who we are
One of the great lessons of Neal’s career has been that the riches of place are not confined to wine and food, or even the extraordinary beauty of the landscape. The wine-growing regions of Europe are home to great art, architecture, design, science, and history, and this cultural energy is an essential part of the story Mad Rose Journeys wishes to tell.
NEAL ROSENTHAL - FOUNDER
Neal Rosenthal is the co-founder of Rosenthal Wine Merchant (RWM), an importer and distributor of limited production, estate-bottled wines from Western Europe. This endeavor began in 1977 as a one-man retail operation in New York City, when Neal stepped away from his law practice to conceive of a project that would operate outside the mainstream wine business.
Neal was joined shortly thereafter by his partner and wife, Kerry Madigan. The two have spent decades working with those who share the RWM passion for terroir, partnering with growers who produce limited quantities of the finest quality wines. They eventually expanded to create Mad Rose Specialty Foods and Closerie des Capucines, a 17th century maison d’hôtes in Arbois in eastern France. The passion and expertise that fueled these ventures is now being brought to light through Mad Rose Journeys, a vision of intelligent, human-focused hospitality.
Neal was born in New York City in 1945 and was educated at Rutgers, Columbia and New York Universities. He is the author of Reflections of a Wine Merchant, published by Farrar, Straus & Giroux in 2008. He was featured in the documentary film Mondovino in 2004.
SIMONE POZZO
Simone’s greatest passion is introducing his clients to the less-discovered places of culture and tradition in Italy, his native country. He was born and raised in Ivrea, a small town with a great industrial design history at the foot of the Italian Alps in the Piemonte. After his studies he joined his family’s 100-year old jewelry business.
Simone has been curating and managing bespoke experiential travel for more than fifteen years. Many of these adventures in various parts of the world have had as their ultimate destination an international marathon. He has run the New York City Marathon six times!
In 2016, thanks to mutual friends, the Ferrando family of Carema, he met Neal Rosenthal with whom, thanks to a common vision, he began to collaborate on the creation of Mad Rose Journeys. A great lover of food and of the marriage of the imagination and skill that is born in the kitchen, he now spends a good part of his time in his restaurant on the island of Formentera, Spain.
LOIC LAMY - EUROPEAN OPERATIONS
Loïc Lamy was born in Paris and raised in the French Alps. His business studies in Lyon, Strasbourg, Paris and New York incited in him a curiosity for travel which led him to work in Australia, Singapore and Hong Kong. Immersion in these different cultures and their gastronomic traditions led him back to the exploration of his own as he became deeply interested in the concepts of taste, terroir and sense of place.
Loïc left his business career to pursue wine and began working with a negociant in Chablis, then studied sommellerie at Suze-la-Rousse. After a few stints in wine bars in the Alps, his passion for pinot noir took him to Burgundy where he has worked in all aspects of the wine industry, from the vines to the cellar to the consumer.
Today Loïc lives just above Pommard in the Hautes Côtes de Beaune with his family and continues to be engaged with winemaking, running a micro-négoce at home. He is dedicated to guiding fellow wine passionates throughout France and Italy in their discovery of wines and their terroir.
MILENA BERMAN - EUROPEAN OPERATIONS
Milena Berman was born in San Francisco and raised in a bicultural family, half German and half American. She studied Art History and Spanish and worked in commercial and non-profit galleries before moving to France to work in cultural tourism. For seven years she designed, planned and accompanied programs for donors and trustees of the world’s top cultural institutions. The trips took her to far-flung places around the globe arranging exceptional encounters in the most intimate ways. Being based in Beaune, Milena was naturally immersed in wine and gastronomy, and found a home in its dynamic wine community. Today she works in various capacities in the realms of wine, art and culture and is most interested in their intersections, while fostering connections and creating meaningful experiences.
