Wine for Normal People

Two new, exciting wineries -- The Larsen Project and Camlow Cellars -- join me to talk about their wines, experiences in starting up new wine empires, and the life of the small guy in Sonoma. Robert Larsen runs The Larsen Projekt, which makes Grenache and Grenache Rosé. Alan Campbell and Craig Strehlow are the founders of Camlow Cellars. They make two Pinot Noirs fand a Rosé of Pinot Noir rom Russian River Valley. An exciting look into how a winery gets started -- the good, bad and ugly!

In this episode, I talk to the Zinmasters of the Dry Creek Valley, Andrew & April Nalle. Calle has been making Zinfandel in a milder style than most other wineries -- with balance, acidity, & finesse for nearly 40 years. Andrew recently took over the winery from his dad, Zin legend Doug Nalle. The Nalle story -- it's past and future -- is a family story and one that represents the small producers of Sonoma well. 

This week I speak with the Peterson family of Peterson Winery in the Dry Creek Valley of Sonoma, CA. We learn about the history of the valley and its terroir from the force/Dry Creek Valley icon that is Fred Peterson. His son and Peterson's winemaker Jamie discusses how their winemaking philosophy makes theme different. Fred's daughter and head of sales and marketing, Emily discusses the struggles of being small winery. Kind, intelligent people who make great wine -- don't miss this!

This week I talk to Jake Bilbro, award-winning winemaker and winegrower of Limerick Lane in the Russian River of Sonoma. We discuss his family's history in Sonoma, how he came to own Limerick Lane, and his winemaking philosophies. A fascinating look at a young, but famed small producer who represents the heart and soul of Sonoma. 

Syrah is one of tastiest grapes in the world but because it changes based on where it's grown, it can be a bit of a risk to buy. In this episode, we cover the fundamentals of Syrah, why it ranges in flavor and what to expect from the regions that make it.

Of the 20,000 growers in Champagne, only a handful make their own wine. 5th generation grower-producer Gaylord Legras of Champagne Legras-Frapart et Fils tells us how things operate, what's unique about grower Champagne & about the business challenges he and others in his situation face.

Looking for some help with inexpensive gifts -- either wine or wine related products, and new ideas of wine pairings for the holidays? From tips on how to figure out what wine someone else would like, to useful, easy gadgets to pairing -- it's all here!

Central Otago is known among wine dorks as a Pinot Noir mecca. We're lucky that regular podcast guest host Simone Madden-Grey is from this region! In this episode, she gives us the skinny on climate, soil, top wines, travel tips, and what's next for the wines of the region.

After a few years, we revive the grape miniseries with a star of Italy: Sangiovese. This week we dive into major detail on the grape -- from history to clones to soils to flavor by appellation, a truly dorky episode that will satisfy the dork in you!

Some in the U.S. wine industry say cannabis legalization will create a war between wine & weed for limited resources & consumer interest. But George Christie, from the Wine Industry Network, thinks collaboration could lead to great things for both parties. After you hear his point of view, you may just agree!

This week, regular guest host and UK wine shop owner, Ian Renwick, helps us sort out what Brexit is and why it is so important to the wine trade. Part politics and history lesson, this episode aims to give you context about the EU, it's historical significance with the UK and why Brexit is such a big deal for the wine trade in the UK, Europe, and countries like Australia, the US and Chile too.

Our 2017 version of the U.S Thanksgiving podcast was actually done via Facebook live, but we recorded it & edited it down for replay. We tried to limit the options to give you a few wine options, rather than a million! Enjoy! We are thankful for you!

We're honored to have guest Jacopo Cossater, wine writer for the most popular wine blog in Italy, Intravino, to discuss the Italian region he calls home: Umbria. Umbria is a small wine region but its wines are exquisite, as Jacopo explains on the show!

Tom Wark, executive director of the National Association of Wine Retailers & wine PR guru gives a fascinating look at the history of US wine law, current inane laws on interstate wine shipping & the ripple effects for wine producers, importers & drinkers.

Halloween is, by far, our favorite holiday so this year we're reviewing fun traditions from around the world and matching wines with them. From the blood of Jupiter to drinking wine from a skull, we've got a spooktacular tradition for you to adopt!