A.J. per l'Etna

A fixture of the Austin wine scene for over thirty years, A.J. Hernandez needs no introduction. Always ahead of the curve, he was the first retailer in Texas to feature and bring in the wines of Marco de Grazia and Terry Themselves, among others.

As the first corporate buyer for Twin Liquors,  he presaged the coming explosion of single malt Scotch as a category, established a profound, nationally famous collection of over 300+ , many previously regarded as extremely rare and unobtainable. (A.J. does not like being told that he cannot get something.)

Shifting gears to the wholesale end of the business,  A.J. founded the much beloved and cutting edge distributor, Rosebud Selections.. under this banner, he introduced the wines of The Grateful Palate (Australia), Vine Connections (Argentina and Japan), Via  Pacifica (New Zealand) and Jose Pastor Selections (Spain). He later introduced the wines of Rhone-style specialist, Carina Cellars and the extraordinary wines of the great Cal-Ital producer, Palmina Cellars.

A  diagnosis of  Parkinson's Disease, while putting an end to the entrepreneurial side of his career, allowed him to segue to and redirect his attention to a pair his long-term greatest passions: writing and photography. (Indeed, A.J. was the restaurant critic for The Austin American-Statesman previously!)

Reviving a passion for the mostly unknown wines of Mount Etna, he began writing a blog on the subject. This blog, in turn, became the genesis for his book.

Godly Mountain, Divine Wine: The Wines of Mount Etna, will be published in 2018 by W.I.Publishing. The dream of A.J., this is the capper, the Magnum Opus of A,J.'s professional career. Help him finish his dream quest and produce the most important,  most complete work on the subject to date. Support a worthy cause.