You are going to love this week's episode of the Follow Your Joy Podcast—it's an inspiring, full-circle moment with someone I've had the honor of walking alongside for over 17 years as a dear friend and client: Brianne Cohen, a Los Angeles based certified sommelier, event producer, writer, and wine industry trailblazer.
Brianne and I met in 2007 when we were both navigating reinvention. Since then, she's built a remarkable career that blends creativity, entrepreneurship, strategy—and of course, a deep love of wine.
In our conversation, we explore:
+How she scaled her online wine education business during the pandemic to serve over 10,000+ people
+The exact way she uses her intuition to evaluate opportunities and protect her time
+Her international wine writing career with features in Decanter, Edible, and Business Insider
+ Her commitment to spotlighting diverse-owned wines (BIPOC, LGBTQ+, women-owned)
And we are celebrating her newest accomplishments as Lead Sommelier at Montauk restaurant in Redondo Beach and her role as President of the LA Chapter of Women for WineSense
From galas and capital campaigns to curated wine tastings for corporate teams and ERGs, Brianne has redefined success on her own terms—and she's still evolving.
She's also gifting you her fan-favorite guide: "Answers to the 5 Most Commonly Asked Wine Questions" Grab it here: marladiann.com/podcast/portal
Resources + Links:
Instagram: @Sommspirations
FB & LI: Brianne Pergola Cohen
www.briannecohen.com
Marla's favorite mentoring - Helping ambitious women redefine and integrate new success metrics that honor their feminine arts & wisdom blended with masculine principles creating a new identity, next chapter and new relationship with money.
Her next 90-day Soul-Led Next Level Portal begins in late January 2026. Curious? Book your Soul-Led-Next-Chapter Call: https://tinyurl.com/soul-led-call
Loved this episode? Don't stop here, unlock the tools, resources, and free downloads mentioned during the episode. Click here to access the portal of joy. https://marladiann.com/podcast/portal/
Stuff You Should Know
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.
Ruthie's Table 4
For more than 30 years The River Cafe in London, has been the home-from-home of artists, architects, designers, actors, collectors, writers, activists, and politicians. Michael Caine, Glenn Close, JJ Abrams, Steve McQueen, Victoria and David Beckham, and Lily Allen, are just some of the people who love to call The River Cafe home. On River Cafe Table 4, Rogers sits down with her customers—who have become friends—to talk about food memories. Table 4 explores how food impacts every aspect of our lives. “Foods is politics, food is cultural, food is how you express love, food is about your heritage, it defines who you and who you want to be,” says Rogers. Each week, Rogers invites her guest to reminisce about family suppers and first dates, what they cook, how they eat when performing, the restaurants they choose, and what food they seek when they need comfort. And to punctuate each episode of Table 4, guests such as Ralph Fiennes, Emily Blunt, and Alfonso Cuarón, read their favourite recipe from one of the best-selling River Cafe cookbooks. Table 4 itself, is situated near The River Cafe’s open kitchen, close to the bright pink wood-fired oven and next to the glossy yellow pass, where Ruthie oversees the restaurant. You are invited to take a seat at this intimate table and join the conversation. For more information, recipes, and ingredients, go to https://shoptherivercafe.co.uk/ Web: https://rivercafe.co.uk/ Instagram: www.instagram.com/therivercafelondon/ Facebook: https://en-gb.facebook.com/therivercafelondon/ For more podcasts from iHeartRadio, visit the iheartradio app, apple podcasts, or wherever you listen to your favorite shows. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com
Dateline NBC
Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Follow now to get the latest episodes of Dateline NBC completely free, or subscribe to Dateline Premium for ad-free listening and exclusive bonus content: DatelinePremium.com