Sniff Sip Repeat

Today we’ll be discussing southern Italy with our resident somm, Ferdinando Mucerino. We’ll pour three excellent wines and discuss their uncommon varietals. 

We'll start with the 2021 vintage of Iddu Catarratto I.G.T. from Sicily, a soft and fresh white wine with citrus and floral notes. Moving on to reds, we'll sip the 2020 L'arca Negroamaro I.G.T wine from Puglia and produced by the Castellani family. This episodes selection is rounded out with the 2020 Cantina di Solopaca Aglianico I.G.P. 

Sniff Sip Repeat is brought to you by Wine Insiders, leaders in online wine. Wine Insiders makes buying great wine easy. Founded in 1982 as a club for California wine enthusiasts, Wine Insiders now offers high-quality wines from around the world for the best value and conveniently shipped to your door in just days. The collection is curated by a host of food and wine industry and lifestyle experts, such as Martha Stewart, Chef Geoffrey Zakarian, and Chef Ludo Lefebvre. Learn more about the wines or shop now to taste alongside our podcast guests.

Visit http://www.wineinsiders.com to learn more. 

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This week our guest is Benoit Calvet, the founder of Maison Benoit Valerie Calvet in Bordeaux. Benoit and his partner Valerie have been making wine for forty years, producing excellent wines from France, Spain and Italy. They recently partnered with Wine Insiders for our Ruby Anniversary Collection creating a red blend with a very interesting backstory that he shares with me. We’re going to talk about everything from family and the earth’s frequency to hypnotherapy, horses and more. And of course, we’ll taste wine, so pour a glass and join us.

For our tasting (timecode 16:56:00), we begin with De La Rougerie Sauvignon Blanc, a crisp, medal-winning wine with notes of greengage and apple. Next we pop a cork on the delightful, Spanish sparkling wine Toro Loco Cava Brut Rosé. We'll top the episode off with a sneak peak at the upcoming Maison Calvet Red Blend that is available in August as part of our Ruby Wine Collection.

Sniff Sip Repeat is brought to you by Wine Insiders, leaders in online wine. Wine Insiders makes buying great wine easy. Founded in 1982 as a club for California wine enthusiasts, Wine Insiders now offers high-quality wines from around the world for the best value and conveniently shipped to your door in just days. The collection is curated by a host of food and wine industry and lifestyle experts, such as Martha Stewart, Chef Geoffrey Zakarian, and Chef Ludo Lefebvre. Learn more about the wines or shop now to taste alongside our podcast guests.

Visit http://www.wineinsiders.com to learn more. 

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This week, my guest is Walter Santero, CEO of Abbazia Vineyards, a family-run estate in the Piedmont region of Northern Italy. Walter is the fourth generation of his family to continue the winemaking tradition. He and Abbazia recently partnered with Wine on a special Prosecco sparkling wine that is part of our soon-to-be-released Ruby Collection of wines celebrating our 40th anniversary. Walter and I chat about everything from Benedictine monks planting Moscato to Zabaglione, sea turtles, and more. He even explains why Prosecco is the best, so pour a glass and join us.

For our tasting (timecode 13:22:00), we begin with Abbazia La Tartaruga Moscato I.G.T., a light and fruity wine from the famed region of Pavia. Next we uncork the gorgeous cherry notes of 2019 Abbazia Barbera d'Asti, a wine made from hand-picked grapes to ensure optimal quality and aged for six months. We'll top the episode off with a sneak peak at the upcoming Abbazia Prosecco that is available in August as part of our Ruby Wine Collection.

Sniff Sip Repeat is brought to you by Wine Insiders, leaders in online wine. Wine Insiders makes buying great wine easy. Founded in 1982 as a club for California wine enthusiasts, Wine Insiders now offers high-quality wines from around the world for the best value and conveniently shipped to your door in just days. The collection is curated by a host of food and wine industry and lifestyle experts, such as Martha Stewart, Chef Geoffrey Zakarian, and Chef Ludo Lefebvre. Learn more about the wines or shop now to taste alongside our podcast guests.

Visit http://www.wineinsiders.com to learn more. 

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This week we have a special episode to kick off a celebration of our 40th Anniversary at Wine Insiders. We'll travel by glass to the southern hemisphere to sip wines from the gorgeous vineyards of the Maule Valley in Chile. Our guest is Sebastian Cremaschi, CEO of Cremaschi Furlotti family vineyards. He and his siblings are the fourth generation to continue his family's winemaking tradition. We'll learn more about the family history and vineyards, Chilean terroir, Carmenere, etc. While chatting, we'll pour three of their delicious wines.

For our tasting, we begin with 2021 Santa Vita Carmenere Rosé, a delightfully dry wine, before moving on to 2018 Pajarito Gran Reserva Syrah. We'll top the episode off with 2018 Primera Impression Gran Reserva Cabernet Sauvignon. 

Sniff Sip Repeat is brought to you by Wine Insiders, leaders in online wine. Wine Insiders makes buying great wine easy. Founded in 1982 as a club for California wine enthusiasts, Wine Insiders now offers high-quality wines from around the world for the best value and conveniently shipped to your door in just days. The collection is curated by a host of food and wine industry and lifestyle experts, such as Martha Stewart, Chef Geoffrey Zakarian, and Chef Ludo Lefebvre. Learn more about the wines or shop now to taste alongside our podcast guests.

Visit http://www.wineinsiders.com to learn more. 

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It's tax season here in the US! Join our guest host Sumner as he interviews our resident somm Ferdy to get some grape vine-ancial advice. The best investments grow over time, so why not find out more about the specifics of wine that ages well? They taste three wines from our collection that are good buys that get better with time.

For this tasting you will hear all about the flavor and aging potential of Château Grand Champ Blaye Côtes de Bordeaux Cuvée Vieilles Vignes from France, Porto Lagarada Reserva Ruby Port from Portugal and Windsor Hills Barrel Fermented Chardonnay from California.

Sniff Sip Repeat is brought to you by Wine Insiders, leaders in online wine. Wine Insiders makes buying great wine easy. Founded in 1982 as a club for California wine enthusiasts, Wine Insiders now offers high-quality wines from around the world for the best value and conveniently shipped to your door in just days. The collection is curated by a host of food and wine industry and lifestyle experts, such as Martha Stewart, Chef Geoffrey Zakarian, and Chef Ludo Lefebvre. Learn more about the wines or shop now to taste alongside our podcast guests.

Visit http://www.wineinsiders.com to learn more.

When it comes to holidays, few are as fun and filled with libations as St. Patrick’s Day. Celebrated annually on March 17th, this Irish holiday gets a lot of love here in the US, so we thought we’d chat with our favorite Irish import. He’ll talk to us about shamrocks and snakes, teach us what a “pratie” is, then taste wine that pairs to the boiled bacon, cabbage and Sheppard’s pie he ate grewing up.

My guest today is Tomas O’Grady, a farmer’s son from the west of Ireland who now lives with his family in the Los Feliz neighborhood of Los Angeles. Tomas is the founder and Executive Director of Enrich LA, a non-profit organization whose mission is to create an organic regenerative garden in every Los Angeles schoolyard. While urban farming is not exactly viticulture, he has serious terroir cred—and as a bonus, he’s a hardcore wine enthusiast. I’m honored to have him join us for this episode to taste wines I’ve selected for the perfect St. Patrick’s Day feast.

With Tomas we pour three fantastic wines made from organic grapes: from Italy, the gorgeous 2020 StraBIOdante Organic Vermentino, from Alamansa, Spain, 2019 Puente de la Vega Racies Garnacha Tintorera, and from Austria, 2017 Villa Haas Zweigelt. To shop for these wines and more, browse our organic, our vegan and our sustainable collections online.

Sniff Sip Repeat is brought to you by Wine Insiders, leaders in online wine. Wine Insiders makes buying great wine easy. Founded in 1982 as a club for California wine enthusiasts, Wine Insiders now offers high-quality wines from around the world for the best value and conveniently shipped to your door in just days. The collection is curated by a host of food and wine industry and lifestyle experts, such as Martha Stewart, Chef Geoffrey Zakarian, and Chef Ludo Lefebvre. Learn more about the wines or shop now to taste alongside our podcast guests.

Visit http://www.wineinsiders.com to learn more.
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In the Northern Hemisphere we're in thick of winter, so we have a very special two-part episode. First, we’re going to talk about wine made by our friendly neighbors to the north in Canada, including the elusive ‘Eiswein’. Then we’ll taste three wines from France and California that we’ve curated to pair to your coziest winter dishes.

Our first guest is Robert Stelmachuk, an Advanced Certified Sommelier with over 30 years in the industry who is currently the Wine Director at Mott32 in Vancouver, Canada. Robert was awarded sommelier of the year in 2020 by Vancouver Magazine and in the same year Mott32 was listed among the top 100 restaurants by Canada Magazine.

Our second guest today is Ferdinando Mucerino, resident somm at Wine Insiders who hosts the video series Inside Wine with Ferdy.  Prior to the pandemic Ferdy was somm and Wine Director at the Michelin Star awarded Rustic Canyon restaurant in Santa Monica. In 2019, was nominated by Wine Enthusiast magazine for Best Wine Director of the year. 

With Ferdy we pour three amazing wines: from France, 2019 Château du Colombier redblend and 2018 Henri de Lorgère Côtes du Rhône red blend, and from California, 2020 Windsor Hill Barrel Fermented Chardonnay.

Sniff Sip Repeat is brought to you by Wine Insiders, leaders in online wine. Wine Insiders makes buying great wine easy. Founded in 1982 as a club for California wine enthusiasts, Wine Insiders now offers high-quality wines from around the world for the best value and conveniently shipped to your door in just days. The collection is curated by a host of food and wine industry and lifestyle experts, such as Martha Stewart, Chef Geoffrey Zakarian, and Chef Ludo Lefebvre. Learn more about the wines or shop now to taste alongside our podcast guests.

Visit http://www.wineinsiders.com to learn more.
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Back by popular demand, guest-host Sumner returns to the table with Wine Insiders Sommelier, Ferdy Mucerino to discuss some fantastic last minute wine ideas for the holiday season. Whether you’re attending a festive gathering and need to just the right bottle to bring along or hope for help with the perfect gift suggestions, this episode offers crowd-pleasing recommendations.

The conversation pops off with an exploration of Toro Loco Cava Brut, a citrus-centric sparkler that embodies Spains answer to Champagne. Next up we uncork 2020 Vinum Chenin Blanc, one of South Africa’s most popular white wines (and one of Ferdy’ personal favorites).And finally, the conversation shifts to 2020 StraBIOrdante Organic Nero di Troia Puglia I.G.T., a fun fruit-driven Organic red wine from Puglia, Spain.

Sniff Sip Repeat is brought to you by Wine Insiders, leaders in online wine. Wine Insiders makes buying great wine easy. Founded in 1982 as a club for California wine enthusiasts, Wine Insiders now offers high-quality wines from around the world for the best value and conveniently shipped to your door in just days. The collection is curated by a host of food and wine industry and lifestyle experts, such as Martha Stewart, Chef Geoffrey Zakarian, and Chef Ludo Lefebvre. Learn more about the wines or shop now to taste alongside our podcast guests.

Visit http://www.wineinsiders.com to learn more. 

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This week we travel by glass to the Iberian Peninsula to sip wines from the beautiful vineyards of Portugal. Our guest is our resident sommelier, Ferdy Mucerino, and we'll discuss Chef Nuno Mendes, cuisine, and wine all hailing from the gorgeous country of Portugal while pouring three delicious selections from the Vinho Verde, Tejo, and Duoro regions. 

For our formal tasting, we begin with 2020 Mar Azul Vinho Verde D.O.C., a spritzy white blend from the Vinho Verde region. Next up is 2019 Tercius Vinho Tinto Tejo, a red blend created by the award-winning winemaker Antonia Barbosa. Finally, we pour 2019 Mentor Red Blend Douro D.O.C., a special red blend from the Duoro region made by the van Zeller family who has been producing port wine since 1715, with 14 consecutive generations involved in the wine trade. 

At 27:00 minutes, towards the end of the podcast, Ferdy and Kristin reveal themselves to be Arconiacs, Only Murders In the Building on Hulu, and we'll chat briefly about this favorite podcast-themed television show.

Sniff Sip Repeat is brought to you by Wine Insiders, leaders in online wine. Wine Insiders makes buying great wine easy. Founded in 1982 as a club for California wine enthusiasts, Wine Insiders now offers high-quality wines from around the world for the best value and conveniently shipped to your door in just days. The collection is curated by a host of food and wine industry and lifestyle experts, such as Martha Stewart, Chef Geoffrey Zakarian, and Chef Ludo Lefebvre. Learn more about the wines or shop now to taste alongside our podcast guests.

Visit http://www.wineinsiders.com to learn more. 

Visit Bahr restaurant at the Bairro Alto Hotel to taste the cuisine of Chef Nuno Mendes.

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It’s back-to-school time, so we want to get a little academic about the art of tasting. Our guest host is Sumner, IT specialist at Wine Insiders, and he speaks with Jonathon Alsop, founder & executive director of the Boston Wine School and a commentator for National Public Radio. Jonathon began writing about wine, food and travel in 1988 and emerged as a wine expert through his syndicated wine column In Vino Veritas. His latest book is Wine Life: A Collection Of Verses. 

For this episode Sumner and Jonathon will pour and discuss three unique wines: from Italy, Cantina di Solopaca Maria Cristina Falanghina Sparkling Brut, from Hungary, 020 Tüzkö Riesling, and from California, 2017 George Phillips Cellars Reserve Selection No. 39 Lodi Zinfandel.

Sniff Sip Repeat is brought to you by Wine Insiders, leaders in online wine. Wine Insiders makes buying great wine easy. Founded in 1982 as a club for California wine enthusiasts, Wine Insiders now offers high-quality wines from around the world for the best value and conveniently shipped to your door in just days. The collection is curated by a host of food and wine industry and lifestyle experts, such as Martha Stewart, Chef Geoffrey Zakarian, and Chef Ludo Lefebvre. Learn more about the wines or shop now to taste alongside our podcast guests.

Visit http://www.wineinsiders.com to learn more. 

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Wine enthusiasts love to celebrate wine holidays and Shiraz Day is July 22nd, so today we are going to talk about the dark and lovely flavors of this spicy little grape.

Our guest today is Ferdinando Mucerino, our resident somm at Wine Insiders who hosts the video series Inside Wine with Ferdy.  Prior to the pandemic Ferdy was somm and Wine Director at the Michelin Star awarded Rustic Canyon restaurant in Santa Monica. In 2019, was nominated by Wine Enthusiast magazine for Best Wine Director of the year.

For Syrah Day we poured three amazing wines: from France, 2019 Urluberlu Syrah, from Australia, 2019 Starlight Ridge Shiraz, and from South Africa, 2019 Vinum Africa Reserve Syrah.

Sniff Sip Repeat is brought to you by Wine Insiders, leaders in online wine. Wine Insiders makes buying great wine easy. Founded in 1982 as a club for California wine enthusiasts, Wine Insiders now offers high-quality wines from around the world for the best value and conveniently shipped to your door in just days. The collection is curated by a host of food and wine industry and lifestyle experts, such as Martha Stewart, Chef Geoffrey Zakarian, and Chef Ludo Lefebvre. Learn more about the wines or shop now to taste alongside our podcast guests.

Visit http://www.wineinsiders.com to learn more.
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Father's Day and summer are both just around the corner, so we're going to talk grilling and grilling wines as well as cooking with kids and urban farms!

Our grilling expert guest is award-winning chef and restaurateur, Chef Tim Hollingsworth, known most recently for his Los Angeles restaurants Otium downtown and C.J. Boyd's Barbecue at the Field L.A. as well as for his previous tenure of 13 years at Thomas Keller's French Laundry, including four years as Chef de Cuisine. 

Tim wowed audiences worldwide when he won Netflix's global culinary competition on the series The Final Table, regaled us with inside stories about being filmed for the Pixar movie Ratatouille, and shares his tips for cooking with kids. As a fun Father's Day primer, we talk dream grilling setups and taste three wines from our collection and hear flavor notes and Tim's perfect pairings.

We love food, we love grilling and of course, we love Father's Day. Wine is better when shared with family and friends, so this year we poured 2019 Finca del Marquesado Tempranillo Rioja as our red, 2019 Della Flora Organic Chardonnay as our white, and 2020 Lulu Le Francais as our rosé to offer you three great options for your Sunday cookout with Dad.

Sniff Sip Repeat is brought to you by Wine Insiders, leaders in online wine. Wine Insiders makes buying great wine easy. Founded in 1982 as a club for California wine enthusiasts, Wine Insiders now offers high-quality wines from around the world for the best value and conveniently shipped to your door in just days. The collection is curated by a host of food and wine industry and lifestyle experts, such as Martha Stewart, Chef Geoffrey Zakarian, and Chef Ludo Lefebvre. Learn more about the wines or shop now to taste alongside our podcast guests.

Visit http://www.wineinsiders.com to learn more.
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Meet Me At The Club

Are you a Wine Insiders club member? Have you already received an introductory box and are now exploring your Winter assortment? If so, we have a very special unboxing review of your wines to help you get the most out of every sip.

In this episode, we walk through each bottle to offer you flavor notes, regional insights, behind-the-bottle stories, and, of course, perfect pairings.

To find out why each bottle was selected we went straight to the source to speak with Tyson Koster, a winemaker and now Director of Wine Strategy, who is the tastemaker behind each Wine Insiders box. Tyson is always on a mission to find amazing wineries and undiscovered gems. As winemaker at Hilliard Bruce Vineyards in California’s Santa Rita Hills, Tyson helped create 95-point Pinot Noirs and Chardonnays that combine the elegance of France’s famed Burgundies with the swagger of California’s fruit-driven flavor profile.

In this episode we review:

White Wines

2020 Bericanto Pinot Grigio

2019 Fat Baron White Blend Reserva

2018 Radford Dale Chenin Blanc

2020 Baron Lafontine Viognier

2020 Pajarito Gran Reserva Chardonnay

2020 Castelli 1530 Prosecco Rosé 

Red Wines

2020 Los Discípulos Reserva Cabernet Sauvignon 

2018 Pajarito Gran Reserva Pinot Noir 

2019 Ca’ Gregorie Valpolicella D.O.C. 

2018 Chocolate Moose Red BlendLanguedoc-Roussillon

2018 Redland Ranch Reserve ZinfandelCentral Coast

2018 Fat Baron Red Blend Reserva

Sniff Sip Repeat is brought to you by Wine Insiders, leaders in online wine. Wine Insiders makes buying great wine easy. Founded in 1982 as a club for California wine enthusiasts, Wine Insiders now offers high-quality wines from around the world for the best value and conveniently shipped to your door in just days. The collection is curated by a host of food and wine industry and lifestyle experts, such as Martha Stewart, Chef Geoffrey Zakarian, and Chef Ludo Lefebvre. Learn more about the wines or shop now to taste alongside our podcast guests.

Visit http://www.wineinsiders.com to learn more.
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This Friday, May 7th, is Sauvignon Blanc Day, so we’re going to do a deep dive on one of the most popular varietals there is and taste three wines from our collection. I’ll get technical with Ferdinando Mucerino, our resident somm, to find out everything there is to know about this beloved grape. We’ll hear some history, learn about the flavor notes and popular styles, then taste a few of their wines from our collection.

Also, because Sunday is Mother's Day in the US I'll be joined by Jake from Wine Insiders for a couple of phone calls to our moms.

Wines Tasted:

• 2019 Merveille de Vignes Sauvignon Blanc by Ethics Drinks
• 2020 Starlight Ridge Sauvignon Blanc
• 2019 Ishara Sauvignon Blanc

Sniff Sip Repeat is brought to you by Wine Insiders, leaders in online wine. Wine Insiders makes buying great wine easy. Founded in 1982 as a club for California wine enthusiasts, Wine Insiders now offers high-quality wines from around the world for the best value and conveniently shipped to your door in just days. The collection is curated by a host of food and wine industry and lifestyle experts, such as Martha Stewart, Chef Geoffrey Zakarian, and Chef Ludo Lefebvre. Learn more about the wines or shop now to taste alongside our podcast guests.

Visit http://www.wineinsiders.com to learn more.
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"Momma said there'd be days like this" lyrics by Luther Dixon and Willie Denson
"Mother" lyrics by Daniel Tashian, Ian Fitchuk & Kacey Musgraves
Both sung by Deborah Magidson @debmagvoice

This week is the 51st annual celebration of Earth Day, so we are going to be talking about wine and sustainability. Our guest is Mickael Alborghetti, the CEO and founder of Ethic Drinks. Mickael is the grandson of Burgundy winegrowers, the son of an environmentalist, and is himself an experienced wine negociant. He recently launched a venture that blends the wisdom of his upbringing with his passion for the environment to create a company offering quality wines that are vegan and planet-friendly.

But what does this mean? In one of the world’s top wine-producing countries, EthicDrinks top of class when it comes to sustainability. With supply chain innovation all the way from the vineyard through packaging to transit, they are the first carbon-neutral wine company in France. Mickael offers winemakers who share his passion a method for planet-friendly distribution and customers delicious wines that part of the solution, not the problem.

Wines Tasted:
From France

• 2019 Merveille de Vignes Chardonnay
• 2019 Merveille de Vignes Grenache Rosé
• 2019 Merveille de Vignes Merlot

From Southern France comes 2019 Merveille de Vignes Chardonnay, a fresh, vegan white wine that's as good in the glass as it is good for the Earth. Discover a beautiful balance of crisp apple and creamy peach notes, joined by hints of citrus, white flowers, and tropical fruits. The finish is dry, smooth, and wonderfully refreshing.

Fresh and fruity, 2019 Merveille de Vignes Grenache Rosé is a dry French Rosé that is vegan. Made from red Grenache grapes, this easy-drinking Rosé offers voluptuous aromas of red fruits with hints of raspberry and strawberry. An elegant choice for any occasion, it is wonderfully refreshing.

Juicy fruit notes mingle with silky tannins in 2019 Merveille de Vignes Merlot, a vegan Merlot. Fine aromas of plum, black fruits, and spices make a delicious first impression. On the palate, notes of blackberry, vanilla, and licorice lead to a balanced finish with silky tannins. This elegant, medium-bodied red will get along splendidly with roast chicken, pork ribs, skirt steak, and various cheeses.

“Merveille de Vignes” translates to “the Beauty of the Vines” and symbolizes the vine's ability to adapt to the environment and people. 

At Wine Insiders, we love French wine and have a special fondness for Bordeaux and the south of France. France is renowned worldwide for its esteemed regions offering world-class taste and southern France is ripe with regions offering excellent wine at affordable prices. We especially love Ethic Drinks wines because without compromising on taste they can blend, bottle, and ship wine to us sustainably. We know you'll enjoy hearing what this involves from Mickael and sipping alongside as he talks about his planet-friendly wines.

Sniff Sip Repeat is brought to you by Wine Insiders, leaders in online wine. Wine Insiders makes buying great wine easy. Founded in 1982 as a club for California wine enthusiasts, Wine Insiders now offers high-quality wines from around the world for the best value and conveniently shipped to your door in just days. The collection is curated by a host of food and wine industry and lifestyle experts, such as Martha Stewart, Chef Geoffrey Zakarian, and Chef Ludo Lefebvre. Learn more about the wines or shop now to taste alongside our podcast guests.

Visit http://www.wineinsiders.com to learn more.
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It’s nearly Easter! Today’s episode is all about Italy. We’ll chat about everything from explosions and bank robbing to doves, lamb, Nutella, and wine. Pasqua, or Easter, is a huge holiday in Italy, so we’ll first talk a lot about tradition. From Florentine fireworks and Milanese celebrations to the food that graces the lunch table.

Halfway through the podcast, we'll uncork four very unique wines perfect for pairing to your Easter festivities:

White - 2019 NovaPalma Pinot Grigio D.O.C.
This is an excellent cocktail hour wine that also pairs to light dishes your will be serving friends and family.

Sparkling - Bocciamatta Sparkling Ice
Every celebration needs a sparkling wine, so our selection is this mad bottle of Bocciamatta Sparkling Ice, which pairs perfectly with Colomba if you are having a traditional Italian dessert but also can be used to make light, fruit-infused spring-inspired afternoon cocktails.

Red - 2018 Abbazia Dolcetto d'Alba D.O.C.
Don't be fooled by the name. This wine is a gorgeous dry red wine with amazing aromas as floral as the Easter bouquet on your lunch table. It pairs well with any meats you are serving.

Red - 2018 Baccolo Rosso Appassimento Veneto I.G.T.
This is the showstopper that you uncork at any time to delight in the elegance of its flavor notes. The appassimento process brings adds a sophistication that will blow you away.

At Wine Insiders, we love Italian wines. Italy is the leading producer worldwide of wine and their regions offer rich, world-class taste steeped in tradition and technique with an unparalleled history. We especially love Straitalian wines because what they bring to our collection are special, niche grapes and blends difficult to find outside of Italy. We know you'll enjoy hearing from our delightful guest, Gaetano Peragine, and sipping alongside as he talks about these extraordinary wines.

Sniff Sip Repeat is brought to you by Wine Insiders, leaders in online wine. Wine Insiders makes buying great wine easy. Founded in 1982 as a club for California wine enthusiasts, Wine Insiders now offers high-quality wines from around the world for the best value and conveniently shipped to your door in just days. The collection is curated by a host of food and wine industry and lifestyle experts, such as Martha Stewart, Chef Geoffrey Zakarian, and Chef Ludo Lefebvre. Learn more about the wines or shop now to taste alongside our podcast guests.

Visit http://www.wineinsiders.com to learn more.
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Wine Insiders is celebrating our 39th Anniversary this year, so for today’s episode we’re going to go old-school, then old-world. One of our guiding principles is authenticity. Behind every bottle are real winemakers, storied vineyards and authentic flavors. Behind our curation is real talent. We launched this podcast to share these real stories with you, so for our Anniversary edition, we are going old-school to introduce you to our very first ever Wine Insiders panelist. We’ll hear his origin story, a journey from wine newbie to sommelier at the French Laundry, a restaurant created by legendary chef Thomas Keller’s in the heart of California wine country. Next, we’ll go old-school and journey back to 1982, the year our very first customers placed their orders for wine and a famous vintage year for Bordeaux and Burgundy. Finally, we’ll talk about these world-renowned appellations in France, then taste the flavors of both with four excellent wines from our collection.

Our guest today is Chris Hoel, founder of Harper’s Club, a bespoke wine firm offering its clientele expert curation for creating the finest private wine collections in the world. If you’ve spent any time our website or at our events, you’ve seen Chris tasting wines from our collection or teaching our customers how to sniff, sip and repeat.

Wines Tasted:
 

From Bordeaux 

Red - 2018 Château Haut Boilon Blaye Côtes de Bordeaux Rouge
White -2019 Château Gandoy Perrinat 1281 Bordeaux Blanc
Rosé - 2019 Les Chartrons Bordeaux Rosé
 

From Burgundy

Red - 2018 Jean Boisselier Coteaux Bourguignons Rouge

Visit http://www.wineinsiders.com to learn more.
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Lyrics to Red Red Wine by writer Neil Diamond
Sung by Deborah Magidson @debmagvoice

Ever wanted to get the skinny on South African wines? We share everything you need to know in a special one-hour episode about winemaking in the western cape.

In this episode, hear a conversation with Alex Dale, founder of Radford Dale, an innovative winery in the western cape territory of South Africa. We explore South African winemaking discussing its origins and its post-Apartheid transformation to become a leading new world region. During the discussion, we hear a lot about the regions of Stellenbosch and Swartland while tasting three of his wines from our collection: Renaissance Chenin Blanc, Granite Ridge Pinotage, and the soon-to-be-released Black Rock Red Blend.

Our Burgundian-trained guest talks about his decision to move to South Africa in the 90s. Known for pioneering many social upliftment practices previously unthinkable in that nation and introducing wine growers in the cape to the revolution of organic practices beginning to take hold in Europe, Alex also shares a few entertaining vineyard trade secrets with our listeners. He walks us through the nature of the geology, climate, and other influences on winemaking in the cape and gives us a deep dive into predominant varietals in the region. 

At Wine Insiders, we love South African wines because they offer a rare opportunity for world-class taste at affordable prices, so we know you'll enjoy hearing from our very special guest, Alex Dale, what to look for and how best to enjoy these excellent new world wines with old-world style.

Sniff Sip Repeat is brought to you by Wine Insiders, leaders in online wine. Wine Insiders makes buying great wine easy. Founded in 1982 as a club for California wine enthusiasts, Wine Insiders now offers high-quality wines from around the world for the best value and conveniently shipped to your door in just days. The collection is curated by a host of food and wine industry and lifestyle experts, such as Martha Stewart, Chef Geoffrey Zakarian, and Chef Ludo Lefebvre. Learn more about the wines or shop now to taste alongside our podcast guests.

Visit http://www.wineinsiders.com to learn more.
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Meet Me At The Club

Are you a Wine Insiders club member? Have you already received an introductory box and are now exploring your Winter assortment? If so, we have a very special unboxing review of your wines to help you get the most out of every sip.

In this episode, we chat for a few minutes about wine clubs in general and what inspires our curations. At 6:05 we will begin walking through each bottle to offer you flavor notes, regional insights, behind-the-bottle stories, and, of course, perfect pairings.

To find out why each bottle was selected we went straight to the source to speak with Tyson Koster, a winemaker and now Director of Wine Strategy, who is the tastemaker behind each Wine Insiders box. Tyson is always on a mission to find amazing wineries and undiscovered gems. As winemaker at Hilliard Bruce Vineyards in California’s Santa Rita Hills, Tyson helped create 95-point Pinot Noirs and Chardonnays that combine the elegance of France’s famed Burgundies with the swagger of California’s fruit-driven flavor profile.

In this episode we review:

White Wines

Goldridge Reserve Pinot Gris

Finca Los Olmos Torrontes

Robert Sarrau Côtes du Rhône Blanc O.V. 

Mar Azul Vinho Verde

Senorio De Fenojal Viura D.O.P.

Las Falleras Cava Brut 

Red Wines

Flor de Sara Vendimia Seleccionada Tempranillo DOC

Villa Rosa Baga Reserva Bairrada D.O.C. 

Finca Los Olmos Selección Especial Red Blend

Château Haut Boilon Blaye Côtes de Bordeaux Rouge

L'arca Negroamaro I.G.T

Free Flight Cabernet Sauvignon

Sniff Sip Repeat is brought to you by Wine Insiders, leaders in online wine. Wine Insiders makes buying great wine easy. Founded in 1982 as a club for California wine enthusiasts, Wine Insiders now offers high-quality wines from around the world for the best value and conveniently shipped to your door in just days. The collection is curated by a host of food and wine industry and lifestyle experts, such as Martha Stewart, Chef Geoffrey Zakarian, and Chef Ludo Lefebvre. Learn more about the wines or shop now to taste alongside our podcast guests.

Visit http://www.wineinsiders.com to learn more.
Sound effects obtained from https://www.zapsplat.com

Hungary for love? Then fall in love with Hungarian wines.

In this episode, we focus on winemaking in Hungary. Beginning with talk of terroir and excellent winemaking regions, such as Tokaji and Szekszárd, we move on to discuss grapes of note, such as Furmint, Kékfrancos and Traminer.

Our special co-host, Ferdinando Mucerino, former sommelier and Wine Director at the Michelin Star awarded Rustic Canyon restaurant in Santa Monica and 2019 nominee for Wine Enthusiast magazine for Best Wine Director of the Year, starts us off by sharing historical insight into the region including colorful anecdotes behind blends of note, such as Bikavér.

During the podcast, we'll taste 2017 Tűzkő Kékfrankos D.O.P and 2019 Tűzkő Traminer D.O.P., offering detailed flavor notes and pairings. Towards the end of the podcast, we'll teach you a few Hungarian words and suggest a couple of Valentine's Day pairings. Egészségedre!

Sniff Sip Repeat is brought to you by Wine Insiders, leaders in online wine. Wine Insiders makes buying great wine easy. Founded 39 years ago as a club for California wine enthusiasts, Wine Insiders now offers high-quality wines from around the world for the best value and conveniently shipped to your door in just days. The collection is curated by a host of food and wine industry and lifestyle experts, such as Martha Stewart, Chef Geoffrey Zakarian, and Chef Ludo Lefebvre. Learn more about the wines or shop now to taste alongside our podcast guests.

Visit http://www.wineinsiders.com to learn more.
Sound effects obtained from https://www.zapsplat.com