TALK DESCRIPTION:
Mr. Ryan will take us on a journey through the history of White House hospitality that explores presidents’ experience of wine. Early presidents recognized the important function wine played in entertaining at the White House. Some appreciated and enjoyed wine; others considered it merely a ceremonial necessity. Still others campaigned to outlaw wine and banned it from the White House. More recently, all presidents, regardless of whether they enjoyed wine themselves, have used the White House as a venue to showcase the fine wines produced in the United States. Proceeds from the sale of his book, “Wine and the White House,” benefit the White House Historical Association.

SPEAKER BIO: Frederick J. Ryan, Jr., publisher and CEO of The Washington Post, has been an aficionado of both wine and White House history for most of his life. Growing up in Italy and California, he developed an early interest in wine and its production, studied winemaking and its history, and now participates in a joint winemaking venture in Napa Valley.

Mr. Ryan’s fascination with wine parallels his lifelong interest in the U.S. presidency. He served in a senior staff position in the Ronald Reagan White House and as Reagan’s post-presidential chief of staff. Ryan currently serves as chair of the Board of Directors of the White House Historical Association, of the Board of Trustees of the Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation, and of the Wine Committee of the Metropolitan Club of Washington, D.C.

Graduating magna cum laude from the University of Southern California in 1977 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science and Speech Communication, he also received his Juris Doctor with an academic honor in 1980 from the University’s Law Center.

Mr. Ryan is the author of “Wine and the White House” (White House Historical Association, 2020). He is the editor of “Ronald Reagan: The Wisdom and Humor of The Great Communicator” and “Ronald Reagan: The Great Communicator” (Harper Collins, 1995, 2001).