Vino101
129 episodes - English - Latest episode: 5 months ago - ★★★★★ - 18 ratingsVino101 an easy no snob way to learn about wine, wine tasting, and food and wine pairing.
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Episodes
VinoWeek - Episode 76 - Back in the Saddle
March 05, 2024 01:56 - 77 MBBill and I are back. Pardon our absence as family needs took a higher priority for both of us lately. On this podcast we offer up a quick summary of what we have been doing during our hiatus. While we may have been busy handling family affairs we still found time to have an adult beverage every now and then. We’ll share some of those discoveries on this show. Also I continue to post regularly on Twitter eerr X. Having never participated in a “Dry January” I have found myself consuming less ...
VinoWeek - Episode 75 - Reflections on Gambero Rosso and Slow Wine
May 28, 2023 19:22 - 114 MBAs we head into springtime this year more wine and food events are returning to the our calendars. On this podcast Bill and I discuss our recent experiences at the Gambero Rosso and Slow Wine events both held in San Francisco.
VinoWeek - Episode 74 - Good Eats in Sonoma
February 26, 2023 23:10 - 86.7 MBBill and I recorded this podcast the morning of the Super Bowl so good eats and adult beverages were front and center of our discussion. We go on a jag about the lack of places to find good bread in Sonoma County and come up with a pretty good impromptu list of great places to eat in Sonoma County. So if you have any plans to come to wine county there are lots of good tips in this podcast. Thanks to everyone for listening. Cheers! Our wine recommendation this week is the 2019 Poggio Scalett...
VinoWeek - Episode 74
January 02, 2023 22:27 - 85.9 MBEsther Mobley of the San Francisco Chronicle reports on the sale of the Robert Sinskey Vineyard Winery, tasting room and vineyards. However billionaires Stewart and Lynda Resnick elected to not purchase the brand. For the moment the Sinskeys plan to lease back the facility and continue business as usual. Press Democrat writer Sarah Doyle pens a piece on how Sonoma County winemakers are “passing the torch” and making plans to extend their family legacies. Ingredient labeling for wine star...
VinoWeek - Episode 73
January 02, 2023 22:27 - 85.9 MBEsther Mobley of the San Francisco Chronicle reports on the sale of the Robert Sinskey Vineyard Winery, tasting room and vineyards. However billionaires Stewart and Lynda Resnick elected to not purchase the brand. For the moment the Sinskeys plan to lease back the facility and continue business as usual. Press Democrat writer Sarah Doyle pens a piece on how Sonoma County winemakers are “passing the torch” and making plans to extend their family legacies. Ingredient labeling for wine star...
VinoWeek - Episode 72 - Holiday Wines
December 05, 2022 02:11 - 107 MBWith Christmas around the corner we put together a list of some of our favorite wines for the holidays. The Federal Reserve’s aggressive interest rate hikes hasn’t slowed the uptick in wine prices. It can be fairly easy to blow up your wine budget with just one or two bottles of splurge purchases. Most of the wines on our list can all be had for under $35. Searching for one wine that pleases everybody is a fools errand. It’s invariably better to select a variety of wines, open them all at o...
VinoWeek - Episode 71 - Wine Tastings Making a Comeback
October 31, 2022 19:03 - 111 MBA recent article by Colman Andrews titled Paradise Lost: The Flame Out of Napa Valley’s Iconic Wine Country raised a number of eyebrows in Northern California. The article’s main themes being that the Valley’s growth has lessened its charm and that corporatization has made visits to Napa Wineries too expensive for most people. I just recently attended the 18th annual Wine & Spirits Top 100 tasting at the City View at Metreon in San Francisco. This was the first public wine tasting I have at...
VinoWeek - Episode 70 Has your palate changed?
October 07, 2022 02:33 - 92 MBAl and Bill - news of the wineworld
VinoWeek - Episode 69 - Wildfire Hangover
July 10, 2022 01:44 - 58.4 MBBill and I get together for a new podcast after an extended absence. On this podcast you can find out where we’ve been, what’s new in wine country and what we’ve been drinking and eating. It’s summertime so we find ourselves drinking less red wine and more rosé and white wines. Our wine recommendation for this week is the Mönchhof Ürzig Würzgarten Riesling Kabinett. The Mönchhof is said to be one of the oldest wine estates in the West German Mosel Valley dating back to 1177. This fruity off...
VinoWeek - Episode 68 - Wine Tasting Hospitality Has Changed
August 04, 2021 02:50 - 86.9 MBConsolidation in the U. S. wine industry continues at an unabated pace. Most of the mergers and acquisitions are followed weeks later by layoffs and closures of production facilities. Sebastiani, Coppola and Chateau Ste. Michelle are some of the most recent buyouts. Right now is one of the best times to be looking for a job in the California wine industry. A quick look on winejobs.com will yield hundred of job offers. Terri and I finally ventured out and went wine tasting for the first...
Non Disclosure Wine
June 01, 2021 11:32The pandemic has been difficult for everyone and the economic fallout for businesses has been immeasurable. There have been winners and losers in the business world. Lord knows I wish I had listened to the Bitcoin believer we sat next to at a communal table a year and a half ago at our local pizza parlor. If I would have heeded his advice I would be awaiting the arrival of my cases of 2016 First Growth Bordeaux. Alas, my curse is my conservative nature with regards to investing. Remember ...
VinoWeek - Episode 67 Unwelcomed Politics in Wine Country
April 30, 2021 14:59 - 2 days - 73.3 MBWindsor Ca. Mayor, Freeze in Europe.
VinoWeek - Episode 66
March 29, 2021 12:36 - 86 MBImported wine prices could be headed lower? Ursula Von der Leyen President of the European Commission and President Biden have agreed to suspend all tariffs with regard to the Airbus-Boeing dispute for four months. President Von der Leyen, the first woman elected to head the European Commission is responsible for setting the Commission’s policy agenda and is just 15 months into a five year term that started in December of 2019. She’s quickly gaining allies in the food and agriculture secto...
The World's Biggest Wine Company Expands
January 14, 2021 11:29 - 80 MBConstellation Brands executives must be elated to finally complete their sale of over 32 wine brands and five wineries to E. J. Gallo Winery. The $810 million deal was less than half of the $1.7 billion initially proposed in April of 2019, as the Federal Trade Commission insisted Constellations exclude their sparkling wine, brandy, dessert wine and concentrate business lines as a condition of approval. Constellation sheds all their $11 and under products in a bid to go upscale and Gallo pi...
The Beaujolais Nouveau Has Arrived
November 23, 2020 01:10The third Thursday of November has been known as Beaujolais Nouveau Day since 1951. While the novelty of Beaujolais Nouveau Day has faded of recent I thought I’d check in on Duboeuf’s latest 2020 vintage release; partly out of curiosity, but mainly in deference to Georges Duboeuf the legendary Beaujolais winemaker and négociant who passed away last January at the age of 86. Duboeuf was a master marketer and he is credited with turning what was a local event in France into one that is now c...
VinoWeek - Episode 64
November 16, 2020 02:32 - 1 hour - 93.9 MBDelivery startup Go Puff has just announced its acquisition of alcohol beverage retailer BevMo. While Bevmo already has an online presence and delivery service Go Puff’s network, which delivers convenience store items will make it even more opportune for people to channel their inner couch potato. Convicted wine counterfeiter Rudy Kurniawan has finished serving his federal prison sentence and is now in the custody of the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). Where he will end up...
Wine Country Faces a New Reality
November 02, 2020 12:46 - 87.2 MBWild fires , power outages and uncertain times in Wine Country
Smoke Taint Concerns Grape Growers
September 20, 2020 21:49 - 66.5 MBLately there hasn’t been much to celebrate about and as a result Champagne growers are facing challenges due to the pandemic and collapsing sales. So far the French government has not offered any actionable help. Can growers and winemakers work together to hold prices steady? Franzia is selling a backpack that holds an entire box of wine. As it turns out their apparel site has a bunch of other swag you can purchase as well. If wildfires and air quality indexes in the very unhealthy to haz...
What Is Clean Wine?
August 14, 2020 11:59 - 81 MBWe have a new wine bar in Sebastopol. Region wine bar will specialize in pouring small production wines using self-serve wine machines. Cameron Diaz and Katherine Power have entered the celebrity wine business. Their wine brand Avaline, is entering a crowded market place. Years of consolidation by alcohol producers and wholesalers, uncertainty due to an ongoing trade war and now a pandemic makes one consider their market timing. However the ladies may be filling a void by marketing their pr...
VinoWeek - Episode 59 - Tasting Rooms Reopen
July 07, 2020 11:45 - 66.8 MBAfter three plus months of shelter in place mandates with a significant portion of the hospitality and restaurant business in California throttled to an idle, wineries, brew pubs and distillers have been given the green light to host patrons again. The old tasting room model has been discarded in favor of new sanitation and social distancing protocols. Are you ready to go visit tasting rooms? If so you’ll probably need to make a reservation. California winemaker Bill Foley has just purchas...
VinoWeek - Episode 58 - How Covid - 19 Affects Us
May 30, 2020 13:42 - 113 MBBill and I have been on a brief hiatus. Let’s just say we have been adjusting to a new way of living our lives during the coronavirus pandemic. Walking into a wine retailer or visiting a winery tasting room has not been an option for us so in this podcast we spend some time talking about how and where we are buying our adult beverages. We both are certainly consuming more alcohol since the start of pandemic. Have your drinking habits changed? Are you purchasing more products on line? If you...
VinoWeek - Episode 57 - Wine Communication is Changing
March 29, 2020 17:56 - 107 MBHere in Sonoma County California we are under a Governor Gavin Newsom mandated shelter in place directive aimed at slowing the spread of the novel coronavirus. What does that mean? Check out this link to get the details. Cancelled events, business losses and layoffs are starting to impact the wine business as Bill Swindell points out in an article for the Press Democrat. There is nothing worse for a food and wine lover than to experience a partial or complete lose of their sense of smell....
Slow Wine World Tour 2020
March 02, 2020 13:09 - 35.3 MBSlow Wine Tour, Interview with Giancarlo Gariglio
VinoWeek Episode 54 - Wine for the People
February 23, 2020 22:17 - 104 MBWine industry experts are calling for grape growers to reduce the number of vineyards in production because of declining wine sales. We have already noticed some vineyards being ripped out and allowed to go fallow (at least for now) here in Sonoma County. Unfortunately for growers the oversupply of grapes is not a regional problem, but a statewide one. Sarah Klearman asks a number of industry leaders what type of short and long term solutions should be put in place to deal with California’s...
VinoWeek - Episode 53 Are More Tariffs In Our Future?
January 29, 2020 22:37 - 104 MBIt’s been rather calm and quite in Northern California of late. Mother nature is giving us a break from natural disasters and has turned her hell raising ways onto the continent of Australia. For months now Australia has been suffering with continuing wildfires which have to date destroyed over 10 million hectares. Phoebe French provides a list of events and organizations you can make donations to for helping those most in need. While Rebecca Hopkins an expat of Australia pens a fine piece o...
VinoWeek - Episode 52 - A Grape Glut = Bargains for Consumers
November 24, 2019 15:54 - 100 MBIt’s been a tough couple of weeks for Californians. Bill and I can add evacuee to our resumes as residents of Sebastopol and many other areas of Sonoma County were evacuated due to the Kincade wildfire. Firefighters made their stand at the edge of the foothills as the fires moved downhill towards the densely populated town of Windsor. Many lessons have been learned since the Tubbs fire in the fall of 2017 and in the end the town was saved. Restaurateurs in Sonoma County are struggling with...
VinoWeek - Episode 51 - PG&E Facing More Scrutiny
November 03, 2019 18:39 - 94.5 MBSonoma County wine world recently lost another former winery owner. Chris Smith of the Press Democrat pens an obituary about Robert Rue, who was farming old Zinfandel/ field blend vineyards as a side hustle before the term was popular. We’ve suspected that litigation of this sort was on the horizon and now we have two sizable California vintners suing several insurance companies. The vintners claim that the insurers have failed to reimburse them for smoke taint damages as a result of the wi...
VinoWeek - Episode 50 - Farming Ain't Easy
October 16, 2019 06:38 - 98.3 MBDorthy Vasser has been growing wine grapes in Redwood Valley for 53 years. Dorthy and her husband John started grape growing in 1964. John passed away in 2008 and Dorthy continued to farm their 26 acre Mendocino ranch. Dorthy has decided to sell her land and Lewis Perdue goes into great detail as to how Constellation Brands may have had a hand in her decision to get out of farming. It’s a very sad story. If you’re interested in getting into grape farming in Northern California here’s the ...
VinoWeek - Episode 49 - Large Wineries Drive the Market
September 12, 2019 02:29 - 87.5 MBWine journalist Jamie Goode recently posted a short blog about three of the world's largest wineries. Fred Swan felt that much of the criticism of the blog on social media was negative so he wrote a piece in defense of E.J. Gallo. Having visited several Gallo facilities in the past he offers some great insight into their operations. W. Blake Gray asks, "What's the point in fining a multi-billionaire winery owner when he ignores the rules"? Bill and I have a good discussion about Gray's pre...
Should You Quit Drinking?
July 19, 2019 03:55 - 104 MBBill and I start this weeks podcast talking about British Master of Wine Tim Atkin’s article Why You Shouldn’t Care Much About Wine. Exploring various topics Tim’s tongue-in-cheek writing style will bring a smile to your face. Jillian Kramer writes a post about What Happens To Your Body When You Quit Drinking. We have a good discussion about all the good things that happen when one abstains from alcohol. Even bartenders in the bay area are getting in the act via the Pin Project. Adding ...
VinoWeek - Episode 47 - Is Canned Wine Better for the Environment?
July 12, 2019 03:10 - 66 MBIt’s summertime and Europeans have experienced some extreme temperatures. Highs which have eclipsed the torrid marks set by the heatwave of 2003, that killed thousands of people. A lot has been learned since 2003 and the European countries seem better equipped to handle the large high pressure weather systems that cover the continent during the summers. Marshall Shepherd writing for Forbes tries to make the connection between increasing extremes of weather and climate change. Washington Po...
VinoWeek - Episode 46 - Robert Parker Retires
May 28, 2019 00:59 - 94.3 MBDr. Vinny of the Wine Spectator fields a question about whether or not one should swirl a glass of sparkling wine. It’s a touchy subject with sparkling wine afficionados. Are you a swirler? For some reason not everyone can do the right thing when it comes to business. A Baltimore businessman whose job was to safeguard wine which his clients where paying him to store is awaiting sentencing after being convicted of wire fraud and interstate transportation of stolen goods. Selling someones wi...
VinoWeek - Episode 45 - Fast Food Versus Organic
May 14, 2019 01:18 - 63.6 MBOne of Sonoma’s favorite tourist spots the Ravenswood tasting room has closed. The Ravenswood brand was one of 30 that was spun off by New York based Constellation Brands and purchased by E&J Gallo, but the 12 acre property and the tasting room was not part of the deal. McDonald’s, Burger King and KFC are becoming increasingly more common sights in Italy’s urban centers. Jeremy Parzen pens a post on fast food versus organic and big farming in Italy. When was the last time you cut out dri...
VinoWeek - Episode 44 - Winter Rains End California's Drought
May 07, 2019 05:07 - 103 MBThe final week of February 2019 was a disaster for Sonoma County residents and for business owners in the recently developed Barlow center in Sebastopol, California. The Russian River Valley suffered some of its worst flooding in decades. Bill and I both live in Sebastopol and we have a lively discussion about the floods and what the future holds for the affected areas. Brent Young writes an article to explain how vineyards are impacted during winter flooding. The interstate battles between ...
VinoWeek - Episode 43 - Merry Edwards Hands the Reigns to Roederer
April 21, 2019 15:12 - 94.8 MBAfter 45 years in the winemaking business Merry Edwards has decided to slow down. Merry and her husband Ken Coopersmith have sold all their wine holding to the Louis Roederer Champagne house. Roederer, a family owned business already owns three wineries in Mendocino County and plans to keep Merry around through the transition. Bushfires in Australia have been difficult this harvest season, especially at Topper’s Mountain Vineyard where a fire wiped out the entire crop just hours before t...
A Visit to Tenuta Di Nozzole
April 02, 2019 19:32A Visit to Tenuta Di Nozzole When you're out hunting for a bottle of Chianti Classico it can be confusing. There are so many labels and so many styles. You have to start somewhere and once you find a producer that makes a wine that suits your palate, you can branch out and make new discoveries. A quick short cut is to look for wines made by one of the "Fantastic Four". Fèlsina, Ambrogio e Giovanni Folonari, Castello di Fonterutoli and Frescobaldi are all icons of Tuscan winemaking and their...
VinoWeek - Episode 42 - How To Fix Bad Wine
March 23, 2019 23:43 - 88.3 MBThe effects of climate change are prompting farmers to look more closely at how much water they use and need to sustain their crops. Bill and I start the podcast by discussing dry farming; the pluses and minuses. Have you ever opened up a bottle of wine, poured a glass, tasted it and thought meh? It just seemed like something was off, or worse yet it was undrinkable. Maggie Rosenberg and Trevor Hagstrom, regional food researchers have come up with some hacks to make those wines go down a lit...
VinoWeek Episode 41 - Cork Taint
February 14, 2019 07:02 - 105 MBAfter watching a video by Julien Miquel, Bill and I jump off onto the topic of cork taint. Julien’s insight on “What is cork taint? Why are so Many Wines Corked?” is a must see video. The iconic wine retailer Bottle Barn now has an online presence. If you already buy wines online, do yourself a huge favor and put them on your list of suppliers. There’s a six bottle minimum, but the shipping is free. Jessica Zimmer writes a post that gives a historical viewpoint of how White Zinfandel saved N...
VinoWeek Episode 40 - Are You What You Drink?
February 04, 2019 04:32 - 92.2 MBHave you ever wondered when is the best time to drink a wine and will it get better with age? This week Bill and I discuss an article written by Courtney Schiessl titled, how to tell if your wine will age. The Cotes du Rhone region is on a four year streak of excellence. For that matter so is much of Europe. Dave McIntyre pens a thought provoking piece for the Washington Post. The premise of which is, what your wine choices say about you. Thanks to everyone for listening. Cheers! The wine...
VinoWeek Episode 39 - Fighting Extradition
January 16, 2019 06:43 - 85.4 MBOn this podcast Bill and I discuss the lawsuit involving Opus One Winery and one of their barrel suppliers. Joe Wagner of Copper Cane Wines keeps moving forward and is putting the finishing touches on a new bottling facility in Fairfield California. Will he continue to make and bottle his Oregon wines in California? As if you didn’t already know. San Francisco is ridiculously expensive to live in and own a business. Restaurants are changing the way they do business in order to survive. If yo...
VinoWeek Episode 38 - 2018 A Banner Vintage for California
December 21, 2018 22:45 - 99.3 MBOn this podcast Bill and I talk about the economic impact of the past few years of fires on the restaurant and wine business in Northern California. Our favorite billionaire, Liquor/ Indian gangster Vijay Mallya, who now resides in London, is vigorously fighting extradition back to India. So far so good for him and not so good for all the Indian bankers that bankrolled his alleged money laundering activities. Fashion mogul Antonio Moretti has been accused of money laundering and tax evasion...
VinoWeek Episode 37 - California Wildfires Becoming More Violent
December 06, 2018 05:40 - 84.9 MBWe recorded this podcast on Veteran's Day weekend so a little politics weaved its way into the content. Bill and I talk about the wildfires we have experienced in California this year and eventually we got around to some wine talk. And yes we've got some good wine recommendations for you as always. Cheers! Referenced in the show For Veterans Day Watch: Fallen Read the XIII Amendment Watch: Kayne on the XIII and other stuff Camp Fire 2018
20 Wines to Try Now
October 23, 2018 02:05A few weeks ago we met up with some friends who invited us to a local jazz concert. The concert was great and it helped reinforce the idea that we should attend more live music events. With the start of fall and the holidays rapidly approaching we find ourselves entertaining more and being invited to more engagements. When invited to someone's home we always ask what should we bring and the answer always seems to be, "bring some wine". I love that answer because I enjoy sharing new wine dis...
Single Post Riesling
July 07, 2018 21:25 application/pdf"I don't like Rielsing." Wait for it. "It's too sweet." If I had a dollar for every time I heard those words when I was in wholesale and retail trade I'd have a very nice cellar of Rieslings. I'm not trying to convince anyone anymore about the merits of German Riesling, for now long living in the shadows of Cabernet, Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. I'll leave that chore to Jancis Robinson and the sommeliers of fine dining establishments. Having championed German Riesling for decades now, if Janci...
Is Wine Shopping Online Worth the Effort?
May 15, 2018 02:58I seldom buy a case of wine without first tasting a bottle. A case of wine is a big commitment, monetarily and space wise. Besides it would suck to be stuck with eleven bottles of wine I didn't appreciate. However we do purchase a lot of wine on line, some of it from flash wine sites as well as traditional online wine retailers. There are so many wines I have acquired a taste for that are just not available at retail stores where we live. Consequently I am a subscriber to several flash wine ...
Grand Cru Classes of Saint-Emilion
January 15, 2018 21:47Monday November 13th marked the showing of the 2015 vintage of Grand Cru Classé wines of Saint-Emilion at San Francisco's Terra Gallery. The 2015 vintage was a banner year in Saint-Emilion as it was for many of the wine growing regions in Europe. The town of Saint-Emilion is about 25 miles northeast of the city of Bordeaux, the epicenter of the Bordeaux wine region in southwest France, its climate moderated by its close proximity to the Atlantic Ocean. Just about any wine book you pick up...
Vino101 Episode 36 - A conversation with Alex Guarachi
October 03, 2017 04:17 - 45.8 MBBill and I recently had the opportunity to chat with Alex Guarachi, founder of Guarachi Wine Partners. Guarachi Wine Partners represents sixteen brands from six countries. During our interview Alex shares how and why he entered the wine business and how he sees the industry changing. Even though he's been in the business over three decades now, his enthusiasm and passion came forth as if he's just started business last week. We came away energized by his warmth and spirit. We know you'll e...
Highlights from Taste of Mendocino 2017
July 05, 2017 16:36Picture perfect weather and the Escape from Alcatraz Triathlon weekend build up for Sunday's race, made parking anywhere near the Marina and the Fort Mason Center for the Arts and Culture challenging. Fortunately we arrived forty-five minutes early so we had plenty of time to do numerous circles around the parking areas before we landed a spot. It was worth it; the tasting was well presented, with an excellent crowd in attendance. Here's a pictorial of some of the people and wines we discov...