Season 16
Sept. 26, 2023
Love at first site and other crazy notions about wine. Meet Kenny Kahn.
Reading Kenny's website , you will learn that the night he met his wife it was love ar first sight...for him. Tongue tied the rest of the night, the story ends well with solid marriage; let's face it, it would have to be if she stuck around through...
Sept. 21, 2023
Max Mussio Lewis defines Friuli wine. Meet Max.
Once in a while in this crazy business, you stumble across passion that has no bounds. Certainly, even to engage in the wine trade it takes passion, but there is typically an end to it. I am not sure it is fair to say the passion has an end, but there...
Sept. 15, 2023
A very rare wine story. It doesn't happen like this. Meet Alex Gambal.
It just doesn't happen like this. All the headwinds were there. It most likely cannot be repeated, so don't get any bright ideas. Americans don't just pick up and move to Burgundy, buy land, produce wine, become indoctrinated to the region and...
Sept. 12, 2023
Perserverance is the only explanation. Hear the incredible story of Laura Donadoni, Italian wine girl.
Sometimes you just come across a story that makes you realize that you haven't had is so tough. You haven't had to start from scratch...ever. You haven't had to leave your life behind in your home country to start a new. You haven't had to learn a new...
Sept. 9, 2023
They don't make them like Melvyn anymore. Hear Melvyn Master in his own words.
If you want to know ground zero information about this business. Listen to this.
Sept. 7, 2023
Counterfeit wine is real (real fake!). Meet the pre-eminent authority, Maureen Downey.
We all know the story of Rudy Kurniawan, the famed subject of the movie "Sour Grapes" and the most publicized of wine counterfeiters. When the FBI needed help in understanding what otherwise was, according to the FBI, "non-consequential", they turned...
Sept. 5, 2023
As a woman of color, the headwinds in this industry are compounded. Meet the Millennial Somm, Isis Daniel.
Wine is ethereal. It literally binds people together. It brings something to the table that should and does transcend race, gender, lifestyle and generations. Isis Daniel is a testimony to that very bind. She coined "The Millennial Somm" as her...
Aug. 31, 2023
Drive would be a word for Nova Cadamarte, but it doesn't tell the real story.
The Master of Wine Diploma out of London is probably the most rigorous of certifications to acquire. It took Nova 8 years of study, frustration and tasting to get it done; and that was only after she failed out the first time around. Yes, you can...
Aug. 29, 2023
He found a need in Napa, filled it and expanded it. Meet John Wilkinson of Bin to Bottle.
John Wilkinson was making wine at home. Afterall, he was living in the Napa Valley but felt disconnected not having any relationship with the most public of industries. As he sought advice from his friends to figure how to get his wine right, he...
Aug. 23, 2023
She is a true winemaker. Has an opinion and it shows in her incredible wines. Meet Elizabeth Tangney..
When one stumbles across a strong will in the wine industry, one has to take notice. A strong will will necessarily show through in the resulting wines. It takes an opinion, it takes a will to create the finest example of wine a vineyard can...
Aug. 23, 2023
With Phd. and passion, Katarina Andersson shifted gears and fell in love with wine.
The path to being intoxicated with wine (I do not mean with alcohol) comes in many fashions. Virtually everyone that is consumed with wine has a story to tell. Some left the family wine business to become lawyers or even doctors but the allure brought...
Aug. 15, 2023
Valle de Uco is the Napa Valley of Argentina. Stories are real.
Rodrigo Leone tells of the family history and the inspiration of wine.
Aug. 11, 2023
Heritage, hotels, rugs and wine. Meet James Tufenkian
Was there a Bob Hope movie....The Road to Yerevan? Maybe not, but the road to Yerevan for James Tufenkian is fascinating. James is one motivated diasporan. He has created a well-known, world-wide hand woven carpet, planted 1,000,000 trees in...
Aug. 8, 2023
The stories are crazy good. Meet the Wine Merchant of Beverly Hills; Mr. Dennis Overstreet
He is mythical in stature in our industry. Meet the Merchant of Beverly Hills Dennis Overstreet.
Aug. 1, 2023
Real talk, real wine, real Washington. Meet John Bookwalter.
It is very often you hear about an American family 10 generations into their contribution to society/ Certainly, you hear of such geneology in Europe; namesake wineries handed down through the generations. In this case, it is 10 generations of...
July 25, 2023
Food and wine writer and recipe creator...meet Emily Saladino.
Such a bright light in the world of wine and food; and she can create recipes out of thin air. Emily Saladino has made her way around both the world of culinary arts and wine to create give herself a comprehensive understanding of the marriage...
July 19, 2023
Big picture view of the liquor and wine business with Tim Moore, VP of Wine for RNDC.
It is contended that Prohibition was not really repealled...it was just broken into 50 pieces. Navigating this and becoming the 2nd largest distributor of wine, beer and liquor is a formidable task Meet Tim Moore, he is the VP of wine of RNDC...
July 15, 2023
Premium canned wine is the idea. Meet the woman who took it on.
These days, you cannot miss the canned aisle in your favorite grocery store. It seems to be taking over more real estate of the wine aisle each month. The category is rather cluttered with competitors..that didn't seem to daunt Jessica Hershfield....
July 9, 2023
A rounded view is needed, Vahe has it. Meet Vahe Keushgarian.
Wine Talks has has some amazing guests in each of the various disciplines of the wine trade. A few years ago, Vahe was on the show as we mulled over some of the pertinenant issues of the day. This second podcast years later is that much more...
July 1, 2023
Women in wine. Meet one of the most experienced and driven. Meet Mariam Saghatelyan.
After we recorded this episode of Wine Talks, Mariam entered and won the very first Sommelier event ever held in Armenia. Congratulations. The fact they even had a sanctioned event such as this in Armenia will tell you how far the Armenian wine...
June 27, 2023
It's a war out there; WarRoom Cellars knows it. Hear from founder Andrew Nelson
Taking on the gib boys is a war. And even just the idea seems a bit crazy, but WarRoom Cellars was founded on just that principal. How do we get under the skin of the big boys? One idea is to meet the consumer of wine where they live; meaning each of...
June 22, 2023
From Bulgaria with love (and wine). Meet Nadia Pavlevska.
Nadia Pavlevska drank vodka and coke in Bulgaira. Hardly a precursor to becoming a wine educator and influencer. Now the go to Sommelier for resorts like The Terranea in Palos Verdes, Nadia had taught wine with a logical and pratical outlook. ...
June 20, 2023
D1 Basketball, Pageant winner, Harvard Grad. Meet Brooke Bibeault
Her life story takes on many adjectives. Inspring is one. Painful is another. Worldly could say it. But driven would be the word I would use. When you face headwinds, you must put your headdown; Brooke has and continues to do that. A model, a pageant...
June 15, 2023
Force of nature in wine? For sure. Meet Katie Hamilton Schaffer.
Sometimes it is just obvious why someone is successful. Certainly, your personal definition of success comes into play but if you define "success" as getting what you want out of life and never letting moss grow under your feet...you and Katies...