I'll Drink to That! Wine Talk

Esther Mobley is the wine writer for the "San Francisco Chronicle." Esther talks about her previous work at "Wine Spectator" magazine, how her approach to writing has evolved since joining the "San Francisco Chronicle", and what she has found compelling amongst the stories and issues surrounding California wine today. Esther also shares a lot of insight into how she goes about her job for the "Chr...

Louis-Benoit Desvignes and his sister Claude-Emmanuelle Desvignes work together at Domaine Louis-Claude Desvignes in Morgon, in the Beaujolais area of France. Louis-Benoit discusses the challenges of the climate, the farming, and the market for a producer of Morgon wines today. He describes a changing area that is inheriting great vine material and building on the the hard work of previous generat...

Erin Scala speaks with Burgundy vigneron devoted to the Aligoté grape variety and explores the challenges and rewards associated with Aligoté today. Erin narrates a tour of Burgundy cellars and vineyards, piecing together conversations with multiple vigneron to find a through thread for Aligoté. This episode contains interviews and commentary from vigneron and wine professionals working with Aligo...

António Maçanita is involved with several wine projects throughout Portugal, including Fitapreta in the Alentejo, Maçanita Vinhos in the Douro Valley, and the Azores Wine Company on the Azores Islands. António discusses the rapid change that is happening on the island of Pico, as hundreds of hectares of vineyard are being replanted after over a century of decline. He explains the winemaking histor...

Arvid Rosengren is the Wine Director of Legacy Records, the restaurant in Manhattan. He won the World's Best Sommelier title in 2016. Arvid shares his memories of growing up in a household of limited means, and what that brought later in his life to his attitude as a competitor and a working sommelier. He recalls his wine studies in Sweden, and his work in restaurants in both Denmark and Sweden be...

Lee Hudson is the owner of Hudson Ranch and Vineyards, in California's Carneros district. Lee recalls his early days in Texas and in France, as well as the experience of working the 1975 harvest in Burgundy at Domaine Dujac. Lee describes founding his own ranch and vineyard in California, and gives a grape by grape guide to different grape variety characteristics and how the ways they are grown ca...

Will Predhomme operates Predhomme, Inc. a wine communications firm based in Toronto, Canada. He is also a partner in Pearce Predhomme, a wine label sourcing wines from Oregon and South Africa. Will traces his history with restaurants and wine, from humble beginnings in Windsor, Ontario to sommelier jobs in Calgary and Toronto. He discusses how his goals changed over time, and how he approached a t...

James Conaway is the author of "Napa: The Story of an American Eden," "The Far Side of Eden: New Money, Old Land, and the Battle for Napa Valley," and "Napa at Last Light: America's Eden in an Age of Calamity," a trilogy of books about wine and wineries in California's Napa Valley. James argues that serious changes are needed if the Napa Valley is to survive as an agricultural eden in the fut...

Dominique Tourneix is the Director General of DIAM Bouchage, a company specializing in reconstructed cork closures for wine. Dominique discusses the causes of cork taint in wine and the presence of volatile compounds within traditional cork. He examines the part that wine cork plays in both preventing and allowing for the oxidation of wine, as well as the useful life of a cork. He also explains th...

Enrico Pozzesi is the owner of Fattoria Rodano, the winery located within Castellina in Chianti, in Tuscany, Italy. Enrico discusses his wines and vineyard property in this episode, as well as the varying conditions that were presented by different vintages. He also discusses his friendship with an advisor to his winery, Giulio Gambelli. Gambelli in the years since his death has become a legendary...

Anne Parent and her sister Catherine run Domaine Parent, based in the Burgundy village of Pommard. They also control the micro-négociant known as Jacques Parent et Compagnie. Anne describes the differences between the key crus of Pommard, relating how Pommard Epenots is distinct from Pommard Les Rugiens. She also describes her vineyard holdings on the hill of Corton. Anne recounts the difficulties...

Ray Coursen is the owner and founding winemaker of Elyse Winery as well as Jacob Franklin Wines, in California's Napa Valley. He is also involved with winemaking for Purple Heart Wines, benefiting the Purple Heart Foundation. Ray relates how he arrived in the Napa Valley in the 1980s, and shares conversations he had with several wine world figures at that time. He discusses the history of some key...

Chisa Bize runs Domaine Simon Bize et Fils in Burgundy's Savigny-les-Beaune. Chisa describes her own upbringing in Tokyo, and explains how a chance meeting with Patrick Bize led her to Burgundy, where she is now in charge of the Bize family domaine. Chisa details the differences between the various crus that Bize cultivates, and explains how her approach to farming has shifted over time. She also...

Aldo Vacca is the Managing Director of the Produttori del Barbaresco, in the Barbaresco zone of Italy's Piemonte region. Aldo discusses the foundations of Barbaresco as a delimited zone, and talks about the origins of the Produttori del Barbaresco. He gives a sense of how the winemaking at the Produttori has evolved over time. He also describes the characteristics of some of the important crus of...

Jean Gonon works with his brother Pierre at Domaine Pierre Gonon in the Northern Rhône Valley of France, within the Saint-Joseph appellation. Jean speaks about the importance of farming, vine selection, and constant care in this discussion, while asserting that the winemaking that follows is quite simple. He also gives a history of Saint-Joseph as an appellation, and as a terroir. Jean explains wh...

Dominique Lafon is the Managing Director of Domaine des Comtes Lafon, with cellars in the Burgundy village of Meursault. Dominique also founded the Mâcon winery Les Héritiers du Comte Lafon, and the Burgundy négociant label Dominique Lafon. He consults in Oregon at Lingua Franca Wines. Dominique discusses his firsthand meetings with some of the greats of Burgundy of a previous generation, people l...

Erin Scala explores the renaissance of winemaking happening today on the Greek island of Crete. Erin narrates a tour through the Crete wine regions near the towns of Heraklion, Chania, and Sitia, and gets answers about grape varieties like Vidiano, Thrapsathiri, Malvasia di Candia, Kotsifali, Liatiko, Plyto, and more. This episode contains interviews with winemakers and wine professionals wor...

Patrick Comiskey is a wine writer for "Wine & Spirits" Magazine as well as the "Los Angeles Times." He is also the author of the book "American Rhône: How Maverick Winemakers Changed the Way Americans Drink." Patrick recounts the origins of Rhône grape varieties like Syrah, Grenache, Mourvedre, Viognier, Marsanne, and Roussanne in America, and points out some of the winemakers who brought thos...

Samuel Guibert is a co-owner and winemaker at the Mas de Daumas Gassac winery, in the Languedoc region of France. Samuel goes into detail about the unusual red and white wines of Mas de Daumas Gassac, a winery that blends Pinot Noir, Nebbiolo, Tannat and a number of other grape varieties together with Cabernet Sauvignon for their red. Samuel explains the setting of the individual vineyards that co...

Lodovico Antinori is a partner in Tenuta di Biserno, in the Maremma area of Tuscany, and was the founder of Ornellaia in Bolgheri. He is also a partner in Tenuta Campo di Sasso. Lodovico is open and frank in his assessment of his career, discussing his family's position within Tuscan wine, his own important trip to California, and the rise of Super Tuscan wines like Ornellaia. He describes foundin...

Peter Liem is the publisher of ChampagneGuide.net, as well as the author of the book "Champagne: The Essential Guide to the Wines, Producers, and Terroirs of the Iconic Region." Peter Liem returns to the show for an interview about Champagne. Peter has been tasting the wines of Champagne professionally for twenty years, and has lived in that region for the last ten years. In this interview he...

Doug Frost is both a Master Sommelier and a Master of Wine, who resides in Kansas City, Missouri. Doug does wine and spirits consulting in a range of fields, and works as a wine writer. Doug reflects on his career in restaurants, distribution, writing, and consulting in this conversation, touching on his varied adventures in the wine and spirits trade. He remembers cellar visits in the Rhone Valle...

Victor Hazan wrote the book "Italian Wine", which was published in 1982. He also co-wrote several Italian cookbooks with his wife, the late Marcella Hazan. Victor Hazan speaks about his lifelong search for authentic Italian ingredients and expressions, an ethusiasm he shared with his wife of many years, Marcella Hazan. Victor details the start of his wine writing career, and confesses why he left...

Becky Wasserman-Hone is the founder and co-director of Becky Wasserman & Co., an exporter of wines from Burgundy and other regions of France and Europe. Becky looks back on her career in this interview, and talks about what would be become a key period for Burgundy, as it increasingly found an audience amongst American consumers. She also recalls some of the keys friends and mentors she made a...

Bill Easton is the proprietor and winemaker at both Easton Wines and Domaine de la Terre Rouge in Amador County, California. Bill describes an era of post-Prohibition California winemaking that has largely disappeared, and explains why he decided to pioneer Rhone grape varieties in a corner of the state that was little known. Bill also is frank about his stylistic choices, and his decision not to...