Wait, I thought you only covered wine in this podcast? I do! And guess what? Vermouth is wine. Vermouth is an aromatized, fortified wine flavored with botanicals like roots, herbs, barks, flowers, seeds, and spices. Although aromatized beverages have been around for millennia, vermouth's origins lie in the Kingdom of Savoie in the 1700s, first in Torino, Italy and then in Chambéry, France. Photo: Botanicals. Credit: Unsplash First offered in apothecaries for the healing properties of wormwood, t...
Jul 10, 2024•39 min•Ep 527•Transcript available on Metacast Right now, it’s so hot in much of the country, it’s hard to get creative about anything, let alone a new wine that may provide some refreshment. That’s what I’m here for! Ok, maybe not just me…this is a list that comes from the Patrons in answer to our weekly discussion question about what they drink when the weather gets hot. I added a few in for good measure, but this is the list of what the best and smartest community in wine has in their glasses when the sun beats down! In order of popularit...
Jul 03, 2024•46 min•Ep 526•Transcript available on Metacast Cinsault or Cinsaut is a grape you’ve probably rarely heard of, but if you drink Provence or southern French rosé you have it all the time! The grape is planted widely in the south of France, but the grape’s biggest champions are in the New World, where Cinsault is getting new attention for making light, acidic, refreshing reds. This is a warm-climate grape, that actually thrives in dry and hot places. This grape is essential to our changing climate -- it retains acidity with low sugars even in ...
Jun 25, 2024•40 min•Ep 525•Transcript available on Metacast There are a seemingly endless number of wines made from grapes from all over. But, surprisingly, what remains in the world is just a fraction of what once existed. Before downy mildew, powdery mildew, phylloxera, and the World Wars of the 20 th century hit the shores of Europe, destroying vineyards of native vines, there were likely hundreds of thousands of grape varieties with millions of clones. The biodiversity and possibilities for great wine were even greater than they are today. But there ...
Jun 18, 2024•1 hr•Ep 524•Transcript available on Metacast This show chronicles my recent trip with a group of Patrons to Sicily with my travel partner tour with Tourissimo . I take you through our odyssey, which had us traversing the entire island from west in Palermo to the center of the island to the southeast in Vittoria to Mount Etna. I discuss the themes I noticed throughout like interesting climatic quirks that the quality regions share, the amazing culture and hospitality, and the uniqueness of the wines on this beautiful island and more. I hope...
Jun 11, 2024•52 min•Ep 523•Transcript available on Metacast This week I welcome long-time Patron and listener, Bevis Sydney, who is not only a wine educator in the UK, but also a movie buff. He and I give our views on the top 8 wine movies, according to a poll of the Patron community and general consensus from the press on the top wine movies. We discuss: · Sideways (2004) · A Good Year (2006) · Wine Country (2019) · Bottle Shock (2008) · Somm (2012) · A Year in Burgundy (2013) · Sour Grapes (2016) · Mondovino (2004) Remember – movies, like wine, are sub...
Jun 04, 2024•1 hr 6 min•Ep 522•Transcript available on Metacast As part of the series on the The Greats (the great wines of the world), I cover the complex world of Hungarian Tokaji. As with all dives into “The Greats,” I spend the first half of the show delving into the history of Tokaj and then discuss winemaking, the grapes, and the complex way in which this wine is made. Some notes that may be hard to understand (since I obviously know no Hungarian!): The main grapes in the wine are: Furmint (Foor-mint) 60-70% of Tokaj plantings Hárslevelű (Harsh-level-l...
May 21, 2024•57 min•Transcript available on Metacast Here’s something you probably didn’t know: Vienna is the only major city in the world where serious wine grown, with its own appellation, DAC Wien. In the green belt surrounding this very green city, wine grapes grow as they have since at least the Middle Ages. And it’s not negligible -- 582 ha/1438 acres. It’s also not crappy, tourist wine. It’s high quality, interesting wine that’s tasty and different. It’s become such a priority for Vienna and Austria that Viennese state law states that all e...
May 14, 2024•57 min•Ep 520•Transcript available on Metacast For this show I ask my friend with Brian Callahan, small vineyard farmer and co-owner of Crux Winery in the Russian River Valley of Sonoma (the Middle Reach though – the warmer part, so they do Rhône varietals) to tell us what a year in a Sonoma vineyard looks like. He takes us through what he has been doing for the last 18 years in his vineyard, a three acre plot that produces the beautiful fruit that turns into Crux wine. This is a real look at what happens in the vineyard over the year to ens...
May 07, 2024•56 min•Ep 519•Transcript available on Metacast These categories of "better for the earth" wines are technical, tricky, and ever-evolving, so I felt that it was time to do a comprehensive update! In this show, I do best to break it all down in as simple a way as possible…I cover: Biodynamics Organics Sustainable farming Regenerative agriculture And then, quickly, the loose ends – vegan wine and natural wine I start with an overview of the Pre- and Post- Industrial Revolution types of farming: Traditional farming is original agriculture, by th...
May 01, 2024•50 min•Transcript available on Metacast This is a special re-release of this very relevant and important show on Earth Day. Jason Haas, perhaps the greenest guy in in wine, joins to discuss the challenges the wine industry faces in becoming gentler on the earth. From regenerative agriculture (which is way less woo woo than biodynamics!) to sustainable transport and packaging, we cover the latest thinking of how to make the wine industry greener and better. Happy Earth Day all! Full show notes and all back episodes are on Patreon. Beco...
Apr 22, 2024•1 hr•Transcript available on Metacast Tax Day in the US has come and gone. Many of us are getting a refund, so if you have a little extra change, here are some great wines to consider. A few on the list are... Burgundy in red and white: Pinot and Chard Pomerol in Bordeaux Syrah from The Rocks District of Milton-Freewater in Walla Walla Washington Old Vine Zinfandel from Sonoma, Napa, and Amador County Châteauneuf-du-Pape BLANC I offer descriptions and explanations of each wine in the show. I hope you enjoy and find a way to spend yo...
Apr 16, 2024•52 min•Ep 517•Transcript available on Metacast This week friend, listener, Patron, and wine diva @wineshenanigans and the wine game show @Wineopardy Monica G. joins to talk with me about wines made by celebrities, aka Celebrity Wines. We run through what they are, how many of them are made and then we discuss specifics. We wrap with our analysis of whether or not we would recommend buying these wines. We make two caveats: 1. These are our opinions about these wines – don’t sue me! 2. Some of these brands are impossible to obtain, so we haven...
Apr 09, 2024•1 hr 1 min•Ep 516•Transcript available on Metacast Inspired by a question from friend and Patron Amy Payton, this week I cover the history of oak barrels. I go from animal skins in Mesopatamia to modern day barrels, talking about how winemakers decided that oak was the best vessel for wine. I answer her follow up questions too -- How are barrels obtained by winemakers? What happens to them after they are used and are oak barrels sustainable? I learned so much in this show and I thank Amy for the idea. ____________________________________________...
Apr 02, 2024•43 min•Ep 515•Transcript available on Metacast This week I explore one of my favorite grapes of all time, Fiano! The grape makes some of the most exquisite wines you could imagine -- whites with layered complexity, age-ability, and unadulterated deliciousness. I discuss all aspects of the grape: The historical overview of the grape and how Mastroberardino saved it from obscurity (Check out my podcast with Piero Mastroberardino here ) A discussion of Fiano in the vineyard and how adaptable it is Some thoughts about winemaking and its effect o...
Mar 26, 2024•41 min•Ep 514•Transcript available on Metacast I welcome to the show my friend Giulio Abrigo of Abrigo Giovanni Azienda Agricola , who focuses on the exquisite Dolcetto in Diano d'Alba in the Barolo zone of Piemonte. Abrigo Giovanni is a small family operation, operating on just 13 ha or 32 acres mainly in Diano d’Alba -- the site of the winery and the family home. Dolcetto Diano d’Alba is one of a handful of DOCG zones for the grape – stricter controls and the top Dolcetto wines are made in this area. Here, the elevation, the soils, and the...
Mar 19, 2024•57 min•Ep 513•Transcript available on Metacast In recent years, there has been a lot of buzz around “volcanic wines.” The term makes it sound as if these are wines that are spawned from a volcano, but in reality these are wines that many people believe have special qualities because they grow on volcanic soils. In this show, I define the types of volcanoes before discussing the ecosystems they form.Here is the list of wines/places I discuss in the show: Italy Mount Etna, Sicily : Reds (Rosso of the Nerello Mascalese, Nerello Cappuccio grapes...
Mar 12, 2024•52 min•Ep 512•Transcript available on Metacast The Hunter Valley is the OG - - the first place where Australian grape growing took place. For 200 years there has been continuous winegrowing and winemaking among the rolling hills and green valleys, which are peppered with iconic wineries, many of which have been around for more than 100 years. Although other types of wines are made, the Hunter has one crown jewel -- Semillon. In this show I give detail on the history, background and terroir of the Hunter before discussing the Semillon and why...
Mar 05, 2024•39 min•Ep 511•Transcript available on Metacast My guest Felicity Carter is probably the most brilliant journalist in wine, and certainly one of the only ones doing vital investigative work in the field of wine, health, and the neo prohibitionist movement. From 2008 to 2021, she was editor-in-chief of Meininger’s Wine Business International , a global, English-language magazine, one of Germany’s oldest publishing houses. She reported from 22 countries in that position. She writes for Decanter, The Guardian, and pretty much every major prestig...
Feb 14, 2024•52 min•Ep 509•Transcript available on Metacast This time we explore the hidden gems of Bordeaux -- the Côtes de Bordeaux -- which make superb wines that few people know about. With an easy-drinking style, the Côtes de Bordeaux are the hidden, affordable wines of Bordeaux. These historic vineyards are a collection of AOCs around eastern Bordeaux on sunny hillside slopes that grow a majority of Merlot and have similar soil types. These are not second or bulk wines – rather family-owned, often sustainable wines that are always a good value for ...
Jan 24, 2024•55 min•Ep 506•Transcript available on Metacast This show is an update to our previous shows on Greece. We hope to get you (re)started on your exploration of this ancient winemaking nation that has been reborn in recent years. Greek wines are unique, terroir-driven, and they harken back to the nation's ancient past and the very foundations of wine as a major part of the history in western civilization. With recent investments and modernization, the wines are better than ever and are worth exploring. Map from the Wines of Greece Although the p...
Jan 03, 2024•50 min•Ep 503•Transcript available on Metacast This is a baffling story that includes a Napa history lesson, an idea of how the Valley has grown and then a jaunt into intrigue, sting operations, and what appears to be an effort to kill the goose that laid the golden egg by the Napa County government. It seems that the County is going after small wineries in an attempt to bankrupt them out of business. Friend of the pod, Stu Smith of Smith-Madrone joins to discuss and explain the situation -- at least the parts that have an explanation! If yo...
Dec 19, 2023•59 min•Ep 502•Transcript available on Metacast Professor Thomas Collins (yes, his name is Tom Collins) is a foremost authority in the US on smoke in the vineyards. After a long career in research and enology at large wineries in New York and California, and a Ph.D. at UC-Davis, Dr. Collins became an assistant professor of grape and wine chemistry in the Viticulture and Enology Program at Washington State University in 2015. Photo: Dr. Tom Collins, Credit: WSU He manages a research program in grape, wine and spirits aroma and flavor chemistry...
Nov 29, 2023•59 min•Ep 499•Transcript available on Metacast This is a special update and recap of Episode 327 with Barnaby Eales on Wine ingredient & nutrition labeling . I refreshed and edited that (very short) episode and then MC Ice and I added the details of the new law. We did the original episode in 2020 and at that time it was unclear whether or not Europe would go through with the plan, but they executed it and now we may be seeing back labels with a WHOLE lot more info about the wine! Listen to the update to learn what you NEED to know! This new...
Nov 21, 2023•44 min•Transcript available on Metacast 
