S.A. TV celeb harvests new career focused on food, wine(2)
SA Living
In 1997, WOAI launched the morning lifestyle show “San Antonio Living,” and Patton became the founding host and executive producer.
“It was housed in the news department, which made it kind of a foreign object to the news management,” Patton says. “Management left us alone, and let us do what we wanted. The sky was the limit for us creatively.”
Patton captured the flavor of San Antonio by interviewing local chefs, featuring small- business owners and bands, sponsoring contests and interviewing global celebrities who were in town to perform. “The interesting people on that show were not the stars, but the everyday San Antonians who overcame great obstacles and told their stories,” Patton says. “We had a clear mission: to make a difference in a very positive way in our city, and I think we did that. That show had a heart and soul.”
Patton went back to the nightly news desk in 2002 when Debora Daniels retired. In November 2007, Patton and her husband were in Napa, Calif., taking a two-day wine course by the Wine Spirit Education Trust (60 wines in two days) when she received word that her contract would not be renewed.
“By then, Mike and I had already been looking at the next chapter of our lives ... considering importing wines or something that combined our love of food and travel,” Patton says. “So I took the news (of the contract nonrenewal) as a sign that it was OK to move on and pursue this venture.”
Still, leaving the station was painful and tearful. “There were so many relationships with so many people ... ” she says.
Good taste
Immediately, though, Patton started drafting designs for a Web site and brought it to Nathan Turnage, Web developer at Anderson Marketing group.
“I drew little squares on a piece of paper,” she says with a laugh. The result was a warm, earthy-colored Tuscan-themed page with news, recipes, blogs, links and mini-videos that have the look and feel of television.
Patton’s husband still works his headhunter day job, but he has taken over the financial management of the new Web site and television show business.
“This is really a chance to make a living doing something we both care about passionately,” Mike Patton says. “I mean, every meal we have a debate about the wine and the best argument wins.”
Patton works hand-in-hand with her sponsors to create Web site content that doesn’t look or feel like a traditional advertisement. For example, when famed opera singer Andrea Bocelli performed in San Antonio, he requested a pasta dish from Luciano’s every night and had an order of it delivered to his private jet on Thanksgiving morning. Patton posted a photo of Bocelli and the Luciano’s family, a news item about the pasta, and filmed Luciano Centofani sautéing the sizzling garlic and olive pasta dish.
His brother, Gennaro Centofani, president of Luciano Restaurants, says those spots are the best use of the company’s marketing dollars.
“I love the videos because customers get to see and feel what the restaurant looks like. It captures our family’s spirit,” he says. “And the thing I like about Tanji is that you can tell it to her straight and she understands what we’re trying to achieve here.”
Patton is using travel as a way to attract viewers and breed loyalty. Recently the Web site gave away a free trip to Napa. And in October 2009, Patton is offering a value-priced Mediterranean cruise for customers and fans that will combine wine and food events related to each region visited.
“I want people to take away more than just a wine tip. I want them to know there is a story in every glass — a history of the wine producer, the families, the weather stories,” Patton says. “You may like a particular wine, but next year’s vintage may be totally different.”
KLRN’s Vaughn says the station is bombarded by new television program ideas and host wannabes, but very few make the cut.
“It’s amazing to me how many people think they belong on TV, who don’t understand what it takes to reach through all that time and space and connect with the viewers,” Vaughn says. “That’s one thing we don’t have to worry about with Tanji. We know she comes across on television. And money can’t buy that.”
Tanji Patton’s Wine Finds
Top favorites: Cupano Brunello from Tuscany; Rocchioli Pinot Noir
Fun find: Louis Latour Pinot Noir “Valmoisine” — incredible buy at about $12
Fun splurges: Cardinale Cabernet; Plumpjack Cabernet
Unusual discovery: Chocolate Passport at Coco’s Bistro here.
Rare buy: French Bordeaux’s
