Napa Valley is filled with polished tasting rooms and corporate names, but Adam Fox and Canard Vineyard are holding onto something rare: authenticity. In this conversation, Adam shares his winding journey from film sets in Hollywood to the rugged rows of Napa vines, where he now serves as Managing Director of one of the last true estate-grown, dry-farmed vineyards in the valley .

We dive into the fire that destroyed their 2020 vintage and how they turned tragedy into resilience with a community-focused rosé. Adam reveals how wine legends like Robert Mondavi and Joseph Phelps convinced Canard to preserve their 140-year-old Zinfandel vines, and what makes those bottles unlike anything else in Napa.

This episode is a front-row seat to the fight for real wine in an industry often dominated by marketing gloss and additives. Adam’s stories of heritage, terroir, and perseverance remind us why wine is more than a drink, it’s living history.

Expect to Learn:

• The untold story of Canard’s winery fire and their phoenix-like comeback
• Why dry farming creates more authentic, terroir-driven wines
• The secret phone calls from Mondavi and Phelps that saved Napa’s oldest Zinfandel
• How climate change is reshaping the future of wine in California
• What really goes into mass-produced wines vs. estate-grown bottles
• Why balance, not bigness, is the true key to pairing wine with food

Suggested Links

• Canard Vineyard Official Site

Service starts now.

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I talk mostly to people in and around the service industry space. I'm looking to hear from the people I wish I could have talked to when I was coming up in restaurants. Said another way: I am trying to make sense of this wild, beautiful mess of a life, and help others that are feeling similarly confused and/or lost. You can find more of my work at⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠my blog⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠, and all my social links are at the bottom of that page.

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As always, I’m just here taking notes, trying to figure out what it all means.

Cheers