Dish + Tell

Wine is a language unto itself, and plenty of us are nodding along without knowing all the words. Tannins, structure, biodynamic: it's enough to make anyone slide the wine list across the table to someone else. So what if you went back to the very beginning, with a classmate who's happy to ask the basic questions out loud? 

Welcome to the Dish + Tell “Goes to” series: snackable mini episodes where Kayla takes you along on kitchen-adjacent adventures so you can learn together. No guest, no dish - and for the first stop, Dish + Tell Goes to Wine School! 

Join Kayla as she works through her WSET Level 1 coursework through Napa Valley Wine Academy. Lesson 1 starts where every good foundation should: what IS wine, anyway? From fermentation and alcohol levels to grape anatomy, tannins, a dash of ancient history and how white, red and rosé wines are made, consider this your crash course in wine basics, minus the pretension. 

WHAT’S ON THE TABLE:

• The intergenerational friends Kayla calls her elder WDBs (and what those three letters lovingly stand for)
• Tagging along on importer George's annual trip to Italy, and the belief Kayla heard from producer after producer about where wine is really made
• The tiny, sugar-eating organism standing between you and a glass of plain grape juice, plus how to read the ABV on your label
• Grape anatomy 101: what tannins actually are, and the trick that changed her mind about high-tannin reds
• How wine was most likely discovered by accident, and the ancient epic that documented "pouring one out"
• The "wine belt," and what a region's latitude can tell you about whether it leans red or white
• Crush, press, ferment, mature, bottle: how each style comes to life, and the step where reds get rowdy 

Come for the crash course in wine fundamentals, stay for the permission to not be fluent… yet. Study up on the class notes at kaylagorski.substack.com and follow Dish + Tell on Instagram @DishandTellWithKayla. 

CREDITS: 

• Host + Creator: Kayla Gorski 
• Edited by: Erika Share for Montana PBS Production Services 
• Music: “Pretective Boy” by Skating Polly 
• Artwork: John Wilson Baker 

MENTIONED IN THE EPISODE:

• WSET (Wine & Spirit Education Trust): the globally recognized wine and spirits education body. Level 1 is the entry-level Award in Wines, with no prior wine knowledge required.
• Napa Valley Wine Academy: where Kayla is taking her WSET Level 1 course.
• Tanaro River Imports: the importer George founded nearly 20 years ago, bringing organic and biodynamic wines from small producers across Italy to the States. (Full disclosure: Kayla works with Tanaro River Imports.)
• The Republic of Georgia: home to the earliest known evidence of grape winemaking, traced through residue in clay jars roughly 8,000 years old.
• Homer's Odyssey: the ancient Greek epic where libations (aka the OG "pouring one out") make an appearance.
• Kayla's recommended reading: Rebel School of Wine by Tyler Balliet + Wine Folly, The Essential Guide to Wine, by Madeline Puckette and Justin Hammack

CHAPTERS:

0:00 Welcome to the Series 

1:30 The WDBs + the Italy Trip That Started It All 

4:00 WSET Level 1 + Napa Valley Wine Academy 

6:14 What Is Wine? Fermentation + ABV 

8:30 Grape Anatomy + Tannins 

10:32 Brief History of Wine + the Wine Regions

13:45 How White, Red + Rosé Wines Are Made

16:37 Homework + What's Next

Wine has an intimidation problem. The swirling, the sniffing, the tasting-note vocabulary that sounds like a pop quiz: it's enough to make anyone freeze the second a wine list hits the table. So what happens when someone at the very top of the wine world tells you none of that matters? 

Meet Guido Orzalesi: general manager and chief winemaker at Castello La Leccia, a hilltop castle estate in Tuscany's Chianti Classico region, and the man whose table in Florence is where Dish + Tell was born. For this episode, Guido skips the dish for the drink with the best story: a gin and tonic. Kayla pours her Perfect G&T, made with barrel-aged gin, elderflower tonic and a squeeze of lime (recipe linked below!), alongside a store-bought snack spread. Proof that it doesn’t need to be homemade to be intentional and feel special. (And because in Italy, if you drink, you eat!) What unfolds is a conversation about Sangiovese, blind tastings, desert island bottles, and why the only palate you need to trust is your own.

WHAT’S ON THE TABLE:

• The Florence table where Kayla said the idea for Dish + Tell out loud for the very first time
• Why Guido has spent 25 years under Sangiovese’s spell – and the desert island bottle his fellow Italians might not forgive him for
• A sailboat, a nervous suitor, and the gin and tonic Guido poured before asking his future father-in-law the biggest question of his life
• A blind tasting of 18 Chianti Classicos, one deer-in-headlights host, and the whisper that changed everything – plus why Guido swears a glass of wine is no different from a bowl of chips
• What Americans should steal from the Italian table (and vice versa), the American eats Guido craves – breakfast eggs! corn on the cob! – and the Montana dish that stole the show

Come for the Perfect G&T, stay for the permission to trust your own palate. Sip more history and RECIPES on Substack: kaylagorski.substack.com and follow Dish + Tell on Instagram @DishandTellWithKayla. 

CREDITS: 

• Host + Creator: Kayla Gorski 
• Guest: Guido Orzalesi 
• Filmed + Edited by: Erika Share for Montana PBS Production Services 
• Music: “Pretective Boy” by Skating Polly 
• Artwork: John Wilson Baker

MENTIONED IN THE EPISODE:

• Castello La Leccia: the hilltop estate in Castellina in Chianti where Guido works, home to organic vineyards, olive groves, a boutique hotel and a restaurant. 
• Sangiovese: Tuscany's signature red grape, the backbone of Chianti Classico and the only grape in Brunello di Montalcino, where Guido started his career.
• Dampfwerk Distilling: a family-owned distillery in St. Louis Park, Minnesota, bringing German distilling traditions stateside, and Kayla's pick for barrel-aged gin. (Full disclosure: Dampfwerk is a client of Kayla's.)
• The Boulevardier: the Negroni's whiskey-forward cousin, and what Guido requests when he’s not in the mood for a G&T. 
• Under the Tuscan Sun: the Diane Lane film that made impulsively buying a Tuscan villa feel like a perfectly reasonable life plan.

CHAPTERS:

0:00 Welcome to the Table + The Perfect G&T

6:02 Full Circle: Where Dish + Tell Was Born + Life at Castello La Leccia 

7:53 Why Sangiovese? Store-bought Snacks + Building a G&T 

12:50 The G&T Proposal Story 

16:43 Blind Tastings + Why Wine Is No Different From Chips 

20:50 Desert Island Wine + Why Wine Never Gets Boring 

26:52 Italy vs. America: Lessons From the Table + What Guido Craves 

32:35 Lingering Thoughts

Busy has become a status symbol. We wear packed calendars like a badge of honor, and yet Harvard research on time poverty found that feeling chronically short on time drags down happiness more than unemployment does. So what does it look like when someone opts out of the hustle…on purpose?

Enter Michael Manzer: bartender, climber, world-wanderer, and the man Kayla lovingly refers to as her favorite dirtbag. The table holds three things. First, Huckleberry Chipotle BBQ Ribs, a Missouri-meets-Montana mashup (recipe linked below!). Second, a Blackberry Huckleberry Cobbler with Lemon Chantilly inspired by his grandma’s farm. Third, a bottle of Romanelli’s Terra Cupa Montefalco Sagrantino. Over all of it, the two dig into time affluence: the luxury of having time that’s truly your own. What unfolds is a conversation about reclaiming a word that started as an insult, what it really costs to choose time over money, and why Kayla’s own career detour has her rethinking what “ambition” even means.

WHAT’S ON THE TABLE:

• The 48-hour gap in a Hawaii itinerary, and why Michael never once considered booking a hotel
• Where the word “dirtbag” actually comes from
• The Harvard prescription for time poverty, and the one question Michael asks that flips it on its head
• Can you have too much free time? What a UCLA researcher found, and what happens to a dirtbag when an injury takes away the dirt
• The spending filter Michael swears by (bikes: yes; clothes: don’t ask), and the one Kayla built from it
• How Michael answers the dreaded “So, what do you do?” (Kayla’s been trying on a few answers of her own)
• The 110-pound grandma who out-picked everyone in the blackberry patch, and Michael’s theory on why sharing food might be the most generous thing humans do

Come for the beefy ribs, stay for the radical idea that your time might be the richest thing you own. (Bonus: the pair call Michael’s voicemail. On air. You’ll understand.)

Eat up more details and RECIPES on Substack @kaylagorski and follow Dish + Tell on Instagram @DishandTellWithKayla. 

CREDITS: 

• Host + Creator: Kayla Gorski 
• Guest: Michael Manzer 
• Filmed + Edited by: Erika Share for Montana PBS Production Services 
• Music: “Pretective Boy” by Skating Polly 
• Artwork: John Wilson Baker

MENTIONED IN THE EPISODE:

• Tim Kasser & Kennon Sheldon: psychologists whose 2009 paper put "time affluence" on the map, linking it to greater well-being.
• Ashley Whillans: Harvard professor and author of Time Smart, a playbook for reclaiming your time.
• Cassie Holmes: UCLA professor and author of Happier Hour. Her co-authored study found 2–5 hours of free time a day is the happiness sweet spot.
• The 9% stat: in a 2010 survey, just 9% of adults often had time on their hands; 45% almost never did.
• Spider Sabich: the '70s ski racer who reportedly called himself "just a dirtbag," the word's first media reference. 

CHAPTERS:

0:00 Welcome to the Table: Meet Michael Manzer 

3:25 Dealer’s Choice: Bartending, Outdoor Adventure + Dirtbaggery 

9:13 Sleeping on Hawaii Beaches + “Dirtbag” Origin Story 

13:12 Huckleberry Chipotle BBQ Ribs, Sagrantino + Grandma’s Cobbler 

23:42 Pirate Voicemails, Sharing Food + Dirtbag Camp Meals 

31:27 What Is Time Affluence? Time Poverty + Kayla’s Career Change 

46:24 Bikes vs. Shirts: Experiences Over Things + Finding Purpose 

1:04:03 Lingering Thoughts

Dish + Tell wants to help bring people together, because some of the best stories are told around the table.

We're more connected than ever – and somehow lonelier for it. Created by me, Kayla Gorski, Dish + Tell uses the most universal thing we share – FOOD – to get to the stories that make us human. My goal is that every episode leaves you laughing a little more, feeling a bit braver in the kitchen and beyond, and more connected to yourself, your community, and the places where your food is farmed, foraged, fished, and fermented.

Pull up a seat, I'm so glad you're here!

• 🎬 Director + Host: Kayla Gorski
• 🎥 Film + Edit: Erika Share
• 🎶 Theme Music: "Pretective Boy" by Skating Polly
• 🎨 Artwork + Illustration: John Wilson Baker

Beef is absolutely what’s for dinner – record high prices, the smallest U.S. cattle herd in more than 70 years, a brand-new (and upside-down!) federal food pyramid that puts protein front and center, and more and more people want to know where their dinner comes from. That’s why Kayla pulled up a chair with her “beef guy” and friend, fifth-generation Montana rancher Eric Robinson. 

Over a Montana Pot Roast (fear not, the recipe is linked below!) and a bottle of Nebbiolo, Eric reveals that the dish holding the most story for him isn’t the roast at all – it’s the leftovers. From there, what unfolds is a conversation about lineage you can feel in your bones: the "ghosts in the ground" Eric senses beside him every time he walks the land, the regenerative decision that nearly cost him the ranch, and the moment at 22 when he asked himself a question that changed everything.

In this episode, Kayla and Eric discuss:

• What it means to have a generational career that lives "in the marrow of your bones"
• The depression-era reason nothing ever got wasted (and why Eric swears the leftovers, not the roast, are the main event)
• The "ghosts in the ground" — feeling five generations standing beside you every time you walk the land
• The question Eric asked himself at 22 that rerouted his whole life 
• Eric's regenerative journey — going cold turkey on chemical fertilizers, and the two lean years it nearly cost the ranch
• The dying art of front-porch culture, and why the farmers market became Eric's
• Beef's big moment: record prices, tight supply, and what it actually means for a small family operation
• Why "rich rancher" might be the biggest misconception of all

Come for the pot roast, and stay for a definition of wealth that has nothing to do with your bank account. Eric will tell you the front porch is dying — but step up to his farmers market booth and you'll find it's just moved. Bozeman-area locals can catch him and his wife Juliana at the Gallatin Valley Farmers’ Market every Saturday.

🍽️ Score Kayla’s recipe for Montana Pot Roast by subscribing to the Dish + Tell substack: https://substack.com/@kaylagorski 

📍Follow the Ranchers of Shields Valley family on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ranchersofshieldsvalley/ 

🥩 Visit Eric’s “front porch” (and meet the rest of his family!) at the Gallatin Valley Farmers’ Market, every Saturday at the fairgrounds: https://gallatinvalleyfarmersmarket.com/

KEYWORDS: generational ranching, regenerative agriculture, Montana ranch, pot roast, sustainable beef, Bozeman Farmers Market, Dish + Tell, Kayla Gorski

What if grief could be a guide instead of an enemy? 

In a special solo episode, Kayla shares a root beer float with her dad – gone thirteen years, but invited to pull up a chair in spirit. What follows is five hard-won lessons about loss, presence, and the love that has nowhere to go but everywhere. 

Alongside her dad, Kayla reflects on: 

• Why the "I've lost someone" club has the most beautiful members — and the unspoken shorthand that forms between people who've grieved
• How to navigate Father's Day, Mother's Day, birthdays, and the calendar dates that hit the hardest
• Why suppressing the share erases the experience — and the most generous thing you can do for a grieving friend (hint: it's not in the first week)
• Why pedestals are a disservice to the people we've lost
• Grief as a shapeshifter — and the moment after a loss when it really lands
• The paradox of time — its ability to both heal and steal  

Tender, vulnerable, and root beer float-fueled, this episode is for anyone already in the club, and anyone who hasn’t yet found their way there. 

A written companion to the episode is on Substack and available without a paywall to subscribers and non-subscribers alike: substack.com/@kaylagorski

SHOW NOTES:

📺 Discover where to watch Andrea Gibson's documentary “Come See Me in the Good Light,” at https://andreagibson.org/events. 

📖 Read “Marrow,” by Elizabeth Lesser, or “Signs” by Laura Lynne Jackson, both available wherever books are sold.

KEYWORDS:

grief, Father’s Day, Dish + Tell, Kayla Gorski, food podcast, Andrea Gibson, Elizabeth Lesser, Laura Lynne Jackson, root beer float, recipe  

Fast fashion is having a moment – and not a good one. When SHEIN bought Everlane, the Millennial girlies (Kayla included) mourned loudly…but now will they keep shopping? On the latest episode of Dish + Tell, Kayla is joined by Madysen Rosenberg to ask the question: at what point does consumer grief actually change anything? 

Over Brown Butter Miso Donuts (the recipe is linked below), Kayla and Maddy trace the thread from Maddy’s multi-generational upbringing – sharing donut and black coffee with her grandma – to the repair, repurpose and reuse movement she’s building in Bozeman, Montana, to combat throwaway consumerism head-on. 

In this episode, Kayla and Maddy explore:

• Why the SHEIN-Everlane acquisition feels like a gut punch - and what it reveals about sustainability as a marketing tool 
• How growing up with generational living can influence your relationship to things: what to keep, what to repair, and what to pass down
• The staggering stat that will make you think twice before your next purchase (hint: garbage trucks are involved) 
• Why borrowing, swapping and shopping your friends’ closets might be the most underrated sustainability move
• What to expect at the upcoming Hidden Gem Repair Fair – zipper rescue, Mystery Ranch gear repair, embroidery, and more 

Come for the donuts, and stay for the quiet argument that repair is the newest act of rebellion!

See you at the Repair Faire on June 13th, 1-5pm, at Studio Wheelhouse in Bozeman! 

SHOW NOTES:

🍩 Score Kayla’s recipe for Brown Butter and Miso Donuts by subscribing to the Dish + Tell Substack.  

🧵 If you live in the Bozeman-area, make a plan to visit the Repair Fair on Saturday, June 13 from 1pm - 5pm at Studio Wheelhouse. 

💎 Follow the Hidden Gem Market for Repair Fair and other updates on Instagram @HiddenGemMarket406. 

☕️ Whether you’re in Bozeman or beyond (they deliver!), caffeinate with Roly-Poly Coffee (https://rolypoly.coffee/).

KEYWORDS:

fast fashion, SHEIN Everlane acquisition, sustainable fashion, repair culture, thrifting, vintage fashion, slow fashion, textile waste, fashion sustainability, upcycling clothes, mending and repair, Hidden Gem Market Bozeman, repair fair Bozeman, Dish and Tell podcast, Dish + Tell, brown butter miso donuts, donut recipe, Bozeman Montana, generational living, millennial sustainable fashion, conscious consumerism

Love is on the brain at Dish + Tell because when this episode drops, Kayla’s friend and guest Morgan Klaas is days away from walking down the aisle. And while they could have talked about romance, they went somewhere even richer: the big, brave, beautiful world of adult friendship.

Over a plate of Kayla’s Salted Brown Butter Rice Krispie treats (which Morgan has since rebranded "divorce treats" — you'll have to tune in for that story) and a glass of cava, they unpacked lost friends, the ones who stayed, and what loyalty looks like in action. Kayla also shares her belief that experiencing awe together might be the secret sauce to a lasting bond.

In this episode, Kayla and Morgan explore:

• Why adult friendship requires a different kind of intention — and what gets in the way
• The "10X friendship" philosophy and how to apply it to your own circle
• The difference between leading with love vs. leading with loyalty when making new friends
• How shared experiences of awe — in nature, in music, in travel — create bonds that last
• The loneliness epidemic and what it really means that 16% of Americans are turning to AI for companionship
• Morgan's beautiful, tender definition of what true friendship looks like in its purest form

As you listen, think about your own circle. Who's on the bus ride with you — and are they truly deserving of that seat? And is there room to invite someone new on for the next leg of the ride?

The recipe for divorce treats (officially: Salted Brown Butter Rice Krispie treats, with a super secret ingredient) is live on Substack: substack.com/@kaylagorski

🥂 Cheers to Morgan and her HUSBAND, and all of the ones who show up.

SHOW NOTES:

🎙️ Listen to The Huberman Lab podcast episode with Dr. Dacher Keltner referenced. 

📖 Pick up a copy of Dan Sullivan’s 10x is easier than 2x wherever books are sold. 

🌹 To re-live the moment when Kayla and Morgan FINALLY understood the magic and poetry of Drums and Space, listen to this Dead & Company show from Folsom Field, Boulder, July 3, 2023.

KEY WORDS:

friendship, loyalty, vulnerability, adult relationships, awe, support, connection, personal growth, social dynamics, emotional health, adult friendship, making friends as an adult, loneliness epidemic, 10X friendships, shine theory, meaningful relationships, friendship advice, Dish and Tell podcast, Rice Krispie treats recipe, salted brown butter treats, cava wine pairing

Some people sit down at the table and brighten it immediately. Tom Levandoski is one of those people — and for his 75th birthday, there was only one way to celebrate: a blind ice cream taste test on Dish + Tell.

Tom's love of ice cream runs deep, from hand-churning fresh peach ice cream with his dad to standing around the kitchen island, everyone sharing a spoon straight from the carton. So I gathered three contenders — Straus, Jeni's Splendid Ice Cream, and McConnell's (Nancy Silverton's pick) — and designed a judging rubric that would make a sommelier nervous.

Who won? You’ll have to tune in! 

We also get into 75 years of wisdom: why Woodstock taught him to never leave a concert early (sorry, Jimi), why friendship is the only thing that really matters, and Tom's personal motto: "Don't deny yourself anything. You're on vacation."

Full judging rubric and details are on the Dish + Tell Substack. 

Curious about the science behind friendships that transcend age? It's worth reading this Harvard Study.

What does it really mean to follow your happiness — and what does it cost?

In this episode, Kayla sits down with Carolyn Williams, founder of Zephyr cycling and movement studio in Bozeman, Montana, over lemon bars and dog treats – because wherever Caro goes, her pups are at her side!

Caro built something beautiful — and then had the courage to let it go. What she learned through that experience, and through other heartbreaks and heartquakes along the way, is the kind of wisdom that lingers long after the last bite: that following your happiness doesn't guarantee an easy, smooth, or grief-free path. But it does guarantee that the path is yours.

This is a conversation about authenticity, entrepreneurship, reinvention, and the quiet bravery it takes to listen to your own heart — even when it's hard.

Pull up a chair, we saved you a seat!

Show Notes:

• Score Kayla’s recipe for Lemon Bars and CharLu Ranch Bites by subscribing to the Dish + Tell Substack.  
• For more of Caro’s wisdom, subscribe to her Substack, The Aerie. She often features animals available for adoption, so give her a follow if you’d like to put her matchmaking skills to work!  
• Did the bug soup analogy resonate? Learn more about Martha Beck’s “Change Cycle.” 
• If you love the sight of dogs without leashes, pick-up a copy of Dog Songs by Mary Oliver. 
  To learn more about the animal organizations mentioned in this episode, visit Heart of the Valley, Spay Montana, and Stafford Animal Shelter - there are a number of ways you can get involved!