One of Us: Pablo Alfaro

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Pablo Alfaro is a regional sales manager at Pacific Southern Wine Co. who has lived in Ponte Vedra for 21 years.

Can you please tell us about your background?

I was born and raised in Lima, Peru, where my entire family still lives today. While I was in Peru, I was a personal trainer and model, and I also worked for a credit card company. I came to the United States in 1988 to Huntington Beach, California, where I attended and played soccer at Orange Coast College. After school, I worked in the restaurant industry as a bartender and waiter. I moved to Orlando in 1993 to play indoor soccer and work in the real estate industry. I moved to Ponte Vedra in 1997 and in 1999, I started working at Pacific Southern Wine Co.

What are your primary roles and responsibilities as regional sales manager at Pacific Southern Wine Co.?

I represent a fine wine portfolio of 15 wineries (mainly from California, plus a few international wines), and I work directly with our distributors and wine buyers in Florida. I educate both sales staff at the distributors and consumers about the wines. I attend wine events and wine dinners and speak about the wines and winemaking in general.

What makes Pacific Southern Wine Co. different?

Pacific Southern is family-owned, and we represent wineries such as Steele, Frog’s Leap, ZD, Truchard and others. We are very dedicated to our wineries and sell the wine brands as though they are our own.

What do you enjoy most about working in the wine industry?

I enjoy meeting people and sharing knowledge about the wines and the region that they come from. I enjoy the curiosity of people when it comes to wine, and there are no “wrong questions,” as it is a constant learning process. I have made many friends through wine events and spent many evenings over some really good wine getting to know people in our community.

 What do you like to do in your free time?

I love sports. I surf when the waves are good, and I love soccer as I grew up in South America, where it’s the No. 1 sport. I’m very excited this month as Peru is in the World Cup for the first time in 36 years. And of course, living in Ponte Vedra, I like to play golf on a regular basis.

What do you enjoy most about living in Ponte Vedra?

This is a wonderful community, where people know each other. I think highly of our schools and educators and the YMCA in Ponte Vedra. I try to support as many charity events as I can. As a member of The Ponte Vedra Inn & Club — my “second home” — I’ve made many friends and feel very fortunate to have the ability to live and work in such a beautiful place.