Be Inspired.

Season 17

I'm telling you like it is in the wine trade. A trailer as it were.
Jan. 9, 2024

I'm telling you like it is in the wine trade. A trailer as it were.

Time to set the record straight. Because I have just about had enough. On this episode, I try to lay it all out....get to the root and wax poetic a bit. Wine has a special place in me heart and that didn't happen overnight. It took 35 years for me to...
With (3) substantial wine and business degrees, Julien takes on Napa with Maison Fayard..
Dec. 19, 2023

With (3) substantial wine and business degrees, Julien takes on Napa with Maison Fayard..

As much as we aspire for wine to be a romantic beverage that tells a story...and it is, we have to acknowledge that is it business.  So you must meet Julien Fayard of Fayard Wines. And there is really good chance you will meet him if you swing...
With a Master of Wine and a WSET Diploma and the French language well in hand, she became a wine educator.. Meet Anne McHale.
Dec. 16, 2023

With a Master of Wine and a WSET Diploma and the French language well in hand, she became a wine educator.. Meet Anne McHale.

Anne McHale is well accomplished in the academia of wine. She has a Master of Wine (incredible study required to earn) and a WSET Diploma (the highest accolade for the Wine and Spirits Education Trust)...neither an easy feat by any stretch. But what...
Whitehall Lane is a staple in the Napa Valley wine scene. Hear from the Leonardini brother/sister act.
Dec. 15, 2023

Whitehall Lane is a staple in the Napa Valley wine scene. Hear from the Leonardini brother/sister act.

One thing about this episode, you get the straight scoop. Wine is about history. It is about the story. All to often in many of life's endeavors, we forget the story, we forget the history. That is the reason history repeats itself. In Europe, a...
He has made wine all over the world and has settled at Stags Leap in the Napa Valley. Meet Ludovic Dervin.
Dec. 12, 2023

He has made wine all over the world and has settled at Stags Leap in the Napa Valley. Meet Ludovic Dervin.

Ludovic Devrin was born in Champagne...so the question has to be asked...why did you land in the Napa Valley. Seems the romance of the famed bubbly beverage would keep pon close to home but Ludovic wanted to see the world. Though he did get his degree...
Modeling, hospitality then winemaking. Meet talented Stephanie Cook
Dec. 6, 2023

Modeling, hospitality then winemaking. Meet talented Stephanie Cook

Wine Talks believes in the story of wine. There is a colloquialism in the wine trade "Every bottle tells a story" which on the surface is correct....but sometime seems too trite. What is in the bottle is not just an expression of terroir (soil,...
She is preparing the wine industry for what is coming. Change. Meet Priscilla Hennekam.
Nov. 30, 2023

She is preparing the wine industry for what is coming. Change. Meet Priscilla Hennekam.

The wine industry is wrought with tradition. It certainly can be said that this industry at its  core, is not much different than it was 100 years ago. Certainly technology has helped in all aspects; vineyard, biology, processing, equipment,...
Hear her path as a woman to become the Senior Vice President of a public wine company. Meet Tracey Mason.
Nov. 29, 2023

Hear her path as a woman to become the Senior Vice President of a public wine company. Meet Tracey Mason.

This is the most honest conversation to occur on Wine Talks. Tracy is unabashed at exploring her lifestyle and her path to be an executive with a public wine company.  This was such a refreshing interview that we left the door open to regroup...
New ideas are needed. Meet Open Container Founder Haik Khachatryan
Nov. 28, 2023

New ideas are needed. Meet Open Container Founder Haik Khachatryan

The wine industry is controlled. In fact, of all the US industries that have too many levels of bureaucracy, alcohol is in the top two. And because of this, entrepreneurial ideas are usually short-lived and ill- fated. Along comes Haik Khachatryan and...
We just lost one of the greats. Dennis Overstreet, the Beverly Hills Wine Merchant
Nov. 17, 2023

We just lost one of the greats. Dennis Overstreet, the Beverly Hills Wine Merchant

When wine was barely a conversation in the United States, when there was no internet, cell phones or cable...there was Dennis Overstreet. When The French Laundry was just an idea brought to him by Thomas Keller, Dennis was there to help make it...
Her humility and disposition is critical in the wine business. Meet Valentine Hostens Picant
Nov. 17, 2023

Her humility and disposition is critical in the wine business. Meet Valentine Hostens Picant

She was a lawyer, but the family wine business became her disrupter. Once in awhile someone takes their position in the studio and starts the conversation and they completely captivate the show. Soft-spoken but convicted to her and her families cause,...
She has done just about everything in wine. But her story of Lafite is crazy. Meet Antonia Quast.
Nov. 14, 2023

She has done just about everything in wine. But her story of Lafite is crazy. Meet Antonia Quast.

The WIne Talks podcast seeks interesting stories in the wine trade. There are so many facets to the industry and the public only sees a small percentage...or hears the stories of a small percentage of the interesting histories that this ancient...
It takes experience to grow in the wine trade. Chris Phelps has it.
Nov. 9, 2023

It takes experience to grow in the wine trade. Chris Phelps has it.

It takes passion, courage a bit of negotiating to get to the top in the wine world.
Dr. Gavin Sacks, canned wine and much more. Meet the Dr. forging new ways to package wine.
Nov. 8, 2023

Dr. Gavin Sacks, canned wine and much more. Meet the Dr. forging new ways to package wine.

So fascinating. Dr. Gavin Sacks took a momemt from his research and teaching schedule to sit with Wine Talks and discuss the intersection of art, science and the environment as it relates to wine. We don't think of the academic reqiurements when we...
Emilia Nardi is one of a kind. Gracious, elegant and a force of Italian wine women.
Oct. 31, 2023

Emilia Nardi is one of a kind. Gracious, elegant and a force of Italian wine women.

To sit with Emilia is like sitting with the Queen...but somehow even queen sounds almost diminutive for her role. Makes her sound like she is sitting on a throne handing out directives. Nothing could be further from the truth. When you visit Napa, you...
Port wine is history in a bottle. Rupert Symington and family created some of that history.
Oct. 26, 2023

Port wine is history in a bottle. Rupert Symington and family created some of that history.

Port wine is really quite fascinating. It is like history in a bottle. And wine really is about history. This concept all comes together when listening to Rupert Symington of Grahams Port house. The Symington family has not only seen the best and the...
From fashion to wine, Alberto gets it. Alberto Moretti Cuseri from Sette Ponti on deck.
Oct. 24, 2023

From fashion to wine, Alberto gets it. Alberto Moretti Cuseri from Sette Ponti on deck.

The world of Tuscan wine is more complicated than it might seem. From a fiasco (straw bottle) of Chianti to the most coveted Brunello Di Montecino's, you can find a diverse and sophisticated genre of wines.  As with most of the world wide wine...
To learn Italian wine, listen to the pro. I speak with Cristina Mariani-May of Banfi Wines
Oct. 20, 2023

To learn Italian wine, listen to the pro. I speak with Cristina Mariani-May of Banfi Wines

What you will learn about the wines of Tuscany and Piemonte will only be out down by what you will learn about the wine life. Raising 3 children while becoming a million miler in the air, Cristina Mariani-May keeps it all together.  I caught up...
They are Master Somms, married and taking on Aussie wines. Meet Jane Lopes and Jon Ross.
Oct. 17, 2023

They are Master Somms, married and taking on Aussie wines. Meet Jane Lopes and Jon Ross.

Between the two of them, it took 21 years to earn their Master Sommelier status; obviously, no easy task. Lest we forget, while studying for this accolade, one has to earn a living. They met while working at the 2017 Best Restaurant in the World, 11...
The wine history you will hear, cannot be written ever again. Meet Arthur de Lencquesaing.
Oct. 16, 2023

The wine history you will hear, cannot be written ever again. Meet Arthur de Lencquesaing.

This was serendipitous. The fact that Mr. Lencquesaing was in Los Angeles at the very time I began reading his grandmothers book (albeit it very slowly, it is written in French) and that the vendor called and mentioned she was with him...there had to...
Clear and articulate about the Italian wine trade. Meet Dr. Cristian Maddalena.
Oct. 16, 2023

Clear and articulate about the Italian wine trade. Meet Dr. Cristian Maddalena.

We could have spoken for hours. In fact, after I turned off the recording system, he stayed for another 20 minutes wrapping up the previous hour. With a Ph.D. in history, Cristian is able to add a level of depth to the conversation about wine and its...
Only 3 people in the wine world like him. David Frost is a Master of Wine and a Master Sommelier.
Oct. 16, 2023

Only 3 people in the wine world like him. David Frost is a Master of Wine and a Master Sommelier.

There can only be one explanation (maybe two) for someone to want, study, test and pass both the Master of Wine curriculm and the Master Sommelier curriculm. So rare it is that there are only 3 people in the world that have done it. One reason could...