Episodes

I keep hearing how the industry has to change, how Gen Z is aren't drinking wine, how the trade is slow to do anything....until you speak with Abby Bogle. She is the type of enthusiasm and drive that is needed to move with th...

I can tell you it was like sitting with a long, lost neighbor when sitting with Kelly E. Carter. And in fact, we were neighbors of sorts back in the day. It wasn't until I was searching for images to create the icons for thi...

Sometimes I just get an hankering. Ya know, a chance to try and tell it like it is. There is no óne-size" fits all solution to what is happening in our trade. And there still are many successes in the trade...more to come on ...

One of the on-going themes with Wine Talks, with virtually all guests, is the idea that you never stop learning in the wine trade. I supposed you could say that about many industries, but wine carries with it the idea of the ...

I can talk about this stuff for days. Get me on a high horse and it is off to the races. I’ve tasted more wines than most people could ever dare dream of—but what fascinates me isn’t just what’s in the glass. It’s the stories...

I have had a dozen cellar apps. In fact, many were brought to me as the President of the Original Wine of the Month Club to be tested. The current database that houses all my internal tastings over the past 35 years was never...

The Armenian wine trade, like the rest of the wine world, has headwinds and maybe a bit more than the more established countries and regions where wine is well known and respected. You have to add to the mix of struggles; unk...

Wine Talks is deeply connected to the Judgement of Paris. Not only were the Barretts good customers of our wine shop, Warren Winiarski stayed in our home on a trip to Los Angeles. The industry was completely different then. C...

Famed Chef Jonathan Waxman came to Wine Talks through a mutual friend who we lost last year to cancer; Melvin Masters was a one-of-a-kind character in the wine trade and Jonathans partner in the famed Jams Restaruarant. On a ...

You can't speak of trends in the wine trends in the wine trade without mentioning Felicity Carter. You can't talk data mining in the wine trade without mentioning Felicity Carter...in fact, I can't think of many surrounding t...

Not of all wine news is about a drop in sales or activity...wine tourism is up. On Wine Talks I regularly discuss the idea that wine is headed back in time to the days where the experience of wine is driving the interest in w...

The wines of the Monterey Peninsula, and particularly those of the Carmel Valley, are exquisite. It is always just so interesting to have the some grape grown in different parts of the world and be so different...soely on the...

When people enter a room, you instantly get a sense of their disposition in life. Are they smiley? Frowning? friendly? Gregarious? and you instantly if this is going to work. I knew instantly that this was going to work when ...

A few years ago, a young woman was interning at the Original Wine of the Month Club. Her internship revolved around social networking, office duties, and one particular job that may have set her career path. Lisa Kassabian wa...

I have been hanging around the South Bay beaches since my youth. Maybe you caught my Instagram posts about how that happened. As a family, we spent much of our time in Hermosa Beach; I love the SoCal beach culture. There is a...

Enotoursim has been a staple in the tourism trade. One of my favorite podcast was with XXX Duput, the woman who delivered the wines from Napa to Steven Spurrier in Paris for the Judgement In Paris. She was the leading Enotour...

Wine needs a fresh face. Well, that is if you ask the pundits in the industry. I am not sure I agree. Certainly, any industry needs to keep up with the times, I suppose marketing ideas and packaging ideas would follow. I am n...

You know the Kladstrups. Frankly, anyone interested in wine, whether through in the trade or as a consumer, should/must read their first book on wine: Wine and War. Since they have published 3 more books and just releasing th...

Sometimes, I just have to say my peace and get on with it. Though in this episode, I dig into the relationships that are forged like in no other industry. Hear me out. I would argue that the best stories in wine aren't just ...

Once I was asked to meet a vendor at a local diner...a diner like the one at the end of the movies Sideways. Complete with amber plastic tumblers. IN walked one of the old time great wine slaesman with his wares in tow. I mu...

Legacy in the wine trade is not guaranteed. Not every child wants to take on the wine trade. I have many stories of famed children of iconic brands setting out to carve their own path to only lnad back in this passionate busi...

When I was approached by a PR firm to interview the Stephen and Jennifer McPherson, I gladly agreed not knowing a thing. Podcasts guests are not hard to find in the industry...but good podcasts guests...that is a different st...

This is absolutely incredible. During this conversation with Master of Wine Tim Hanni, I had to step back and take a breather. He speaks on such a level about wine and the errors of the industry and packs so much into a singl...

Reaching out to Polly to have a chat about coming on Wine Talks, was like a breath of fresh air. Podcasting takes great effort and a conscious effort to be better and to look for guests that can add to the entertainment and e...