The Connected Table Live

The hilltop village of San Gimignano with its many stone towers is a popular destination in Tuscany. The surrounding countryside is home to Tuscany’s- and one of Italy’s- most renowned white wines, Vernaccia di San Gimignano DOCG. Crisp with refreshing salinity and notes of tropical and stone fruits, Vernaccia di San Gimignano is food friendly and ageable. 2026 marks the 750th anniversary of Verna...

Rocca di Frassinello in Tuscany's Maremma is a joint venture between Paolo Panerai, Owner of Domini Castellare di Castellina, Chianti Classico, and Baron Eric de Rothschild of Domaine Lafite, the legendary Bordeaux first growth property. The winery, known for its Super Tuscans, is a masterpiece by Italian Architect, Renzo Piano. In this episode, Founder Paolo Panerai is joined by enologist, Alessa...

New Orleans Chef Frank Brigtsen is recognized for revitalizing Creole Acadian cooking. In 2026 his namesake restaurant, Brigtsen’s, marks 40 years since opening in 1986 with his wife, Marna, and support from his mentor, Chef Paul Prudhomme. Located in a Victorian cottage in the Uptown Riverbend neighborhood, Brigsten’s draws a loyal clientele of regulars. Brigsten has written a cookbook, "Frank Br...

Suis Generis in New Orleans' Bywater neighborhood embraces the philosophy of Kansha, a respect for ingredients and waste nothing. Serving dinner Friday-Sunday, Suis Generis' weekly changing menu is based on what's available at its Tiki Farm in Pearlington, Mississippi. Both Tiki Farm and Suis Generis offer experiential zero waste cooking labs on topics such as fermenting, brining, making miso, gar...

Tuscany’s western region delivers wild natural beauty and the scent of the sea, passionate, independent winemakers and many tastes to savor. This episode travels the "Strada del Vino, Olio and Sapori” to meet local wine and food producers in Massa Carrara and the Candia Hills, Bolgheri, Maremma and Montecucco. Discover a mountain winery embracing “heroic viticulture.” Tour a world-renowned designe...

Eat, Sip and Taste the flavors of western Tuscany, its wines and cuisine with The Connected Table. This episode visits Terre di Pisa DOC, Colline Lucchese and Montecarlo DOC. Meet family-run wineries, Pecorino cheese, olive oil and pasticcini producers dating back generations. Visit the village where Pinocchio was created. Tour a medieval fortress in Montecarlo. Taste and savor local dishes and wi...

Jessica Dupuy is an award-winning wine, food, spirits, and travel journalist and author of six cookbooks, including "United Tastes of the South" and "Tex-Mex Traditions, Innovations and Comfort Foods from Both Sides of the Border." She is author of "The Wines of Southwest U.S.A." which explores wine regions in Texas, Arizona, New Mexico, and Colorado. In her latest book collaboration, "Italianity"...

Texas wines, seasonal peaches, fields of wildflowers and authentic Hill Country cooking are among the many delights to experience on a visit to Fredericksburg, Texas. Settled by German immigrants in 1846, you’ll find history, foodways and other traditions from the old country blended with a chic, contemporary among Fredericksburg’s many hotels, inns, restaurants, biergartens and cocktail bars. Fre...

In New Orleans, Café Reconcile serves more than soulful Louisiana cooking. Founded in 1996 by Rev. Harry Tompson, Café Reconcile transforms the lives of at-risk youths ages 16 to 24 through workforce development and job training, giving them skills and confidence to carry into their futures. Café Reconcile Chief Culinary Officer and Executive Chef Martha Wiggins discusses how the program works. Th...

Lively, crisp and refreshing, rosé wines continue to gain momentum with more quality and variety than ever. Rosé is a large category of wines with few rules, two key methods of production and many styles, from bone dry to fruity, pale pink to deep strawberry in hue. While French rosés remain a benchmark, especially from the south, premium rosé wines are made throughout the world, with styles for e...

Victor Owen Schwartz founded family-run VOS Selections in 1987 to bring artisanal wines from around world to the U.S.A. Passion for fine wines fueled his business success. Purpose to protect free trade and advocate for businesses impacted by the 2025 Trump administration tariffs imposed under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act took Schwartz to the Supreme Couty as a lead plaintiff in...

The Loire Valley is the third largest wine region in France, a UNESCO World Heritage Site that extends west to east from the Atlantic Ocean to the peaks of the Massif Central. This diverse landscape along France's longest river produces many world-class wines, including whites Muscadet, Vouvray, Sancerre, Pouilly-Fumé and Savennières, Rosé d'Anjou, Chinon and Saumur-Champigny reds, Crémant de Loir...

The 7th woman in the USA, and first in California, to become a Master of Wine (MW), Dr. Liz Thach serves as President of the nonprofit Wine Market Council (WMC) which produces heavy hitting research data of interest to anyone in the role of producing, buying and selling wine and building and retaining wine customers. Dr. Thach keeps her finger on the pulse of the wine industry and her eye on consu...

New Orleans is renowned for its oysters and signature dishes like Oysters Rockefeller and Oyster Po-Boys. Established in 1876 in the historic French Quarter, P&J Oyster Co. is the nation's oldest oyster processor, cultivating the finest oysters throughout Louisiana. P&J Oyster Co was started by two immigrant families from Austria and Italy. Fifth generation family proprietor, Sal Sunseri,...

Spain is the world's third largest wine producer after Italy and France. With more than 100 wine appellations and over 200 grape varieties, Spain offers a diverse range of wines to taste. Tempranillo is Spain’s most renowned red grape, widely planted in Rioja, Ribera Del Duero and other areas. But how familiar are you with Spain’s other major red grapes such as Bobal, Garnacha, Mencía, Carignan (M...

Barboursville Vineyards in Virginia was the 18th century estate of statesman, James Barbour. In 1976 Italian vintner, Gianni Zonin, acquired the estate to establish Barboursville Vineyards, the Zonin family's only winery outside Italy. Barboursville celebrates 50 years in 2026, now with new owners. Luca Paschina, Barboursville's winemaker and general manager since 1990, now serves as CEO and Presi...

The fifth largest region in Italy, Tuscany is renowned for its wines, notably its Sangiovese-based reds, including Chianti, Chianti Classico, Brunello di Montalcino and Vino Nobile di Montepulciano. Melanie and David explore a few wine production subzones close enough to Florence for either a day trip or an overnight, including DOCG Carmignano, DOCG Chianti Rufina, DOCG Chianti Classico, and DOC V...

The Moretti Cuseri family achieved success producing luxury goods in Italy. Hand-crafted luxury is also their approach to making wines at their five wine estates in Tuscany and Sicily. Export director and third generation, Alberto Moretti Cuseri, discusses each estate and wines starting with flagship Sette Ponti in Valdarno di Sopra DOC near Arezzo, which his grandfather acquired in 1951 and where...

Tujague's in the French Quarter was established 1856 by French immigrants, Guillaume and Marie Abadie Tujague, making it New Orleans' second oldest restaurant. Tujague’s is where the iconic Grasshopper cocktail and Bourbon Milk Punch were created. It also conceived the first "brunch," originally a generous late breakfast for French Market workers. Mark Latter's family has owned Tujague's since 198...

Castello Brolio in the hills of Chianti Classico's Gaiole subzone, is home to Barone Ricasoli, documented as the oldest winery in Italy (est 1141) and the fourth oldest family business in the world. Francesco Ricasoli, family steward and company president since 1993, discusses the Ricasoli family's role in originating the formula for what is now Chianti Classico wine. He highlights the microclimat...

A trip to Portugal would not be complete without a visit to Porto and the Douro Valle, home to the world’s production of Port wines and the oldest demarcated wine region in the world. Kopke, established in 1638, is Portugal’s oldest Port houses and now has a stunning, art-filled hotel in Villa Nova de Gaia across the Douro River in Porto. Carla Tiago, longtime winemaker at Kopke, discusses the tim...

At Penner-Ash located in the Northern Willamette Valley’s Yamhill-Carlton AVA, Winemaker Kate Ayres crafts several expressions of single estate Pinot Noir as well as Chardonnay, Viognier and Riesling. Penner Ash was established in 1998 by Lynn and Ron Penner-Ash with a vision to producer lush, layered Pinot Noir. In 2016, the winery joined the Jackson Family Wines portfolio. The same year, Oregon...

Working in wine and traveling the world to visit wine regions and producers can be invigorating and exhausting. But that doesn’t Yannick Benjamin, a respected New York-based sommelier and co-founder of Beaupierre Wines & Spirits. What sets him apart is that manages this all from a wheelchair- with no limits. Paralyzed from a car accident in 2003, Benjamin advocates for individuals living with...

Michele Chiarlo in Italy’s Piedmont region is a world-class producer of single vineyard wines. The family-run winery has vineyards in the Langhe, Monferrato and Gavi. Patriarch Michele Chiarlo helped to establish standards of quality for DOC Piedmont and was among the first to introduce green harvest practices in Italy in 1984. His winemaker son, Stefano, continues his father's legacy and discusse...

Peter Merriman is one of 12 chef-pioneers of Hawaii regional cuisine, a movement which emphasizes locally sourced ingredients from farmers and fisherman throughout the islands and elevated the local dining scene. In 1988 he opened his signature restaurant, Merriman’s, in Waimea (Big Island). This acclaimed restaurant now has locations in Maui (Kapalua), Oahu and Kauai (Poipu). Merriman’s casual co...