The world is a better place when we’re drinking bubbly and this is the time for sparkling wine in all its forms., and we’ll tell you what many of them are. Plus listener questions about flying corks and how many bubbles are in a bottle of bubbly.

We talk about how wine blends with the holiday parties, gifts, meals and, of course, the family wine snob. Plus listeners ask about corked wines and serving box wine at a holiday bash.

An important wine person tries to explain wine descriptors – and produces lots of jibberish. Plus, listeners ask about wine in cans and about what might have been a restaurant bait-and-switch, and our history moment goes back to the first domesticated grapes.

We have some new, always-useful studies this week, including one that says wine has a compound that helps heal your liver. And listeners ask if it’s a waste of good wine to cook with it and why important wine people never seem to recommend wines from the U.S.

We pick nits with a big city writer who says, among other things, critics should never write about mainstream supermarket wine-no matter how good they are. Plus listeners ask about Bordeaux blends, why good wine in Europe seems to be less expensive, and what to do when the restaurant server overfills your glass.

We explain the Oxford-Cambridge varsity wine tasting battle—and yes, it does sound like a breeding ground for snobs. Plus we answer questions about wine festivals, how to chill a wine fast and where to cut the foil on a bottle. And our Horrible Writing shows how to make anyone feel like an idiot, and trust us, that’s a feeling we know well.

We talk turkey about wines with turkey, and the rest of the Thanksgiving table. Listeners ask whether wine helps digestion and wonder what to do with the uncle who gives way-to-long toasts. Plus our Historic History Moment sends the Wayback machine to visit the Pilgrims.

We are momentarily serious as we answer questions about the horrific wildfires in wine country. The major point: If you want to help, go wine tasting. The tasting rooms are all open again in Napa, Sonoma, Mendocino and Lake counties and they would love to have you visit. They’ll be very happy to see you.

We take on our buildup of questions, including what to do with an unrecognizable wine list, how to deal with wine going in and out of a fridge, and why some sommeliers hate calling wine rich. Plus, our Horrible Wine Writing beautifully describes a fake vineyard.

We fear wine snobs are spreading their narcissistic, tone-deaf, dysfunctional style to the cocktail world. Plus, we answer questions about wine stains, group etiquette in a wine bar and tasting notes at wineries, and our Horrible Wine Writing scores 97 points for hooey.