This week on Grape Encounters, David Wilson starts things off with a series of interesting wine-related news stories including the expansion of vino service at the world’s largest java retailer and twenty-five names of red’s, white’s and varietals that might be fit for your bundle of joy. Then, Sunset Magazine wine editor Sara Schneider shares some pretty bold perspective on the good, the bad, an the ugly of wine competitions around the U.S. and the World. Not all competitions are created equal. Talking about some of the biggest and the best, Mary Ellen Cole, the wine competition supervisor at the Los Angeles International Wine Competition, joins David to share her insight and wisdom on these events. Get the skinny on how those Gold, Silver and Bronze honors are awarded to the bottles you see on store shelves and whether or not they should influence what you take home to uncork. Pus, Gadget Guru Matt Dubow is also back for another skill-testing feat filled filled with laughter and education!

This week on Grape Encounters, David Wilson kicks things off talking about a study on wine trends in America from 2010 to 2013. Then, in this week’s installment of Sipping with Sara, Sunset Magazine wine editor Sara Schneider talks with David about a dilemma faced by college students learning to be winemakers. California lawmakers are considering legislation that would make it alright for those under the age of 21 to taste… provided they spit it out. The topic of sustainability in winemaking continues this week with Michael Jordan, one of only fifteen people to hold both Master Sommelier and Certified Wine Educator credentials. Michael is the Director of Global Key Accounts for Jackson Family Fine Wines, a leader in the area of using sustainable practices at their forty wineries. From the growing of the grapes to the pressing and making of the wines, to the bottling and storing, and shipping off to market, he talks about the company’s commitment to being a Green winemaking enterprise. Do you ask restaurants to aerate your wine, or have it decanted? That’s a question that David takes up with gadget guru Matt Dubow of EpicStyle.com this week. You’ll learn how aeration devices work through the Venturi effect, named after an 18th Century Italian physicist.

Wine and Spirits Magazine has released it’s 25th annual list of top-selling wines in restaurants. When host David Wilson found out what people are ordering, he got the high-body shakes from sticker shock! This week on Grape Encounters, David has invited his co-conspirator in the enjoyment of vino for an extended conversation. Sara Schneider, wine editor at Sunset Magazine was shocked herself by the published list. They’ll also talk about some bottles that always make it on a restaurant’s list that just plain and simply… shouldn’t. Our gadget guru Matt Dubow from EpicStyle.com is always a good sport when it comes to testing his knowledge. So, we’re in trivial pursuit of NAMES this week. How well will Matt do when David asks, “Is it a Wine, a popular Baby name, a perfume, or a model of automobile?” Give a listen and have a little fun quizzing your friends later!

If you’ve ever vacationed in a European port city, you’ve likely admired some of the world’s finest luxury yachts. This week on Grape Encounters, Australian Chrissie McClatchie takes us into the lifestyle of the rich and famous at sea from her office in Nice, France. Chrissie works at Vins Sans Frontieres, a company that provisions those yachts with some of the world’s finest bottles of wine, not to mention amazing food. Sara Schneider, the wine editor at Sunset Magazine, engages in more discussion with host David Wilson about inexpensive wines you're likely to find at retail outlets near you. Often times, some of the best valued wines may just be from lots that haven't sold particularly well and are branded with quirky, obscure labels that you're not likely to find elsewhere. So, what should you look for on that label? Sara and David have some great ideas that may lead you to be surprised at just how good of a deal you have landed. And, are you a collector of corkscrews? It's become all the rage! You may just be surprised to find out that some corkscrews are valuable enough to land you in the Mediterranean-cruising lifestyle. Gadget Guru Matt Dubow talks with David Wilson about the different types and how you can start your own cool collection today if you haven't already with EpicStyle.com.

This week on Grape Encounters, we’re going to get very down to earth. Sustainability is becoming a big word in the wine industry these days. Host David Wilson welcomes Doris Cooper of Cooper Garrod Estate Vineyards in the Santa Cruz Mountains to talk about the huge strides they’ve taken in conservation. You’ll also learn about some of their attractions including horseback trail rides on the hillside west of Silicon Valley overlooking the San Francisco Bay. Allison Jordan, Vice President of Environmental Affairs from the Wine Institute will also chime in about the substantial programs that have been put into place by as many as two-thirds of California’s wineries. There are more than 200 criteria to become a Certified Sustainable Winery with unique factors that depend upon the region, the scale, geography and climate. Winemakers’ environmental stewardship is important to soil health and the ability to have natural resources to draw from in the future. Allison also talks about Down To Earth, a beautiful new coffee table book from the Wine Institute highlighting several green wineries, is coming out in April. The book illustrates sustainable grape growing and wine making in the Golden State. Also find out about Down To Earth month and a series of events that will take place throughout the month of April. Sara Schneider, wine editor of Sunset Magazine, is sipping mass-produced cheap wines with David this week. He likes to think of it as fast wine, vino’s equivalent of fast food. And, will gadget guru Matt Dubow be foiled by another challenge from host David Wilson? Tune in and find out!

There is no mistaking a wine lover’s appreciation for France. Few places in the world have the extraordinary combination of charm and heritage that France does when it comes to a life filled with Grape Encounters! On this week’s episode, Spring is in the air and your host David Wilson couldn’t wait to take you on his own brand of an April In Paris. One of America’s top food critics is Sophie Gayot. She’s been lauded by star-chef Gordon Ramsey and received many accolades. This week, she joins David as our go-to authority for an April in Paris; whether you travel to Europe or keep your feet on the ground at home in America. Plus, Sunset Magazine’s wine editor is back for another round of “Sipping with Sara.” Sara Schneider and David Wilson discuss wine critics and scoring. They may be tougher on those judges than the judges are on what’s in a bottle! French native Sophie Boban-Doering and her husband Paul Doering were inspired during a visit to Paris to open a cheese shop in California’s Central Coast wine country. The owners of Fromagerie Sophie try and expand your host’s palate. You’ll chuckle when you find out that he’s stubborn as a goat when it comes to mixing some cheeses with a little Brut. Then, gadget guru Matt Dubow talks about an epic collection of French-themed wine accessories sure to please even the most devout of Francophiles.

Last week, Grape Encounters escorted you into Napa Valley’s premiere annual party with an invitation from Jean-Charles Boisset at Raymond Vineyards. This week, host David Wilson gets things underway with Karen MacNeil. Karen is the author of the most complete wine book ever: The Wine Bible. As one of the foremost writers in the world on the topic of wine, you’ll find the conversation to be inspiring and enlightening. No trip to Napa would be complete without our friend Tom Silberkleit. He shares some big news about the California Directory of Fine Wineries while enjoying the festivities. The outstanding series of publications are going to offer some magnificent high-tech upgrades for wine lovers, so give a listen! Alder Yarrow is the founder of Vinography. A must-read for wine industry types and consumers alike, learn about this publication that makes a fantastic reading companion to your favorite wine radio program! Plus, you don’t want to miss getting drenched in a little wine when he and David Wilson break out in song! Kari Ruel is the driving force behind reporting on the people, places and things that make Napa wine country so amazing. As the publisher of Napa Valley Life, this single mom is livin’ the wine lifestyle rubbing elbows with the industry’s legends. Napa Gras 2014 may be in the history books, but since we’re in the neighborhood, it seemed to be the right time to tell you about a restaurant tucked between two Napa resorts because the food and the wine list and pairings scream for your attention. Your Grape Encounters team was blown away by the dining experience at Siena Restaurant. You’ll hear from Executive Chef Sean Montgomery and Assistant Manager and Wendell Cooper, the Assistant Manager of Food and Beverage at The Meritage Resort and Spa. Perhaps you have come to enjoy a wine that you only seem to find at one particular retail establishment. No matter how hard you look, you’re surprised that the label isn’t carried elsewhere. It’s not such a big surprise with the number of stores that negotiate private label offerings from winemakers specifically for their shelves. That’s the topic this week when we go Sipping with Sara Schneider from Sunset Magazine. There’s some great gadgets including things never before come across by host David Wilson when he talks with gadget guru Matt Dubow from EpicStyle.com. Be sure to visit the Grape Encounters Facebook page for pictures and links this week.

Called by some the 'Emperor of the Wine Industry,' the colorful and dynamic patriarch of the Boisset Family Estates, Jean-Charles Boisset, has invited you to Northern California wine country’s grandest shindig: Napa Gras! Grape Encounters host David Wilson has our VIP ticket to the event that drew the winemaking community together last weekend and you’ll hear from J.C. and several of his staff and guests over the next two episodes. We begin this week’s program with someone who was surprisingly not in attendance, but who has come to be very familiar with the Boisset, Sunset wine editor Sara Schneider. Once inside the party, you’ll meet a unique member of the Boisset team, Barbara Snyder. She is the official costume maker for all of JCB’s California enterprises. You’ll also meet the two ‘chocolate girls’ who were served up as performance art, as well as Drink Me Magazine’s editor-in-chief, Cornelius Geary. And, if you want to learn about the best way to safely, securely and legally transport your wine, whether by land or by air, you won’t want to miss this week’s conversation with gadget guru Matt Dubow.

Hollywood’s biggest night of the year is just around the corner and this week on Grape Encounters, host David Wilson welcomes internationally-renowned sommelier and wine journalist Christopher Sawyer to pair wines with Best Picture nominees. Sawyer is Sommelier at the Carneros Bistro and Wine Bar at the Lodge at Sonoma, but he’s also a significant participant in the Napa Valley Film Festival and he’s the creator of the Sommelier Stars program for the Sonoma Wine Country Weekend. Just what wine goes perfectly with Nebraska, American Hustle, or even the party-crazed Wolf of Wall Street? You won’t want to miss this episode of Grape Encounters. And, resident gadget guru Matt Dubow is a contestant yet again in a game of knowledge when David Wilson quizzes him on films with a wine theme.

Dr. John Anderson made a career of correcting smiles as an orthodontist. This week, host David Wilson shares another story about someone whose smile grew brighter when they turned a passion for making wine into a second career. From Anderson’s cellar at St. Hilaire Vineyard, you’ll find out everything from A to Z on how to go about making your own vino. Later, in this week’s Sipping with Sara segment, the Sunset wine editor strikes up a discussion with David about pairing the right wine with various artists and genres of music. Plus, more drought-inspired chatter with gadget guru Matt Dubow and how you can continue to get the biggest bang for your buck should wine prices start to rise with fewer bottles hitting store shelves.