Wine Talks with Paul K.

I can tell you it was like sitting with a long, lost neighbor when sitting with Kelly E. Carter.  And in fact, we were neighbors of sorts back in the day.

It wasn't until I was searching for images to create the icons for this podcast did I realize I was in the presence of true maverick royalty.  Besides being a New York Times best selling author, she has reported from the greatest sporting events of the world: the NBA FInals, Supe...

Sometimes I just get an hankering. Ya know, a chance to try and tell it like it is.

There is no óne-size" fits all solution to what is happening in our trade.

And there still are many successes in the trade...more to come on that front.

Wine is too important to the existance of man to address the ills of the trade with thinking marketing and packaging solutions will solve the problems. Certainly, the trade can make some contemporar...

One of the on-going themes with Wine Talks, with virtually all guests, is the idea that you never stop learning in the wine trade. I supposed you could say that about many industries, but wine carries with it the idea of the harvest; the surrounding conditions that otherwise would be called "terroir" when discussing the differences from one year to the next. And there in lies the "never stop learning" aspect of wine. Each year is d...

I can talk about this stuff for days. Get me on a high horse and it is off to the races.

I’ve tasted more wines than most people could ever dare dream of—but what fascinates me isn’t just what’s in the glass. It’s the stories behind the bottles, the regions, and the relentless passion it takes to survive and thrive in the wine trade.

In this episode of

I have had a dozen cellar apps. In fact, many were brought to me as the President of the Original Wine of the Month Club to be tested. The current database that houses all my internal tastings over the past 35 years was never produced as a commercial product. And as you can imagine, it is so 1993.

The Armenian wine trade, like the rest of the wine world, has headwinds and maybe a bit more than the more established countries and regions where wine is well known and respected. You have to add to the mix of struggles; unknown grape varietals, no port of entry, unknown regions and 75 years of Soviet oppression.

Wine Talks is deeply connected to the Judgement of Paris. Not only were the Barretts good customers of our wine shop, Warren Winiarski stayed in our home on a trip to Los Angeles.

Famed Chef Jonathan Waxman came to Wine Talks through a mutual friend who we lost last year to cancer; Melvin Masters was a one-of-a-kind character in the wine trade and Jonathans partner in the famed Jams Restaruarant. 

You can't speak of trends in the wine trends in the wine trade without mentioning Felicity Carter. You can't talk data mining in the wine trade without mentioning Felicity Carter...in fact, I can't think of many surrounding the wine trade that you could speak of without mentioning Felicity Carter. She is a force of date (substituting for "nature").

Not of all wine news is about a drop in sales or activity...wine tourism is up. 

The wines of the Monterey Peninsula, and particularly those of the Carmel Valley, are exquisite. It is always just so interesting to have the some grape grown in different parts of the world and be so different...soely on the location and environmental influences of the vineyard.

When people enter a room, you instantly get a sense of their disposition in life. Are they smiley? Frowning? friendly? Gregarious? and you instantly if this is going to work. I knew instantly that this was going to work when Cecilia Guzman walked into the studio. 

A few years ago, a young woman was interning at the Original Wine of the Month Club. Her internship revolved around social networking, office duties, and one particular job that may have set her career path. Lisa Kassabian was to write the talking points for all my podcasts that featured a woman in wine. 

I have been hanging around the South Bay beaches since my youth. Maybe you caught my Instagram posts about how that happened. As a family, we spent much of our time in Hermosa Beach; I love the SoCal beach culture.

Enotoursim has been a staple in the tourism trade. One of my favorite podcast was with JoAnne Dupuy, the woman who delivered the wines from Napa to Steven Spurrier in Paris for the Judgement In Paris. She was the leading Enotourist company in America. 

Wine needs a fresh face. Well, that is if you ask the pundits in the industry. I am not sure I agree. Certainly, any industry needs to keep up with the times, I suppose marketing ideas and packaging ideas would follow. I am not sure I even agree with that... however, one thing I do believe is bringing a contemporary viewpoint to the table is beneficial. Meet a contemporary viewpoint in Jane Dunkley of Bezel.

You know the Kladstrups. Frankly, anyone interested in wine, whether through in the trade or as a consumer, should/must read their first book on wine: Wine and War. Since they have published 3 more books and just releasing the latest: Eugenie; The Last Empress of France.

Sometimes, I just have to say my peace and get on with it.  Though in this episode, I dig into the relationships that are forged like in no other industry. Hear me out.

Once I was asked to meet a vendor at a local diner...a diner like the one at the end of the movies Sideways. Complete with amber plastic tumblers.  IN walked one of the old time great wine slaesman with his wares in tow. I must have looked cross-eyed because I was sure he would not want to taste his wines here, at this diner. I was wrong and he did. This is when I learned how important the proper glass is ...