Dracaena Wines Podcast

It’s Monday, Let’s raise a glass to the beginning of another week. It’s time to unscrew, uncork or saber a bottle and let’s begin Exploring the Wine Glass! Today, I sit down with Ray Fister, the mastermind behind Life Between the Vines Podcast.   Earlier in June, I had the privilege of attending a press trip to Abruzzo, Italy. During the trips, it seems that you always make a stronger connection with one or two people and Ray and I met early on and honestly had a blast everytime we got together. Then we were lucky enough to be on the same flight home, which helped to make the 11 hour flight fly right by!  If you enjoy Exploring the Wine Glass, I’d appreciate you giving me some love by taking two minutes out of your day to write up a review on whatever app you listen on. It is the best way to support the show. Music: WINE by Kēvens Official Video Follow me on Instagram!   Follow me on Twitter! SUBSCRIBE ON iTUNES STITCHER | iTUNES | GOOGLE PLAY | SPOTIFY | PODBEAN l AUDIBLE Even ask your smart speaker to play

It’s Monday, Let’s raise a glass to the beginning of another week. It’s time to unscrew, uncork or saber a bottle and let’s begin Exploring the Wine Glass! Today, I am honored to share an episode where the table has been turned on me.   Last week I shared part one of the interview by Natalie MacLean. I am so honored to have been told that she thought the conversation was so intriguing that she wanted to split it into two episodes. If you haven’t listened to part one, no worries, it is not imperative that you listen to that episode first. You can listen after you’re done with this one. And if you haven’t listened to the episode where I interviewed her, you can listen to episodes 253 and 254. Thank you for all of your support of the podcast and I wish you all a wonderful wine filled week.  If you enjoy Exploring the Wine Glass, I’d appreciate you giving me some love by taking two minutes out of your day to write up a review on whatever app you listen on. It is the best way to support the show. Music: WINE by Kē

It’s Monday, Let’s raise a glass to the beginning of another week. It’s time to unscrew, uncork or saber a bottle and let’s begin Exploring the Wine Glass! Today, I am honored to share an episode where the table has been turned on me.   I had the honor of being interviewed by Natalie MacLean. If you are unfamiliar with her, here is her self claimed biography: To fund her late-night vinous habits, Natalie MacLean holds down day jobs as a wine writer, speaker and judge. An accredited sommelier, she is a member of the National Capital Sommelier Guild, the Wine Writers Circle and several French wine societies with complicated and impressive names. Funny, brainy and unapologetically tipsy, her goal in life is to intimidate those crusty wine stewards at fine restaurants with her staggering knowledge. If you are a regular listener to this podcast, you know I got the opportunity to interview her also! If you missed it, please go back to episodes 253 and 254. I am not use to being on that side of the microphone, so I

It’s Monday, Let’s raise a glass to the beginning of another week. It’s time to unscrew, uncork or saber a bottle and let’s begin Exploring the Wine Glass! Today, we return to Winephabet Street where the letter of the day is C and it stands for Carignane.   We had the pleasure of having special guests Tana Cole and Greg Burns of Jessie’s Grove Winery in Lodi, California. Greg’s family has owned the vineyards for Jessie’s Grove since 1862! They are the owners of the Bechtold vineyard - ancient vines Cinsault and their Carignane vineyard has vines that are 120 years old. I’d like to give a shoutout to Michael Kelly for the introduction. So sit back and enjoy the conversation. It is a great one!  While you are listening, please take a moment to rate and review Exploring the Wine Glass. Ratings are now available, on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and Audible! Taking one minute of your time is the only way the algorithms will suggest Exploring the Wine Glass to others.  Slainte! Music: WINE by Kēvens Official Video Follo

It’s Monday, Let’s raise a glass to the beginning of another week. It’s time to unscrew, uncork or saber a bottle and let’s begin Exploring the Wine Glass! Today, I am sharing the final episode of the Oregon Wine Board’s educational series with the Umpqua Valley.  From their website: The Umpqua Valley is home to hundreds of distinct valleys and the most diverse soils in Oregon. The region boasts more varieties than any other and the oldest operating vineyard and winery in the State. The region is home to some of Oregon’s most forward-thinking makers and growers, Abacela was the first to plant Tempranillo in the US, Hillcrest Vineyards the first plantings of Pinot noir and Malbec in the State, and the region continues to form the backbone of numerous Oregon appellated Pinot noir and Pinot gris bottling. Join Umpqua pioneers Dr. Greg Jones (Abacela Wines), Dyson Demara (Hillcrest Vineyards) and Scott Kelley (Paul O’Brien Wines) to discover the unique characterful wines from this stunningly picturesque region. W

It’s Monday, Let’s raise a glass to the beginning of another week. It’s time to unscrew, uncork or saber a bottle and let’s begin Exploring the Wine Glass! Today, I am sharing a webinar that I attended from the Bordeaux Wine School. From the webinar description: From Summer Fridays to long weekends and grill nights, Bordeaux has a style for every occasion. Did you know that the U.S. is the #1 market for Bordeaux whites? Have you explored the latest Bordeaux Rosés and the full range of reds? There’s a Bordeaux for every budget, palate, and customer. Our experts will guide you on the latest trends and fresh ideas for this summer. While you are listening, please take a moment to rate and review Exploring the Wine Glass. Ratings are now available, on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and Audible! Taking one minute of your time is the only way the algorithms will suggest Exploring the Wine Glass to others.  Slainte! Music: WINE by Kēvens Official Video   Follow me on Instagram!   Follow me on Twitter! SUBSCRIBE ON iTUNES ST

It’s Monday, Let’s raise a glass to the beginning of another week. It’s time to unscrew, uncork or saber a bottle and let’s begin Exploring the Wine Glass! Today, I am sharing another audio recording of an online seminar I attended from the Oregon Wine Board. This week we Discover Rogue Valley.   Directly from their site: Southern Oregon is home to many international varieties that are thriving and garnering a lot of attention. With distinctively crafted wines from vineyards among the best in the world, the Rogue Valley is a community of accessible, craft-driven winegrowers fueled by the awe of our wild and scenic valley, who invite explorers, makers and inspiration-seekers to discover and connect with the natural wonders of Oregon’s Rogue Valley. This seminar is once again led by Master of Wine Bree Stock. While you are listening, please take a moment to rate and review Exploring the Wine Glass. Ratings are now available, on Apple Podcasts,Spotify and Audible! Taking one minute of your time is the only way t

It’s Monday, Let’s raise a glass to the beginning of another week. It’s time to unscrew, uncork or saber a bottle and let’s begin Exploring the Wine Glass! Today, we return to Winephabet Street where the letter of the day is B for Baco Noir.  We are extremely thankful to Carlo DeVito, who not only gave us an incredible webinar, but came back to do it a second time after we had some technical difficulties.  Baco Noir is what is considered a hybrid grape. It was created by crossing two different species of vitis. Typical grape vines, such as Cabernet Franc or Sauvignon Blanc belong to vitis vinifera. However, there are other species of vitis such as lambrusca and riparia. These "Modern Varieties." were created to provide fruit that is resistant to powdery mildew, other fungal diseases, nematodes, and phylloxera. Join us as we discuss exactly what is Baco Noir, where did it come from and what is the most similar vitis vinifera in terms of characteristics.  If you find a bottle of Baco, please let me know how you

It’s Monday, Let’s raise a glass to the beginning of another week. It’s time to unscrew, uncork or saber a bottle and let’s begin Exploring the Wine Glass! Today, I am sharing another audio recording of an online seminar I attended from the Oregon Wine Board. This week we learn about Urban Wineries in Portland.   Directly from their site: The pulse of PDX revolves around the creative craft food and beverage community, driven by the passion of the city’s chefs, brewers, and winemakers. Portland is a thriving landscape for small wine producers. The centralized location of PDX allows makers to source from both Oregon and Washington to create some of the most diverse winery experiences in the State. This seminar is once again led by Master of Wine Bree Stock. While you are listening, please take a moment to rate and review Exploring the Wine Glass. Ratings are now available, on Apple Podcasts,Spotify and Audible! Taking one minute of your time is the only way the algorithms will suggest Exploring the Wine Glass t

It’s Monday, Let’s raise a glass to the beginning of another week. It’s time to unscrew, uncork or saber a bottle and let’s begin Exploring the Wine Glass! Today, I sit down with Jordan Fiorentini, winemaker for Epoch Wine Estates in Paso Robles. Growing up in Georgia doesn’t typically lend itself to becoming a rock star winemaker in California. But Jordan isn’t typical.  After falling in love with wine thanks to her father’s wine collecting hobby, Jordan followed up her engineering degree with a Masters’ degree in Enology from UC Davis.  She traveled to Italy for a harvest, and after falling in love with her now husband, returned to Georgia for a bit before packing it up for California. Jordan was named winemaker of the year, and has had a wine land #25 on Wine Spectator’s Top 100 list. Enjoy the conversation! If you would like to go to PasoWineFest on May 21st, use code ETWG_22 for $20 off your ticket.  While you are listening, please take a moment to rate and review Exploring the Wine Glass. Ratings are no

It’s Monday, Let’s raise a glass to the beginning of another week. It’s time to unscrew, uncork or saber a bottle and let’s begin Exploring the Wine Glass! You are not going to want to miss a minute of this episode.   I am sitting down with Chris Taranto, Communications Manager for the Paso Robles Wine Alliance and we are talking about all the amazing things that are going on in preparation and culminating in Paso Fest! Tickets are available at pasowine.com and if you use ETWG_22 you will get $20 off your ticket. Purchase either the general admission or the VIP tickets. Don’t wait, the starry night dinner is already sold out. But you can still get tickets for the sparkling Paso event and the Cab icons of Paso winemaker seminar.   While you are listening, please take a moment to rate and review Exploring the Wine Glass. Ratings are now available, on Apple Podcasts,Spotify and Audible! Taking one minute of your time is the only way the algorithms will suggest Exploring the Wine Glass to others.  Slainte! Music:

It’s Monday, Let’s raise a glass to the beginning of another week. It’s time to unscrew, uncork or saber a bottle and let’s begin Exploring the Wine Glass! Today, I am sharing an audio recording of an online seminar I attended from the Oregon Wine Board providing an overview of the Oregon Wine regions .  Directly from their site: Oregon’s wine valleys are diverse environments formed by the dramatic geological events of the past. Ancient riverbeds form the cobble strewn beds for Rhone and Bordeaux varieties in the State’s South and Northeast valley’s providing the foundation for distinct and characterful wines.  This seminar led by Master of Wine Bree Stock  highlighting the diversity of the State’s regions.. While you are listening, please take a moment to rate and review Exploring the Wine Glass. Ratings are now available, on Apple Podcasts,Spotify and Audible! Taking one minute of your time is the only way the algorithms will suggest Exploring the Wine Glass to others.  Slainte! Music: WINE by Kēvens Offici

It’s Monday, Let’s raise a glass to the beginning of another week. It’s time to unscrew, uncork or saber a bottle and let’s begin Exploring the Wine Glass! Today, I am sharing an audio recording of an online seminar I attended from the Oregon Wine Board discussing Willamette Valley and its nested AVAs.  Directly from their site: If you’ve blinked in the last three years you might have missed the announcement of one of the Willamette Valley’s newest AVAs: we’ve welcomed four just since 2019, from the northernmost point to the southern core of this diverse region. Then there’s Willamette Valley Chardonnay––the region seems to be settling on a signature style, but what’s next? This seminar led by Master of Wine Bree Stock will feature a distinguished panel to discuss the new AVAs and what they mean for the Valley’s flagship Pinot noir grape, the emergence of a golden age for Willamette Valley Chardonnay, and what’s on the horizon for Oregon’s largest growing region. Enjoy the conversation. It’s a bit longer than

It’s Monday, Let’s raise a glass to the beginning of another week. It’s time to unscrew, uncork or saber a bottle and let’s begin Exploring the Wine Glass! Earlier this month, Dracaena Wines participated in the International Cabernet Franc Competition sponsored by California Wines and Wineries in Copperopolis, CA. We were excited to find out that we won Best of Class and Best of Show.  In addition to the competition, there was a walk around tasting and a Cabernet Franc dinner, in which three Cabernet Franc wines were poured. Dracaena Wines was one of them and was paired with smoked pork belly. I was also honored to be aske to be one of three key note speakers.  My speech was titled, “Cabernet Franc; Coming out of the shadow of its progeny.”  In this podcast, I interview Michael Kelly to get his thoughts on how the event went and predictions of where it will go in the future. Plus you can listen to the three key note speeches.  Unfortunately, I forgot to record my own, so I did it after the fact, but the other

It’s Monday, Let’s raise a glass to the beginning of another week. It’s time to unscrew, uncork or saber a bottle and let’s begin Exploring the Wine Glass! Today, I continue the conversation with the extremely impressive Natalie MacLean. If you didn’ t listen last week, please go back and hear the beginning of our conversation. You won’t be sorry! If you did listen last week, welcome back! Natalie shares more of her incredible wine journey today, including a very special offer to any listener who would like to be a beta reader for her next book. It’s easy, its fun and you get a sneak peek! Beta reading is an opportunity to let her know your thoughts on the story before it is released.  Enjoy the conversation  find out more about Natalie at www.nataliemaclean.com While you are listening, please take a moment to rate and review Exploring the Wine Glass. Ratings are now available, on Apple Podcasts,Spotify and Audible! Taking one minute of your time is the only way the algorithms will suggest Exploring the Wine

It’s Monday, Let’s raise a glass to the beginning of another week. It’s time to unscrew, uncork or saber a bottle and let’s begin Exploring the Wine Glass! Today I am so honored to share my conversation with the amazing Natalie MacLean. If you are a wine lover, then you know her name. What you may not know is that Natalie actually attended Oxford and studied Romantic Poetry. You may know that she has won the James Beard an unprecedented four times, but did you know she also has won awards for highland dancing?  Natalie’s story is so compelling, that the hour just flew by and before I knew it we were way over our normal conversation time, so I decided to break the conversation up into two separate episodes.  I know you are going to enjoy the conversation as much as I did, and be sure to come back next week for the second half!  While you are listening, please take a moment to rate and review Exploring the Wine Glass. Ratings are now available, on Apple Podcasts,Spotify and Audible! Taking one minute of your ti

It’s Monday, Let’s raise a glass to the beginning of another week. It’s time to unscrew, uncork or saber a bottle and let’s begin Exploring the Wine Glass! Today we return to Winephabet Street where the letter of the day is A! We begin Season 3 with Areni. Areni Noir, also known as simply Areni, is a largely unknown ancient grape variety. The Areni grape is believed to come from the village of Areni in southwest Armenia, from which it obtained its name.   In 2011, during excavations of a cave within the village of Areni was, archaeologists discovered the oldest known winery in the world. Analysis of grape seeds and stems found in the cave indicated that the winery was at least 6,100 years old. Wine found in the amphorae proved to be Areni.  Our special guest this episode is Stepan Baghdassarian, owner of Wines of Armenian dot com. He shares three bottles that demonstrate the various expressions Areni can be found as well as a bit of history and what a wine lover can expect while sipping on Areni.  While yo

It’s Monday, Let’s raise a glass to the beginning of another week. It's time to unscrew, uncork or saber a bottle and let’s begin Exploring the Wine Glass! Today I am sitting down with author Christopher Ruhland, author of Press for Champagne.  Champagne is a wonderful thing. So wonderful, that there are many famous quotes. Coco Chanel stated “I only drink champagne on two occasions, when I am in love and when I am not.” Winston Churchill declared, Remember, gentlemen, it’s not just France we are fighting for, it’s champagne!” and Napolean announced “I drink champagne when I win, to celebrate… and I drink champagne when I lose, to console myself.”  While I was studying to become a Champagne specialist, the one statement that was repeated over and over again was, “It’s not Champagne if it doesn’t come from Champagne.” So I thought it would be fun to sit down with Christopher; a self proclaimed Champagne lover and see what exactly makes Champagne so special to him. (and did you know that the meme about Press