Wine for Normal People

Although the best-known wines of Piemonte are in the south — in Alba, Roero, Cuneo, and Asti – there is a treasure trove of excellent Nebbiolo and Nebbiolo blends northeast of the famed Barolo and Barbaresco in the Langhe. These are small DOCGs and DOCs in the foothills of the Italian Alps that are collectively called Alto Piemonte  – "higher (or upper) Piemonte."

Gr...

Nebbiolo is one of the oldest and finest red grapes of Italy. Native to Piemonte (Piedmont) in the northwest of the country, it was first mentioned and described by (my boyfriend) Pliny the Elder in the first century AD. After a time of being known exclusively on its home turf, starting in the 1700s, Nebbiolo began to gain status as a wine of Piemontese royalty. When a dry version was made in the mid-1800s, the...

André Tchelistcheff is a wine legend, especially in American wine. A winemaker, viticulturist and teacher, Tchelistcheff raised the standards for California wine, making it possible for it to become a force in the modern wine world.

André Tchelistcheff. Photo: UC Davis Library

A lifetime learner, Tchelistcheff said his highest and best title would be "permane...

I said in episode 604 that if you wanted my other 6 suggestions, I would do a follow up show! You told me this is what you wanted, so this time I give you six MORE wine regions that make very expensive wines and then provide ideas of less expensive bottles that you could sub in when you don't want to splurge. From Châteauneuf to Brunello I give you some ideas that hopefully you hadn't considered! 

The wines I find alternatives...

This is part two (Ep 609 is Part 1)of a two-part series on the history of Champagne, which tells the story of how Champagne became Champagne!

Photo: Champagne Vineyards Credit: WFNP

I fell down a bit of a rabbit hole when I discovered an entire encyclopedia of the history of Champagne on the Union des Maisons de Champagne site...

This is part of a two-part series on the history of Champagne, which tells the story of how Champagne became Champagne!

 
Photo: Champagne vineyards before mechanization. Source: Union des Maisons de Champagne

I fell down a bit of a rabbit hole when I discovered an entire encyclopedia of the history of Champagne on the Uni...

Barbera is one of Italy's most widely planted red grapes and an essential part of Piemontese wine culture. It is native to the Monferrato hills, where it has been grown for centuries and important to the overall wine landscape of the region. Adaptable, drought-resistant, and capable of producing everything from bright, food-friendly, everyday wines to serious oak-aged bottles, Barbera has spread beyond its homeland — to Calif...

In this show rather than one wine legend, I talk about a team of people who saved the wine world from The Great French Wine Blight of the 1860s – 1890s, which turned out to be caused a destructive, insect called phylloxera that came to Europe on American grapevines. I discuss the contributions of eight people who worked together and across continents to collectively save the European grapevine, Vitis vini...

I couldn't get a new podcast out with my travels from Alto Adige with the patrons,  but I thought it was timely I re-released this show since I was just there. It's not ALL old hat -- I did a light edit, improved the sound quality, and recorded a quick intro to this re-release of Ep 310: Elena Walch - The Quality Revolutionary of Alto Adige, Italy.

Elena Walch is a winery with an essential role in the quality revolutio...

After a career in global consulting and raising a family, Sally Evans decided to pursue a dream of owning a winery. She took WSET (Wine and Spirits Education Trust) wine courses and traveled to Bordeaux to explore the city and its appellations and discovered Fronsac (on the right bank, Episode 593 is on Fronsac!), which captured her heart.

Photo: Sally Evans. Courtesy of Ch George7

She wen...

This episode is part of  "The Greats" series, in which I discuss the greatest wines in the world and what makes them great. This time,  I explore the top white Burgundies of Corton-Charlemagne, Meursault, Puligny-Montrachet, and Chassagne-Montrachet. I address what makes these wines Greats and go into detail on the regions, the vineyards, and the wines. 

Full show notes and all back episodes are on Patreon. Joi...

This time I give you six wine regions that make very expensive wines and then provide ideas of less expensive bottles that you could sub in when you don't want to splurge. From Champagne to Barolo, I give you some ideas that hopefully you hadn't considered! 

The wines I find alternatives for (you'll have to listen to hear the wines I recommend as "dupes"):

• Napa Cabernet Sauvignon
• Champagne
• Pomerol (Bordeaux)
• Barolo/Barbar...

I haven't given an update to the Veneto region in more than a decade. With an upcoming Patron trip to the region, I think it's high time!

Veneto is in northeastern Italy and is famed for wines like Prosecco, Valpolicella (including Amarone), Soave, and Bardolino. With 14 DOCGs, 29 DOCs, and 10 IGPs, covering ...

This is the start of a new series, suggested by Patron Keith S.! Thank you, Keith!  I'll cover people who have made a huge difference in the wine world —figures whose contributions have shaped how wine is made, understood, and appreciated.

I felt the best place to kick this off was with a man who ratcheted up the quality of wine in Bordeaux and then around the world. Through his great scientific brain and his quiet and ...

Pollak Vineyards is a small family-owned winery founded in 2003 when Margo and David Pollak bought a farm west of Charlottesville, Virginia. David's experience in wine was pretty extensive – he worked in the 1970s in Sonoma's Russian River Valley and was a founding partner and investor in one of Napa Valley's first Carneros wineries, Bouchaine Vineyards. Years later, when he thought about retirement from ...

600 episodes of WFNP! I am grateful to you for listening, for reading the book, for learning with me and gracefully accepting the changes over the years, and I'm especially grateful to my sponsors, guests, and travel partners. (thanks Heather and Beppe!) over the last 15 years who have supported this show.  

But most of all, as I say every week, I'm grateful to the Patrons – the...

In honor of Women's History Month, I'm rereleasing a show with one of the most dynamic, intelligent, and all around fantastic women in wine: Laura Catena of Bodegas Catena Zapata in Mendoza, Argentina.

Photo from Laura's website: https://indefenseofwine.com

We discuss her life as a doctor, a mom, and the head of a wine empire. We cover the history of Malbec and how her family aided the meteoric rise of Argentine wine an...

This week I cover Malbec, or Côt as it's known in its native home of Southwest France. This old red grape variety has long history in France and was once one of its most planted grapes. But due to pickiness in the vineyard and harshness in the bottle, Malbec fell out of favor in its native country. Despite being a big component in the Bordeaux blend, the grape remained in relative obscurity until it hit South A...

This week I cover the regional AOCs of Medoc and Haut-Medoc, which wraps up our exploration of the Left Bank of Bordeaux. These two areas can cover a lot of ground, but they are usually used for discreet geographies in the north and south of the Médoc Peninsula.

Because each AOC is so large and varied, I do a deep dive into the whole of the region and then into the particularities of the smaller Médoc AOC in the northwest of the M...