Barry H. Sterling

Barry Sterling knew as a child he wanted to be a lawyer. Accelerating his studies in the lower grades, he entered Stanford at the age of 16 and passed the bar examination before graduation at the age of 22. The summer of 1952 was an eventful one for Barry. He graduated, married Audrey, a Stanford classmate, and moved to Washington, D.C., to join the Judge Advocate General's Corps. In the top of his military class, Barry was selected to work at the Pentagon and spent two years representing the United States Army in contract negotiations. He also assisted the Defense Department's legal staff during the McCarthy senate hearings.

Upon completion of his two-year military tour, he returned to his native Los Angeles to practice corporate law, founding his own firm by 1960. He became active in Democratic politics working for presidential campaigns, as Treasurer of the State Democratic Party, as Finance Chairman for the Democratic Governor's campaign and as Finance Committee Vice-Chairman for other state and national campaigns.

His home life was equally busy. A daughter, Joy, and son, Laurence, completed the family. He and Audrey acquired homes, improved and extended them and entertained constantly. Both were active participants in a civic renaissance as original founders of the Los Angeles Music Center and Los Angeles Art Museum. His first trip to Europe, a 30th birthday gift from Audrey, began years of travel abroad for both business and pleasure. He fell in love with France and vowed to live there.

His law firm had grown and prospered, but in 1966 an irresistible opportunity presented itself. By joining the well-known firm, Wyman, Bautzer, Rothman, Kuchel & Silbert, Barry could practice in Paris, representing both American and European clients in international corporate securities and general international law. Without hesitation the family moved to a "belle epoque" apartment in Paris. They purchased a home in the South of France and later a 300-year-old Queen Anne home in London when Barry also opened an office in that city.

Wine and food became a major part of life as the Sterlings immersed themselves in the French culture. Home entertainment-still almost a 19th century way of life at that time-increased his knowledge of French cooking and wines. The Paris apartment included an empty wine cave below street level with a space for 10,000 bottles. Barry launched a tasting program, collecting more than 4,000 bottles of the finest wines in Europe.

As the family traveled to their home in the South of France, they would zigzag across the country, trying new restaurants and wines. On other occasions they would visit homes of artists, sculptors and authors as well as museums and art galleries, always tasting wines of the area. With friends, they arranged bus trips to wine regions, participating in tastings. Barry became celebrated as one of the few Americans to win a major Paris blind wine tasting as a result of his knowledge of lesser-known Loire Valley wines.

Although raised in the city, Barry's family had strong ties to the land. His Canadian grandfather was a grain farmer, his father owned a farm at a young age and his family owned a table grape, date and grapefruit operation in the Coachella Valley. On his mother's side,the family had grown walnuts in Southern California. One of his great grandfathers had, in fact, been a vintner in Moldova.