Voices of the Vine

In the last episode of Season 2, we're going to end exactly where we started: with low alcohol wine. Today, Virginia and I taste a low alcohol Sauvignon Blanc wine versus a regular Sauvignon Blanc table wine, both produced in New Zealand. We're here to compare and contrast what a low alcohol wine actually tastes like compared to a regular table wine. We'll talk about mouthfeel, the process in whic...

Today's episode not only reviews some of the top marketing trends of 2026 that keep coming up on repeat from various wine marketing experts we have talked to, but it also dives into addressing one of the top trends of the year: flavor integration. We're not talking about wine flavors, but top flavors that take over the food and beverage industry. While we discuss how to make formula wines and RTD'...

 After having the opportunity to talk with Carly Razzi from Penns Woods Winery (PA) in last episode, Virginia and I also wanted to taste two of their wines and share them here with all of you. Both wines are Pennsylvania grown and Pennsylvania produced. Their winemaker, Davide, has done an excellent job on both and we're excited to describe them for you here. They are both lovely examples of the q...

In 2009, Carley Razzi joined her father's winery, Penns Woods Winery, in Southeastern Pennsylvania at the young age of 23. Carley worked 7 days a week, painting her own path, determined to help her father sell Pennsylvania grown and produced wine. Today's episode reveals a story of determination, inclusivity, open-mindedness and generational youth. We discuss everything from how selling wine throu...

Let's taste some aromatic white wines that are associated with Episode 8's discussion! In today's Wine Tasting Short, Virginia and Denise taste a 100% Albarino and a blend of several aromatic white wine varieties (Sauvignon Blanc, Semillon, and Chardonnay). Plus, we brought in a comparison wine - which DG Winemaking did not consult on - an oak aged Chardonnay. We wanted to highlight the lovely nat...

Have you ever wondered whether your winemaking decisions are truly shaping the way your wines taste? Most wineries don't have the luxury of running a control against a treatment to measure how a single variable changes the outcome in a given variety. In today's episode, we're diving into a 2024–2025 winemaking project where we deliberately altered our processes to drive meaningful changes in the s...

Selling wine is a challenge for many wineries this year. So we're talking to Dr. Kathy Kelley, Professor of Horticultural Marketing and Business Management at Penn State University. Dr. Kelley brings some fresh perspectives around wine marketing for smaller or family-owned operations, has provided us with a plethora of resources all available on our Show Notes, and created some reasonable action i...

Do you currently feel stuck or are struggling in the trenches of today's industry status? This may be the conversation you need! We're dropping a section of our interview with Estelle Tracy which was not previously released. We will pick up the interview when Virginia asked Estelle for background on how she named her company "37 Chocolates." From here, Estelle divulged more information on the year...

What happens when three people that are passionate about pairing complex foods with complex beverages get together? You get THIS wine and chocolate pairing. Estelle Tracy, from 37 Chocolates, leads us through a chocolate and wine pairing, showing us how much fun it can be to pair different craft or bean-to-bar chocolates with wines. She even added a very special tip for pairing wine and chocolate...

Today's guest is Estelle Tracy, the founder and owner of 37 Chocolates, a business that provides chocolate tastings and chocolate education. Our interview with Estelle focuses on a modern approach to chocolate and wine pairings that. We're covering Estelle's background, her ability to connect with audiences, her interest in wine and chocolate pairings, and providing chocolate examples for wine pai...

Is the tasting room dead? This has been a topic on everyone's mind through 2025. The 2025 year has been a year of great discussion and concern amongst wine industry members. While sales dropped in 2024, it is likely that the 2025 year may be similar or worse in terms of decreasing sales. However, there are beacons of light shining through that may highlight areas of opportunity for wine brands to...

We're in a period of time where the flow and feel of a tasting room is under scrutiny. Today's wine drinkers have less time and less disposable income to visit tasting rooms, in general. It is possible a tasting room visit – which comes in many forms – can forever change an individual's view on wine in general. With the question of whether or not tasting rooms survive our modern times, we took the...

In an age in which the tasting room is getting called "dead in the water," we explore the history behind the winery tasting room, how it has evolved over time, and one big barrier to entry for potential wine consumers: rules for tasting rooms pushed by the rhetoric of the American wine industry. This episode truly highlights one of the big expectations that is put on consumers in terms of understa...

It's time to kick off Season 2 of "Voices of the Vine" with winemaking consultant, Denise Gardner and winemaker, Virginia Mitchell. We're diving right in, tackeling a very trendy topic for this year: low and no alcohol wines. Whether you produce 1,000 cases of wine per year or 100,000 cases of wine per year, almost every winery in the U.S. could process a low-alcohol wine. Such possibilities allow...

In our previous episode, Jayme shared several secrets and tips for crafting fine wine cocktails. In today's final episode of Season 1 of "Voices of the Vine," Jayme, Virginia, and myself are going to craft one of Jayme's signature wine cocktails. We'll mix it and taste it live for you! Plus, we're sharing all of the details on how to make this lovely drink in your kitchen… all over on our show not...

Today's interview with Jayme Henderson, co-owner of The Storm Cellar, shows that the road to the wine industry can be a winding one. Jayme shares with us her journey from Lakeland, FL to Hotchkiss, CO, where she and her husband Steve, produce Colorado wine. Jayme is incredibly creative, regularly creating and sharing her cocktail recipes on her website "Jayme Grows Drinks." In this episode, Jayme...

Our second dry rosé comes from the Tavel, France region. Known for its mouthfeel, weight, and fruit, these rosé wines are quite different from the Provence rosé wine we tasted previously. Join us as we discuss rosé wine color, how to pair these rosé wines with food, and what makes a Tavel rosé a "Rosé that Delights." Cheers! For Show Notes of this episode, please visit our Sip & Swirl Cellar archi...

When it comes to rosé, the Provence region in France gets it. Today, we'll taste a Bandol Rosé by Domaines Bunan, which is a sub-region within Provence. These are "Rosés that Refresh", which is often discussed in the monthly Sip & Swirl newsletter: crisp, zesty, and refreshing. Yes, this is a dry rosé, and yes, now is the time to start looking for the 2024 vintage. Nonetheless, we hit on some key...

Today, we're diving into one of our favorite styles of wine: rosé! This style of wine has become increasingly popular over the past decade. Rosé wines have a long history of existence, but after decades of a downhill spiral, it now seems like every wine brand has a rosé wine. Want to know what goes into crafting a rosé wine? We covered it! Want to reveal those traditional rosé wine styles? We will...

Did you know that it takes between 105 and 180 years before a tree is harvested for a wine barrel? No? Neither did we! As we continue our conversation with Gina Shay, Sales Representative for the Greater USA and Canada through Trust Cooperage, Gina explains to us how wine barrels are made: from tree to barrel. We also get a thorough explanation on why those grain differences matter and how flavor...

Wow! We have such an amazing guest to share with you today. If you have been following along with our oaky wine series, you know we have dived into some oak history, uses of oak in wine production, and explored the sensory perceptions associated with oaked wines. Today, we're speaking with Gina Shay, Sales Representative for the Greater USA and Canada through Trust Cooperage. Trust Cooperage is a...

Welcome to Part 2 on our series on Rioja. Today we are going to talk about a Gran Reserva from Rioja. This is the style of the wine that is aged than we tasted in Part 1, the Crianza. The Crianza is a great comparison to today's tasting of the Gran Reserva, which sees greater aging time in barrel. Visit our Show Notes for more information on today's episode including descriptions on how to read Ri...

Today's Wine Tasting Short is a part of a two-part series. This is going to be part one where we start to explore some wines from Rioja. In our oaky series, we've been talking a lot about how oak influences the wine and Rioja is one of those regions that uses oak aging to define their wine styles. So join us today as we taste a Crianza from Rioja. For show notes of this episode, including a list o...

We want to continue our series exploring a bit more about the use of wood, and specifically, oak, in wine. So today, we're going to discuss a few of our favorite oaky wines including Oaky Chardonnay, Napa Valley Cabernets, Australian Shiraz, and Rioja wines. But first, we're going to dive into a little bit more information on what oak contributes to wine. Afterwards, Denise and Virginia will share...

Why do we use wood for making wine? Wine lovers love a good barrel room, but where did these even come from? Today, we'll share with you how wood integrated itself into wine production and transport, and how its use evolved into modern day wine processing that we know today. For show notes of this episode, visit  dgwinemaking.com/winelovers