Welcome to Pilar

Where great wines
come to Mississippi

Join Mississippi’s only wine club, where passion and commitment to
quality has curated a unique offering of wine packages never offered
before in Mississippi. Become a member and have the opportunity to join
our wine program, talk to industry experts and receive membership only
opportunities. Pilar is pioneering direct to consumer in Mississippi.

Our Story

Our Commitment to Mississippi

What happened was, Kirby was an avid wine drinker who had the occasion to visit the Beau Rivage Casino on the gulf coast. On Many occasions, Mark was the sommelier, who served Kirby on regular occasions. A friendship developed. One night, Kirby mentioned to Mark that he wanted to get into the wine distribution business. Mark thought “yea, good luck with that”. In 2016, Kirby acquired Palmetto, a small wine brokerage owned by friends. Fast forward to 2020. The pandemic was here, Mark was in Washington D.C./Maryland running the wine program for Chefs such as Jose Andres, Markcus Samuelson, The Voltaggio Brothers, and other well known, successful restaurantuers at MGM National Harbour. Needless to say, he was ready to come home to Mississippi. Mark called Kirby and asked about working in the wine industry in Mississippi, and whether Kirby had any contacts. Kirby said “yes, me, let’s talk”. Mark has been the managing partner of Pilar ever since.

"Wine is one of the most civilized thing in the world and one of the most natural things of the world that has been brought to the greatest perfection, and it offers a greater range for enjoyment and appreciation than, possibly, any other purely sensory thing." - Ernest Hemingway

"The only thing I regret in life is that I did not drink more wine." - Ernest Hemingway

"I drink to make other people more interesting" - Ernest Hemingway

"Drinking wine was not a snobbism nor a sign of sophistication nor a cult; it was as natural as eating and to me as necessary." - Ernest Hemingway

"A bottle of wine was good company" - Ernest Hemingway

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Our Partners

We stand by our supplier partners.

Our Team

Meet our Team

Kirby Boteler

PArtner

Mark Warren

Managing Partner

Corey Ellison

Sales

Elliott V. Haller

Partner

Beth Brazile

North Mississippi Sales

A Word from Mark Warren

It is good to be home. This was a calming thought as I sat on my porch pondering what to do next after spending the last fifteen years with MGM Resorts working in Las Vegas, Biloxi, and for the last five years in Washington DC. Before MGM, I was recruited to create an import sales division for a growing distributor in Virginia. I joined The Country Vintner in 2001 as the director of Australian and New Zealand estates. This opportunity allowed me to work as an importer, distributor, and marketing agent creating brand concepts, labels, and sales strategies that are still used today. I am very proud to say I helped grow this business from a small regional company to one the largest wine companies in the country, now known as Winebow.

I feel so lucky to have the experiences that life has given me, and it is funny how unforeseen circumstances impact your future. After college I moved to Maryland to help a friend through a kidney transplant at Johns Hopkins, he knew a restaurateur opening a very promising new venture in north Baltimore county and could get me job. That restaurant was the Oregon Grille and it was the preferred venue for The Wine Advocate. The Wine Advocate was the premier wine publication, created by Robert Parker or Bob as we knew him. I took care of him for a year, but he really took care of me. Because of Bob I tasted every wine of relevance at the time. Every first growth Bordeaux, DRC, La Las, everything. This was an education that taught me the classic wine styles and introduced me to legends in the wine industry. It was an amazing time filled with so many memories and lessons that gave me a wealth of experience.

At this point I moved to San Francisco and took classes at California Culinary Academy, but realized my favorite times were in wine country and wine was my path. I am honored to have been in the first of those that passed Court of Master Sommelier certifications in Mississippi and the only CMS Advanced Sommelier in the state. While preparing for the Master Sommelier exam, I am committed to building the next class of Mississippi wine professionals and hopefully my path will lead the way for others success.

When presented with the opportunity to come back to Mississippi as a partner at Pilar Wine Brokers and lead the business, I thought of all my experiences and how uniquely prepared I am to excel in this role, and I felt like I have finally come home. It is so good to be home.

Where great wines come to Mississippi