Leigh Talmadge has been in the food and beverage industry since he was in High School in New Jersey. Upon moving to Columbia he began working at the Le Petit Chateau. He then moved to Sausalito California and became a chef at Richardson's on the bay, but he just couldn't stay away from South Carolina. Returning to Columbia he went back to cooking at Le Petit Chateau until the original owner sold it in 1980. Developing a palette for fine wines Leigh began working for Associated Wines and then Southern Wine & Spirits in the Myrtle Beach (Grand Strand) area where he spent fourteen years as the Branch Manager before he opened Hampton Street Vineyard.