Coast to Coast Meets “The Prince of Luxury” Noel Shu 

Concetta DeLuco sits down with inspiring young sommelier, author, and entrepreneur, Noel Shu, who shares a bit about his journey to success and becoming a self-made millionaire. 

He didn’t always start as a sommelier! Noel got his start as a jeweler in New York City, where his passion for luxury items and the finer things in life pushed him to start his own jewelry business. With this, Shu was able to accumulate high-class clientele from China and eventually start moving into the realm of alcohol as a sommelier.

What started as a personal hobby of educating himself on wine, turned into a real position as head sommelier and managing partner at Prodiguer Brands, where Shu has accomplished enormous feats, such as selling the most expensive bottle of champagne at a whopping $1.8 million dollars. 

Selling the bottle was no easy task, but paid off in the end, according to Shu. “What happened was…we did a limited edition bottle… Our normal bottles are made with Pewter labels, so we switched that with 18-karat white gold and then on the regular bottles, there are Swarovski crystals and we replaced that with a 19-karat diamond…I mean, that was a brainchild of Shammi Shinh and we kind of used that to basically build up Prodiguer Brand’s reputation in the wine industry.”

As one of the most well-regarded sommeliers in the world, Noel has certainly made a name for himself as one of the sole importers of California wine to China. He can also now add author to his list of accomplishments, with the release of his new book, China Through a Glass of Wine, which documents Shu’s travels across China and his experience with the Chinese wine industry. 

Not only does the book focus on Shu’s first-hand account with the Chinese wine industry, but it also features helpful tips for aspiring sommeliers, such as a step-by-step guide on how to interact with the Chinese when conducting business. 

With an impressive resume including a background as a West Point Academy graduate and a special forces combat diver, Shu attributes his professional success to his parents and their support. 

Stay tuned for Shu’s future endeavors, including his attempt to “re-break” the record of selling the most expensive bottle of champagne. For more information, visit www.noeljshu.com or check out our YouTube: