LOS ANGELES, Dec. 10 (UPI) -- Robert Balzer, longtime wine critic for the Los Angeles Times, died in Southern California at the age of 99, his family announced.
Balzer died Dec. 1 in Orange after a storied career in which he wrote a dozen books about fine wines and the growth of California's wine industry as well as regular columns in the Times, which were widely read both within and outside the industry.
"He was delightful and taught others to love wine in a day when many wine connoisseurs were viewed as 'wine snobs,'" said Mary Ellen Cole, the coordinator of the Los Angeles International Wine and Spirits Competition.
Balzer's early career included service as a U.S. Army flight instructor during World War II and a stint as a United Press International photographer in Southeast Asia. He wrote for the Times from 1964-1995 and also started one of the first subscription newsletters about wine in 1970.
Marvin Shanken, editor and published of Wine Spectator, told the Times Balzer was, "California's first truly great wine writer."
The Times noted that for all of his knowledge and his connections to the wine industry, Balzer preferred to unwind at the end of the day with a glass of Johnny Walker Red Scotch on the rocks.
