Wine Tour with Chessa

Next stop on our Island Wines Tour: Chessa on Sardegna! Best vintage yet of Giovanna Chessa’s Vermentino and more details about the enigmatic grape called ‘Cagnulari’.

Wine Tour with Centopassi

We were reminded of what a privilege it is to be a part of the inspiring project of excellent wine and social justice that is Centopassi as we spoke with their team today.

Wine Tour with Coralia of Castell'in Villa

It was such a privilege to hear from Coralia Pignatelli della Leonessa and to be included in the conversation between her and Oliver. Every time I listen to her, I feel a little closer to understanding the nuances that make this one of the most important wineries in Tuscany. If you are a fan of Castell’in Villa and want more, check out the video on our Instagram TV channel of Jeff Porter, MS, speaking about his experiences with her and her wines.

Spirits Tour with Giulia of Distilleria Alpe

Such a pleasure to see Giulia and learn more about the ancient tradition of Genepy in the Valle d’Aosta. It was amazing to see how much volume of the herb it takes to make a single batch of the precious liquid.

Wine Tour with Simone of Castellinuzza e Piuca

Visiting with Simone and seeing the cellar and vineyards again reminded us of what a privilege it is to work with small producers who work with such a high degree of integrity and tradition. Castellinuzza encompasses so many of the things that inspire our passion for what we do and who we do it with.

Spirits Tour with Fred Cremasco of Fred Jerbis

If you thought that vineyards are more romantic than fields of botanicals, you thought wrong. Fred gave us a tour of his gorgeous garden, which was made even more romantic by the gentle rain. This is how REAL spirits are made.

Wine Tour with Angela Fronti of Istine Chianti Classico

The lovely Angela Fronti graced us with her vibrance and enthusiasm for the rugged and mountainous region of Chianti Classico and we enjoyed every sip.

Wine Tour with Ciro Biondi (eponymous)

Ahh, Sicily. It was wonderful to be reminded of the majesty and mystery of Mt. Etna in our conversation with Ciro, whose family has been making wine here since the 1500’s! We were reminded of how inexplicably delicious his Outis Bianco is and the inexplicable internet service on Sicily.

Spirits Tour with Riccardo Molinero of Bordiga Distillery

It was so good to see our friends Riccardo, Mario, Bruno at the historic Bordiga distillery in Cuneo! Riccardo showed us the old hand-written recipe book and told us the story of how Pietro Bordiga got started. We got to see the old wood-fired copper pot alembic and hear from Mario, the head distiller about how he knows when the vermouth are ready to go through filtration. I think we were all ready for a glass of vermouth by the end of the tour.

Wine Tour with Vincenzo di Meo of La Sibilla

Vincenzo gave us a beautiful tour of their vineyards, which snake all over the hillsides of the Campi Flegrei peninsula. We discovered that their vineyards are situated on archaeological sites which require an archaeologist to come out every time they want to plant new vines. We also got to see the beehives that they keep in the vineyards, which was pretty cool. There was a lot of talk about how Falanghina Flegrea is actually a wholly different grape than Falanghina Beneventana, which is planted further inland in Campania.

Wine Tour with Sergio Germano & Family

We had a great time with Sergio and Oliver today - learned a lot about the exposition and soil of the Serralunga commune of Barolo as well as some fascinating things about stem inclusion and whole cluster fermentation. Most important, we found out that he makes magnums of Rosanna Brut and we placed our order!

Wine Tour with Chiara, Emidio Pepe & Family

We had a great visit with Chiara and her family on Friday with a beautiful sunset tour of the vineyards and the cellar as well as a demonstration of their decantation technique.