Two vintage German wine tastings lured Christian Adams, 37, of Biebelsheim, Germany, to the United States this September, his first trip to the United States in five years.
The deputy director of a trade group that promotes German wine exports, Adams was on his way from the first tasting, which ended Sept. 10 in New York, to the second, scheduled for Sept. 13 in San Francisco, when he died in the hijacking of United Airlines Flight 93.
Every year, someone from Adams' group comes to the states for the two tastings, said Carol Sullivan, executive director of the German Wine Information Bureau, the New York-based American branch of the German Wine Institute.
But she said it was rare for Adams to come to the United States himself--the wine-making season in Germany coincides with the typically late-September tasting dates, Sullivan said.
"His wife's family and Christian have their own small winery, which made it difficult for him to come. But because of the Jewish holidays, we were holding the event earlier in the month this year," Sullivan said.
A native of Germany, Adams had a degree in oenology (the science of wine) and viticulture (the cultivation of grapes) from the Geisenheim Research Institute, a wine-making school in the Rheinland, in western Germany, Sullivan said. Adams had been head of the German Wine Institute's export efforts for 12 years and also had a marketing degree from the University of California at Davis.
"For all of us that are involved in this work, it's more of a family than a job. And Christian was the hub. He was the center of this," Sullivan said. "I will always remember his thoughtful counsel and dedication and hard work and easy-going manner and wonderful sense of humor, that just made working with him an absolute pleasure."
Adams and his wife had two children, Lucas, 7, and Theresa, 5.
Prayers & Condolences For: Christian Adams BY Anonymous on Feb 18, 2007
I am so sorry. I will miss you and everybody else. ... My prayers will go out to you. Heather Handley
Prayers & Condolences For: Christian Adams BY Anonymous on Feb 18, 2007
May God reward this nation for the love you have shown this country. You have given so many a gift that can never be taken lightly. Many more are sure to have died without the love and sacrfice that you and the many others showed on September 11, 2001. Thank you -- not only from me but from the nation, this nation that stands for freedom, love and dreams. Heather Jamieson
Prayers & Condolences For: Christian Adams BY Anonymous on Feb 18, 2007
Represented the German wine industry abroad and ran a vineyard in Biebelsheim. Adams was flying from New York, where a wine tasting was held September 10, to San Francisco for another tasting.
Prayers & Condolences For: Christian Adams BY Anonymous on Feb 18, 2007
May your heaven be filled with wine and roses, and may your family find peace after your loss in this senseless, devastating international tragedy.
Patti Cuneo
Prayers & Condolences For: Christian Adams BY Anonymous on Sep 13, 2006
I am so sorry Lucas and Theresa have been denied your presence.