About the Southwestern Wine Guy

Jim Hammond the Southwestern Wine GuyJim Hammond, columnist, blogger and raconteur, has been searching the world for the best wines for more than forty years. Known as the Southwestern Wine Guy after a two-year stint with the Albuquerque Journal, as wine columnist, today he is a monthly Artful Pairings columnist for ABQArts Magazine, contributes regularly to Examinar.com, provides wine pairing ideas for New Mexico Magazine, and hosts The Spirits of New Mexico on Rock of Talk 1600 AM and Live! 95.9 FM. Jim maintains a well-read wine blog The Southwestern Wine Guy, (see archive) where he describes his experiences and insights on a wide range of topics and wine regions. Jim hosted radio blog On the Road with the Southwestern Wine Guy, featuring virtual tours of wine regions with reviews of wines and restaurants and was a regular contributor to blogtalk radio show Bold Food with Bold Wines with Jane Butel. Click here for a complete list of Jim’s columns and articles.

He recently completed the second edition in the first in a series of Southwestern wine guides, and he stays busy with speaking engagements at wine festivals, private parties, and other types of events.

Jim demonstrates wine pairing at the Standard Diner in Albuquerque, NM

Jim has a light, humorous, and information-packed style that provides something of value for readers from the novice to the seasoned wine connoisseur. He also writes food and wine reviews for Albuquerque Arts magazine, and gives numerous presentations on wine for several organizations. As host on the blog talk radio program On the Road with the Southwestern Wine Guy, he dispensed advice on wine, wineries, bargains food and wine pairing.

Hammond seeks out excellent wines, regardless of price, recommending best value wines in the $10 to $20 price range as well as high-ticket wines that are not to Wines of Enchantment 2012be missed. His Wine Maestro series of presentations and events offer an imaginative tour of the wine and food palate, and generate rave reviews. Hammond is a delightful raconteur, a skill honed by more than 30 years as a technical instructor to IT professionals – a tough crowd to please.

His book, “Wines of Enchantment, A Guide to Finding and Enjoying the Wines of New Mexico”, published in 2008, is the first of a planned series of books on the wines and wine industries in the Southwest. And with New Mexico’s wine industry growing so quickly Jim decided he needed to publish a 2nd edition – the “Centennial Edition”.