TheWineProPodcast

Want to be a winemaker? Whether you do or don't, you'll enjoy listening to guest Cindy Cosco (owner/winemaker of Passaggio Wines) talk about how she went from a harvest temp to lab manager to winemaker at large custom crush facilities. She's an advocate for the wine industry to come together to solve the challenges the industry faces.

Today's guest, Brigid Harris, has over 25 years of executive experience in marketing and sales. She has run DTC programs for Markham Vineyards, Stag's Leap, Robert Mondavi, Prisoner, and more. Now, she and her husband own Bedarra Vineyards. We asked her about her experience developing tasting programs that attract and engage guests.

We questioned guest Jeff Nordeen, Co-Founder of NordicClick, about all things SEO, Paid Media (aka Paid Search) and Analytics. Ok, we couldn't cover EVERYTHING in just an hour, but we covered a lot. Our goal was to help you understand what these things are and why wineries should consider using them to improve their performance.

We’ve all experienced that manager, the one who is a jerk and seems to want to sabotage their staff. Kelly Burke, Founder of Breezemont Group, talks with us about developing effective management and positive workplaces at wineries. From her work as a professional coach, Kelly gives us the lowdown on what it means to be an effective manager, how to invest in your team members so they become more effective, and how to foster a work environment where everyone thrives, including your bottom line. If you’re a manager, what can you work on to be better?

In this episode, we spoke with Sam Filler, Executive Director of the New York Wine and Grape Foundation, about the wine and grape growing industry of New York. NYWGF promotes the image of New York grapes and wines to benefit farmers, producers and consumers responsibly. You don't have to be a New Yorker to gain some insight from this podcast!

President Jim Tresize and Executive Vice President Michael Kaiser of WineAmerica (aka The National Association of American Wineries) spoke with us about public policy and the wine industry. WineAmerica works to advance public policy favorable to American wineries and vineyards. We touched on topics such as tariffs, nutritional labeling, agriculture labor needs, and the 2025 Economic Impact Study of the American Wine Industry. So, just a couple of light topics! Ha, ha.

If you think of shipping wine as a DTC hassle, you're missing a critical customer touch-point and running the risk of losing customers. Guest Karin Strykowski, Director of Customer Success at WineShipping, talks to us about the importance of a shipping strategy to save money and create positive post-purchase experiences.

This week we chatted with guest Ed Feuchuk, General Manager of Farm Collective Napa Valley including Tank Garage Winery and James Cole. Our wine industry conferences conversation covered what they offer, why they're important and how they can be improved. Ed is a committee member for both the Unified Wine and Grape Symposium and the DTC Wine Symposium.

Should your winery pay for membership with your regional association? Our guest this week is Adam Acampora, Executive Director of Washington's Woodinville Wine Country Association. We discuss the benefits they offer member wineries from their efforts to attract visitors to Woodinville for wine tourism to business and educational benefits they offer their winery members.

Our guest this week, Hunter Rudd, Founder and CEO of SommSays, was a blast to talk to. His ideas on making wine tasting more accessible and extending it beyond the tasting room are exciting. With an MBA from Duke, this former Special Forces soldier is not only making wine tasting approachable for people of all wine knowledge levels, but bringing the data his wine game captures back for producers and wine sellers to capitalize on. How? You gotta listen!