in the heart of the Napa Valley. The business plan? To specialize in local, world-class wines that rarely end up on shelves across the country and to also throw in a few special wines from outside the Napa Valley to excite the locals.
Six years later, and as the company continued to grow, so did its surroundings and the need for a a well-trained team of personal wine consultants. ACME relocated to a larger space located one block north of the old location on Railroad Avenue in the Fulton Lane Warehouse; the perfect setting to entertain clients and showcase the best of what ACME tastes.
When the opportunity presented itself for Karen to take over as the sole owner of ACME, she knew it was important to make a seamless transition within the company and to ensure that ACME's original ideals and principles remained solid. The principles of excellent customer service and the importance of showcasing first-release, great wines, as well as wines that are tried and true are what have helped ACME stand out from other wine shops in the Valley and across the country.
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