Inside the Bunghole...A Journey through Wine

Send us Fan Mail In this episode of Inside the Bunghole , the hosts welcome Remi Cohen, CEO of Domaine Carneros, for a lively conversation about sparkling wine, leadership, and the evolving California wine industry. Remi shares her path from New Jersey to California, studying at UC Berkeley and UC Davis before building a career in Napa Valley viticulture, winemaking, and winery management. The dis...

Send us Fan Mail In this lively episode of Inside the Bunghole , the crew welcomes Natalie Bath of Rudd Estate, a Napa Valley native who traded LSAT prep for harvest season and never looked back. Natalie shares her unconventional path into winemaking—from pouring wine at a local French restaurant to chasing harvests across the globe—ultimately finding her calling in the cellar. Along the way, the...

Send us Fan Mail On this episode of Inside the Bunghole , we welcomed Scott Lindstrom-Dake of Thumbprint Cellars , a Sonoma County winemaker whose background in art deeply informs every bottle he creates. Scott shared his unconventional path into winemaking, which began in art school and evolved through curiosity, creativity, and a growing appreciation for wine as a form of expression. What starte...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode, Pam, James and German kick things off by introducing the concept of private label wines —what they are, how they’re made, and why they’ve become such an appealing option for restaurants, country clubs, businesses, and creatives who want a wine that reflects their own identity.  German, shares his personal journey of building his own wine brand, emphasizing creativ...

Send us Fan Mail Hosts Pam, James and German are joined by wine expert Katie Finn, who explains the origins of Beaujolais Nouveau as a post-harvest celebration among French winemakers. The discussion covers how the wine is made using carbonic maceration—fermenting whole grapes in an oxygen-free environment—which results in a light, fruity, low-tannin wine meant to be drunk immediately rather than...

Send us Fan Mail Buzzed Buddy joined us on Inside the Bunghole through its creator, Jay Nixon. Jay broke down the science behind Buzzed Buddy in a way that was approachable, candid, and refreshingly free of hype. He explained how the product supports alcohol metabolism by targeting the toxins created when we drink, rather than interfering with the buzz itself. Built around a simple three-ingredien...

Send us Fan Mail This week on Inside the Bunghole , Lance and James chat with Napa legend and resident grape whisperer Peter Heitz , the winemaker at Turnbull Wine Cellars. Heitz isn’t just any guy with a corkscrew — he’s a 14th-generation grape grower who somehow managed to turn “fine, I’ll take the job” into 18 vintages of world-class wine. He tells us how he stumbled into Turnbull, discovered t...

Send us Fan Mail In this captivating episode of Inside the Bunghole , the team sits down with Mark Stone , a seasoned restaurateur and business partner of Chef Angelo Sosa, to explore his culinary ventures across the country. From Tía Carmen in Indian Wells and Phoenix to Makoto in Vail and Knife Italian Steak in Dallas , Mark shares how his background in international finance evolved into a caree...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode of Inside the Bunghole , the team welcomes winemaker Brian Marquez from Weins Cellars , a legacy winery located in Temecula, California. Brian shares the story of Weins' 20+ year journey, from its beginnings in Lodi to becoming one of the “Four Castles” of Temecula wine country. Known for producing over 30 varietals and upwards of 100 different SKUs, Weins has...

Send us Fan Mail In this rich and candid episode of Inside the Bunghole , the hosts sit down with Rajiv, founder and producer of Kubani Wines , a boutique winery nestled near downtown Napa. Rajiv shares how an unexpected trip to Napa in 1997, prompted by his lawyer, sparked a lifelong romance with winemaking. Now partnered with winemaker Bobby Moy, Rajiv emphasizes crafting wines that are elegant,...

Send us Fan Mail 🍇 From Croatia to California: A Winemaking Legacy In this heartfelt episode, Ivo Jeramaz of Grgich Hills shares the remarkable story of his uncle, Miljenko “Mike” Grgich—a Croatian immigrant whose 1973 Chardonnay triumphed at the historic 1976 Judgment of Paris, placing Napa Valley on the global wine map. Mike’s journey from a modest upbringing in Croatia to becoming a pivotal fi...

Send us Fan Mail 🌲 Wine on the Edge: Domaine Anderson’s Cool-Climate Vision Darrin Low, winemaker at Domaine Anderson, shares the story of crafting exceptional Chardonnay and Pinot Noir from California’s northernmost wine region—Anderson Valley. Nestled near the coast and defined by its cool maritime climate, the valley offers ideal conditions for delicate, acid-driven wines. With vineyards at el...

Send us Fan Mail A Legacy Rooted in Wine and Family The episode kicks off with lighthearted banter and a warm welcome to the first Inside the Bunghole episode of 2025, featuring Michael Keenan of Keenan Wines in Napa Valley. Michael shares the multigenerational story of his family's vineyard, which began when his father, Robert Keenan, was inspired by his father-in-law's wine collection...

Send us Fan Mail Welcome to Season 5!  Who would have thunk?!  We start this season off with a bang as we are interviewing Angela Mondavi...not only an accomplished 4th generation wine maker, from an iconic family in American viticulture, but she is an ass kicking entrepreneur, with several businesses under her belt, of course they pertain to the family business of making AMAZING wines.  The Monda...

Send us Fan Mail James and Pam had an amazing time at the 2024 Palm Springs Food and Wine Festival, put on by Hocker Productions.  Join them as they look back on the interviews with some great wine families, wine experts they met and discovered there.  Make sure to visit palmspringsfoodandwine.org if you are planning a visit to Palm Springs in the fall.  This event is a MUST if you are going to be...

Send us Fan Mail Have you ever thought about a career where drinking wine was actually a necessary part of your job description?  Well, look no further!  Scott Halterlein, who is a wine rep for Breakthru Beverage Group, one of the very top distributors in the US, gives us the ins and outs, ups and downs of what it takes, besides a liver of steel, to become a successful beverage distributor.  A ver...

Send us Fan Mail The tasting room of Auteur wines is exquisitely unique...a beautiful, quaint bungalow purchased from the 1915 Sears and Roebuck catalog and restored at its current location in the heart of downtown Sonoma, a little slice of history! What is better than this nostalgic location are the wines that Auteur Wines is producing!  Specializing in Pinot Noirs and Chardonnays, we tasted wine...

Send us Fan Mail On our recent road trip to Sonoma, we had an enchanting visit to Three Sticks tasting home, the 1842 Vallejo Casteñada Adobe  in downtown Sonoma.  We were equally captivated by the charm and history of the downtown area, and the amazing wines of 3 sticks!  We got to sit down with Director of Winemaking, Ryan Prichard who is known for crafting distinctive estate pinot noir and char...

Send us Fan Mail Meet Matthew Villard, the passionate owner and winemaker behind MCV. He is on a mission to create a name for Petite Sirah wines, and doing a great job at it!  His love for wine blossomed around the family dinner table, fostered by his European-minded parents' perspective on alcohol. Matt pursued his wine education at the University of California, Davis. This is truly a family...

Send us Fan Mail At some point, serious wine lovers will have the same thought..."What if I quit my job and start a winery"?  Some will dwell on it for years, some for only a few seconds, and then there are those like Michael and Charlie Havill who actually do it. Still committed to growing and providing grapes to award-winning wineries, Bella Grace now has a fully-operation winemaking f...

Send us Fan Mail Wow!  What a legend!  Gary Eberle not only shares his great wines, he also shares his rich history from Pennsylvania to Paso, and his part in making Paso Robles a destination wine region in California! Gary released his first Cabernet Sauvignon in 1979, depicting the now iconic boar logo, which pays homage to the German origin of the name Eberle, which means "small boar"...

Send us Fan Mail Pam, James and (introducing for the 1st time as a host) German , who has been a guest, fan and supporter of Inside the Bunghole since the very beginning, are off to Paso Robles.  Our first stop is Tooth & Nail.   Join us as we sit down with Jeremy Leffert, Director of Winemaking.  We find out how Jeremy got in to wine making and about his history with Tooth & Nail.  We als...

Send us Fan Mail Welcome to our 4th season!  This year we kick it off with a field trip to Grape Expectations, where James and I and a few other bungholers took the winemaking class and ended up with a lot of knowledge and a few cases of our very own, and if I do say so myself, very delicious wine!  We made a Super Tuscan made with grapes sourced just outside of Napa; 67% Sangiovese, 14% Merlot, 1...

Send us Fan Mail James and I are on a field trip to Stockton and caught up with Astronaut  turned wine maker, Jose Hernandez.  We first tried his wines at a wine tasting at La Fe, our regular haunt in Palm Desert, and decided we needed a re-visit.  His story is fascinating...so fascinating that Amazon decided to produce a feature film on his life.  Just released on Amazon Prime, titled A Million M...

Send us Fan Mail If you are around the Palm Springs area on Veteran's Day come join Pam, James, Don, German, Lisa Wherry and Jeff Hocker at Palm Springs Food and Wine Festival – Saturday, Nov 11! Explore the finest international cuisine from world renown food purveyors and award-winning chef owned restaurants, watch LIVE celebrity and emerging chef and mixology demonstrations, experience elev...