Inside the Bunghole...A Journey through Wine

Send us Fan Mail Oh BOY!  What happens when 3 great friends, and several bottles of wine meet in one crazy evening?  Well, this episode of Inside the Bunghole is what happens! Don gifted Pam a bottle of wine with the explicit instructions NOT TO DRINK for 5 years, and Pam actually listened!  Listen, if you dare, as they uncork a 2011 French Bordeaux  to see if this bottle of wine aged well, and if...

Send us Fan Mail Today we interview Sandra Gomes-Rocha of Diniz Cellars,  whose missions is to bring wines from her homeland of Portugal to the US.  Diniz Cellars is a passion project as Sandra's goal is to expose the talent and history of Portuguese winemaking to the palates of Americans!  In Portugal, wine is part of the family, part of everyday life, and something always to be shared.  The...

Send us Fan Mail WOW!!  What an interview with the incomparable Jon Simmons of Hugo's Cellar restaurant in the 4 Queens, downtown Freemont Street in Las Vegas.  Jon shares not only his knowledge and approach to wine, but boy, oh boy, does he have some amazing stories of Las Vegas, the mob, Sinatra...just to name drop a few!  This episode is longer than most, but you will be captivated by his...

Send us Fan Mail Place your seatbacks up and put your trays in the upright position as we taxi the runway to one of the most unique destinations for wine tasting around, Bouschet wine bar!  In a retro strip mall in South Palm Springs, CA there is a little wine bar with big surprises inside!  Join us as we chat it up with the owners Dennis Costa and Tom Beatty, each bringing their passion and knowl...

Send us Fan Mail You can enjoy a nice bottle of wine, but once you know what REALLY goes in to making wine, you can truly appreciate all of its nuances.  Well, we couldn't call ourselves true students of wine without exploring what it takes to make our own now, could we?  Although we believed that anything we made would likely be barely drinkable, at best, we still felt the need to pursue thi...

Send us Fan Mail Welcome to 2023!  Inside the Bunghole's Pam, Don and James visit their favorite local wine bar in the Coachella Valley, La Fe on the World famous El Paseo!  We interview one of the owners, German to find out how and why Richard and he decided to go into unchartered territory and open a wine bar!  We'll talk about the pitfalls and challenges of a pandemic and growing a bu...

Send us Fan Mail Imagine drinking wine for a grape cause...your cause!  We are joined by winemaker, Mari Wells Coyle from One Hope Wines, which has a totally unique and fun way to learn about wines, while making money for your favorite charity! Think Tupperware party, but MUCH, MUCH more fun!  One Hope has set up a business model where you throw a wine tasting party, sampling the amazing wines of...

Send us Fan Mail We had a fantastic adventure in Valle de Guadalupe in Baja Norte, less than an hour east of Ensenada.  We had the absolute pleasure of staying at the beautiful airbnb Nativo, which, unbeknownst to us, had such a wonderful winery, and winemaker Benjamin Peña Guerrero,  with a unique story of how he changed careers mid-life from being a successful architect, who designed many of the...

Send us Fan Mail We are so excited to sit down with Dave Fraschetti, who puts on several wine events in California including Vin Diego in San Diego, Rancho Mirage Food and Wine Festival, and the Palm Springs Pinot Noir Fest.  He gives us some insight on what it takes to put on such an event and why his events have been so successful! Dave's philosophy is really about educating.  He is very se...

Send us Fan Mail WOW is all I can say about Valle de Guadalupe, the wine region that we recently visited just east of Ensenada in Baja Mexico!  Quite possibly THE BEST WINES we have ever tasted...and believe me, we have tasted ALOT of wine!   This episode we were so lucky to meet Kristen at Lechuza Wines, and taste what truly is a passion project for her and her family, and you can taste the love...

Send us Fan Mail We had the amazing opportunity to sit down in the backyard of renowned winemaker Paul Warson to discuss his newest venture...his own label, Warson Wine.  With the support of his many contacts in the wine community, and a (strong) nudge from his wife, he was able to launch his own brand.   We talk about his background, being the winemaker and general manager of Firestone, in the Sa...

Send us Fan Mail Kingman, AZ...one thinks of the wild west, cowboys and indians, historic Route 66, certainly not lush vineyards, a beautiful event venue AND great wines.  Well let us introduce you to Stetson Winery!  A beautiful vineyard nestled in the high desert valley surrounded by mountains.  Magnificent views, stunning sunsets and a great Italian style wines...the things dreams, AND dream we...

Send us Fan Mail Love the movie Sideways ?  Who could forget the misadventures in the Santa Barbara wine country of Miles and Jack?  Well, interestingly enough, much of the movie was shot on location at the now famous Hitching Post 2 steakhouse in Buellton, CA.  We sit down with the owner and chef  AND winemaker, Mr. Frank Ostini about how all of that Hollywood hi jinx came to be.  It is a pretty...

Send us Fan Mail Sitting in the beautiful front yard of Stolpman Vineyard's tasting rooms in Los Olivos, CA with Pete Stolpman, we take some time to learn about the beautiful wines grown in Ballard Canyon and what makes this a perfect location.  Stolpman knows that he could never pull off his huge success without the absolute dedication of his farming family lead by pioneer and rock star vign...

Send us Fan Mail Walla Walla, Washington.  Home to sweet onions and now a booming wine economy!  We sit down with Joanne Dunham, founder of Dunham Cellars, one of the regions pioneers, blazing the trail for Washington wine makers.  We talk about the founding of her winery with her husband, Mike and son, Eric.  We talk about how this farmer's daughter, who never saw herself growing into the li...

Send us Fan Mail Join us Inside the Bunghole as we visit the beautiful Brick Barn Wine Estates on the outskirts of Santa Barbara, in the Santa Ynez wine region.  We sit down with Moldovan wine maker Adrian Bolshoi and share some great wines and hear his fascinating story!  Adrian's journey begins in Moldova, a small country sandwiched between Romania and Ukraine with a rich history of wine ma...

Send us Fan Mail Raise your glass to sommelier Katie Finn of @desertwineshop111 (Desert Wine Shop on 111, Palm Desert, CA) as she takes us on a journey of Rieslings!  We also learn a bit about what sacrifices one makes to become a sommelier, how she buys for a boutique wine shop and why you should appreciate and support YOUR local wine shop! We debunk myths and common misconceptions of this most c...

Send us Fan Mail Intro - Who are Pam and James. James and Pam have been business partners and best friends for over 25.  We started enjoying wines and going to local wine tastings about 10 years ago.  This is where we met our producer Don Maselli, at a wine tasting at 3rd Corner Bistro in Palm Desert, CA.   There is a funny story that involves Willamette Valley wines, Lewis and Clark, Brokeback Mo...