VinePair Podcast

Prompted by a recent experience, Adam, Joanna, and Zach bemoan the fact that too many restaurants channel all wine service through their sommeliers, even sometimes prohibiting servers from taking orders or even refilling glasses. Why are you keeping us from buying more wine?!? Please remember to subscribe to, rate, and review VinePair on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your episodes,...

Adam, Joanna, and Zach discuss how the rise of the Martini hasn't necessarily buoyed vermouth's fortunes, with savory and freezer versions tending to either minimize the aromatized wine or cut it out altogether, while the more conventional preparations are leaning drier and drier. Please remember to subscribe to, rate, and review VinePair on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your episod...

Adam, Joanna, and Zach respond to a listener question about why the wine industry as a whole still doesn't view women as serious wine drinkers, and dismiss many of the wines that women tend to gravitate to. Please remember to subscribe to, rate, and review VinePair on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your episodes, and send any questions, comments, critiques, or suggestions to podcast@...

With "The Big Game" just around the corner, Adam, Joanna, and Zach discuss whether the spread of legalized online sports betting is having a positive effect on the bar business, and if there are ways that savvy operators can draw in more of the sports betting crowd. Please remember to subscribe to, rate, and review VinePair on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your episodes, and send an...

Adam, Joanna, and Zach respond to the most recent Silicon Valley Bank report and Adam's recent presentation at the Unified Wine & Grape Symposium , where they specifically look for the silver linings and potentially successful strategies that wineries and operators can embrace, if they just admit that wine has a problem. Please remember to subscribe to, rate, and review VinePair on Apple Podca...

Adam, Joanna, and Zach delve into the rumor that Diageo might be looking to sell off Guinness , despite (or perhaps because) the beer's booming popularity. Could this be part of a move to take over ownership of Moët Hennessy? Who could possibly purchase the iconic beer? Would Ireland riot if it left British hands? Plus, a conversation with Friend of VinePair and Ten to One Rum founder Marc Farrell...

Adam, Joanna, and Zach riff a bit more on sommeliers and why wine service tends to err on the side of snobbery. From somms preemptively taking tastes of wines you ordered, to keeping bottles out of reach, and generally treating guests like a nuisance, wine service in a range of restaurants remains confrontational and condescending, much to their dismay. Please remember to subscribe to, rate, and r...

Adam, Joanna, and Zach are joined by VinePair writer-at-large and Hop Take columnist Dave Infante to discuss his recent piece about the reality check that the craft beer industry got in 2024. With sales volumes flat or declining, and more closures than opening for the first time in decades, there's been some doom and gloom surrounding the category: is that deserved? Please remember to subscribe to...

Adam is joined by Alyssa Smith, executive director of Charleston Wine + Food , to discuss the evolving nature of this signature festival, how it pays homage to Charleston's unique culinary history and influences, and more. Please remember to subscribe to, rate, and review VinePair on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your episodes, and send any questions, comments, critiques, or suggest...

With shorter wine lists becoming more commonplace at restaurants, some have suggested that this trend is good for the wine industry. Adam, Joanna, and Zach weigh in on why that might not be the case, as well as discuss what exactly the upper bound is for a "short" wine list. Please remember to subscribe to, rate, and review VinePair on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your episodes, an...

Adam, Joanna, and Zach discuss the second big alcohol report , this one from the Interagency Coordinating Committee on the Prevention of Underage Drinking, and how it seemed largely designed to pull in data that would support the desired conclusion, then are joined by best-selling author and economist Dr. Emily Oster to discuss the complexities and uncertainties that surround any attempt to study...

Adam, Joanna, and Zach discuss whether it works for bars, restaurants, and retailers to describe wines as "allocated." Does the average consumer know what that means? Do they care? Does it create excitement and prompt discussion, or does it come off as snobby and exclusionary? Please remember to subscribe to, rate, and review VinePair on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your episodes,...

In light of the recent recommendation from the U.S. Surgeon General that alcohol include a label warning about potential cancer risk, Adam, Joanna, and Zach discuss how the industry has and should respond to this proposal, and more generally how talking about the many social and even societal benefits of light to moderate consumption would be a beneficial tactic. Please remember to subscribe to, r...

To kick off 2025, Adam, Joanna, and Zach share some of their predictions for the year in the drinks industry, including a return to older models of targeted marketing, continued struggles for wine and craft beer, and the potential impact on the entire industry of the expanding use of GLP-1 medications. Please remember to subscribe to, rate, and review VinePair on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherev...

As they do every year, Adam, Joanna, and Zach are joined by the rest of the VinePair team to look back at their best and most memorable drinks and drinking experiences of 2024. Please remember to subscribe to, rate, and review VinePair on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your episodes, and send any questions, comments, critiques, or suggestions to podcast@vinepair.com. Thanks for liste...

To wrap up 2024, Adam, Joanna, and Zach take a look back on the biggest stories, the most important trends, and the overall vibes of the year that was, including deserved concern about the wine industry, struggles for craft beer, and a looming hospitality crisis. Please remember to subscribe to, rate, and review VinePair on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your episodes, and send any q...

With the holiday season in full swing, Adam, Joanna, and Zach ponder why it is that Americans in general don't have much affinity for hot drinks, treating them as mostly a wintertime novelty or home cold remedy. It could be that hot drinks just aren't that good, or that they don't provide as much room for creativity and experimentation, but are there other reasons as well? Please remember to subsc...

Guinness has been one of the unquestioned stars of the beer, and drinks, world this year, from viral fame to some hard-to-believe mixed drinks . Adam and Joanna speak with Laura Merritt, president of Diageo Beer Co., to discuss the ways in which the drinking public just keeps coming back to Guinness. Please remember to subscribe to, rate, and review VinePair on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever...

Adam, Joanna, and Zach discuss the curious fact that despite the fact that many prized bourbons command staggering prices on the secondary market, for the most part the distilleries that produce those bourbons have generally not raised retail prices. What benefits do these brands derive from this practice? What would raising prices do? Please remember to subscribe to, rate, and review VinePair on...

Adam, Joanna, and Zach debate whether spirits brands can try to attach their specific brand to a known cocktail, and if so, which ones are up for grabs or would make sense to highlight. Please remember to subscribe to, rate, and review VinePair on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your episodes, and send any questions, comments, critiques, or suggestions to podcast@vinepair.com. Thanks...

Adam, Joanna, and Zach discuss the current state of wine tourism in Napa Valley, after a year of declining visitations, and speculate that the region as a whole was too quick to assume that the post-pandemic landscape and model was going to be the new normal, instead of a weird outlier time. Please remember to subscribe to, rate, and review VinePair on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get...

Adam, Joanna, and Zach break down the recently-released list of VinePair's Top 50 Spirits of 2024 , including excitement about Cognac, rum, and barrel-finished spirits in general. Please remember to subscribe to, rate, and review VinePair on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your episodes, and send any questions, comments, critiques, or suggestions to podcast@vinepair.com. Thanks for li...

With the holiday dining season fully upon us, Adam, Joanna, and Zach are joined by VinePair contributor and restaurateur Dave Foss to discuss his most recent column, as well as the overall state of hospitality, including how have staffing cutbacks and shortages hurt the guest experience. Please remember to subscribe to, rate, and review VinePair on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your...

Despite all of the buzz around bourbon and tequila, vodka remains the most important spirit in the United States. To discuss vodka's past, present, and future trajectory, Adam and Joanna are joined by Grey Goose vice president of global marketing Aleco Azqueta. Please remember to subscribe to, rate, and review VinePair on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your episodes, and send any que...

With the holiday season upon us, one of the more sticky bits of drinks-related etiquette is coming once again to the forefront for many - should you bring a bottle (or more) to a gathering, and most of all, should you expect the host(s) to open that bottle with you there? Adam, Joanna, and Zach share their own perspectives and experiences with this fraught scenario. Please remember to subscribe to...