Wine Women on Radio Misfits

Continuing our holiday entertaining theme, part two of our show with Erica Timmerman focuses on two appetizers and how well they pair with each of the sparkling wines Erica shares. (For a bit of background, listen to part one of the show where Erica shared an artichoke dip recipe here.)

First up is a delicious salmon “salad” appetizer. Tune in to hear Erica’s comments about how well salmon pairs with various sparkling wines – especially with brut rosés. One of her go-to ingredients for pairing with sparkling wines is salmon, and we couldn’t agree more. The recipe (below) she shared was handed down from the Russian aristocracy and is, in fact, at least one hundred years old. We also noted this dish goes great with still rosés and other high acid white wines.

By Anya von Bremzen

Gently toss the ingredients together.  Add enough dressing to evenly coat the salad being careful not to over mix.  Cover and refrigerate at least 2 hours.  Serve with lettuce cups (which we didn’t have during the show, so we went without).

Lastly, Erica wanted to compare the relatively young sparklers from the first show, Val de Mer Brut Non-Dose and Domaine Carneros 2017 Brut Rose, with the to-die for Domaine Carneros Le Reve 2009 Blanc de Blanc. Creamy, lemon-y, with loads of bread dough notes integrated fully into the flavor profile, Erica brought out her big guns dip to pair with this decade-plus vintage bottle: a delicate and elegant caviar dip, that hit just the right notes with the wine.

By Ina Garten

2 teaspoons freshly squeezed lemon juice

2 tablespoons freshly minced dill, plus sprigs for garnish

1 scallion, minced (white and green parts)

1 tablespoon milk, half-and-half, or cream

1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

Freshly ground black pepper

100 grams good salmon roe

Serve with chips, toasts, or crackers.

Erica used whipped cream cheese and creme fraiche instead of the sour cream.  She also usually leaves out the milk.  Chives can be substituted for the green onion.  And she added some grated lemon peel.

What a way to finish the year! We can’t thank Erica enough for her extensive food and wine pairing tips and bringing so many wonderful wines and appetizers to sample them with. Listen in to hear everyone’s reactions to which wines paired best with each dish and try them at home for your celebrations. Cheers!

We’re winding up the year and the season with two shows featuring guest Erica Timmerman. This is a bit of a departure for WWRH as Erica doesn’t work in the wine or hospitality industries, but you’d never know it from her deep knowledge of wine and food pairing, along with her myriad tips for entertaining and making guests feel great.

She says she buys a lot of wine because she loves to share it with friends. (We should all have such friends!) When asked what her go-to wines are for celebrating the season and entertaining with friends, she didn’t hesitate: sparkling wine. Thus, she brought not one, but three sparklers to compare, along with some delicious appetizers to pair with them.

Sitting in for M.I.A. cohosts, Misty Roudebush and Lisa Adams Walter, were avid wine drinkers, Kim Martin and Marlys White, both of whom enthusiastically gave everything a try and had plenty of smart questions for our guest.

When asked what her go-to food pairing is with sparkling wine, Erica didn’t hesitate. It was a fast “Dungeness Crab!” reply. Lucky for us in the San Francisco Bay Area that season is just getting underway… Tune in to hear all the crab dishes Erica prepares during the season.

Kicking off the festivities, Erica offered up the Domaine Carneros 2017 Brut Rose, a blend of Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. Flavor notes included fruity, citrus, grapefruit, strawberries, sweetness and a bit of dough. It was delicious all around.

We wondered how Erica learned food and wine pairing, to which she replied it was just innate because she’s Italian. Lol. Works for us! She did cite that she likes to go daring with her food and wine pairings. And often she will taste a wine and immediately begin thinking about what food dishes it would pair with best. (It helps that she’s a chef!)

We got the benefit of her expertise when she shared a Hot Artichoke Dip appetizer with everyone:

Ingredients

8 oz block cream cheese (reg)

1 Cup Hellmann’s Mayonnaise (reg)

1 Cup Shredded Parmesan Cheese

4 oz can Mild Diced Green Chiles

12 oz Jar (or 2 – 7.5 oz jars) of Marinated Artichoke Hearts

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  Drain artichoke hearts, leaving a tiny bit of marinade behind.  Mix all of the ingredients in a bowl.  Pour into baking dish and bake on middle rack for approximately 30 minutes, until bubbling and starting to turn golden brown. Remove and serve with tortilla chips, baguette, crackers, whatever you like…

When tasted with the second wine, Val de Mer Brut Non-Dose, it proved an excellent match. (You’ll have to listen in to hear Erica’s explanation of why the artichoke dip was better paired with the Val de Mer than the Brut Rose.) This Chardonnay-based crémant was bright, refreshing, with a completely different flavor profile, featuring green apples, a touch of caramel and far more dough or brioche notes than the previous wine.

Paired with the artichoke dip, and what Erica referred to as the “secret ingredient,” the Val de Mer showed why it’s a go-to sparkling wine for any season. (Oh, and that “secret ingredient”? Listen carefully to what Erica thought made the dip stand out above the usual, mayo-based hot artichoke dips!

As for the other wines and appetizers? Stay tuned for part 2 of our show with Erica next week, when we’ll taste and pair more sparkling wine and deeee-licious appetizers you can try at home.

The celebration continued into our 101st podcast, with guest Chef Lauren Kershner. In part 1 of our interview with her, we talked extensively about the origins of her new endeavor, Songbird Parlour, in Glen Ellen, California. In the second part, we turned to her holiday hospitality tips and business advice.

Among Chef Lauren’s recommendations during the show were dialing up your holiday parties by offering gourmet cheeses to guests and not just the usual cheese log fare. Co-host Lisa Adams Walter responded that great cheeses were one of her three vices (one of the others is yummy Sauvignon Blanc).

Turning to challenges facing any catering and hospitality business, we asked Chef Lauren about what issues she’d been facing recently. And surprisingly to the hosts, it was the lack of heirloom tomatoes. (Evidently the season had been too short for them to get to market.) Chef Lauren mentioned climate change is affecting the supply of ingredients available to her and her staff. That means she has to be more general in her menu descriptions, which gives her the freedom to substitute when ingredients either aren’t available or bring in special ingredients that wouldn’t otherwise have been available to her.

When she was first getting started, she didn’t have a fixed menu and was regularly reinventing the catering wheel (per se) for each client. She soon learned it was a better business practice for her to set her menus. With them in place, she then could offer clients variations or substitutes as availability and seasonality necessitated.

The cohosts wondered how Chef Lauren, as a young graduate (at 19 y.o.) of Le Cordon Bleu, learned about food and wining pairing. Tune in to hear Lauren’s answer. But suffice it to say that her time in wine country has afforded her the opportunities in the past decade to hone her skills in balancing flavor weight, fats, acids and more.

Under her Goodness Gracious Private Chef & Catering company, Chef Lauren offers a number of different catering packages. Most popular are the private chef experiences, often requested by those visiting the region in AirBnBs. She mentioned that she designed her various offerings based upon how she would like to experience wine country if she was visiting from elsewhere. That includes maintaining healthy eating habits and exercise. One of the other popular experiences she offers is a yoga and champagne brunch experience, where the yoga instructor arrives on site to take guests through a class before sitting down to a stellar brunch with a wine country view.

Next, the cohosts turned to the food and wine pairing, featuring Ferren Pinot Noir from the Sonoma Coast. Lisa noted their wines were sold entirely by allocation. The bottle she brought was stunning with a classic, cool-climate tasting profile, including notes of fresh cherry. Lauren explained her pairing strategy, as she said pinots are versatile to pair food with.

Her method? Switch up the smooth, fruit flavor profile of the wine with spice. She preferred pork over beef or lamb. She crafted bites made from chorizo sausage base with orange gastrique, topped with microgreens – a combination none of the hosts would have come up with (which is why Chef Lauren is the gourmet professional)! This paired beautifully with the Ferren Pinot Noir. But wait! There’s more…

In contrast to the spicy charcuterie and citrus bites, Chef Lauren also prepared bites of brie topped with brandied cherries and pinot noir-infused sea salt. While very much a flavor opposite to the spicy meat and citrus bites, the fat in the brie, along with the brandied cherry, made for a wholly different, but very dynamic and delicious pairing.

Munching away on these goodies, the hosts wanted to know more about Chef Lauren’s career and observations about success. Having not only survived but thrived and expanded her business during the pandemic, to what did she attribute her success? Unsurprisingly, she had strong opinions about what had and hadn’t contributed:

Chef Lauren feels it’s essential to feel passionate about your work and have a clear vision about what you wish to accomplish. The result of this, she reported, was that her company has 61 five-star reviews online and none lower than five-stars! Her passion comes through to her clients loud and clear.

She also attributes her success to a strategy of putting marketing front and center. She’s combined networking with the chamber of commerce, BNI, and other organizations, with word-of-mouth advertising and search engine optimization (SEO) techniques. These tactics combined have aided in providing visibility and credibility to her businesses.

And if she had to pass along wise words to her younger self or another newcomer to the business? She advises being passionate about your work and don’t jump in something you don’t know thoroughly. Lisa noted that Lauren has a natural curiosity and drive to keep learning, something she considers essential to success.

Has she made mistakes? Had difficulty putting together a great business team? What fun gift ideas can she share for the holidays? And what’s in Lauren’s business future? You’ll have to listen in to our conversation with her to learn all about our wide-ranging discussion.

Songbird Parlour is now available for private events, fundraisers, winemaker dinners and new release parties. As more and more venues open while the pandemic recedes, we can’t think of better timing to introduce the space to the event-going public! Cheers!

To join the celebration, or learn more about Songbird Parlour, play the show.

Songbird Parlour  |  Goodness Gracious Catering  |  @GoodGraciousEats  |  @SongbirdParlour

We were thrilled when Chef Lauren Kershner agreed to help us celebrate our 100th  podcast. Chef Lauren, founder and culinary director of Goodness Gracious Private Chef & Catering in Sonoma, had been searching for the right facilities for some time to serve her team’s expanded catering needs. Additionally, she’d been wanting to offer her own venue for private events and parties.

These dual goals neatly intertwined and became available in one space within Glen Ellen’s Jack London Village. Built in 1839 (with the sawmill General Vallejo constructed at the confluence of the Asbury and Sonoma Creeks to process locally harvested redwoods), the property was converted into a gristmill nearly two decades later, then a winery and distillery. It was replaced in the 1940’s with the current building. Here, Lauren could envision a home for her growing team of chefs and catering managers, as well as building out the space as a private events venue. Songbird Parlour was born!

In their new space (that just opened) guests can experience a glimpse into a bygone era, when the social elite would gather in salons to tell stories and discuss art and culture. Designed to evoke your senses with modern and global food, art and music, and inspiration from around the world, this modern Victorian event parlour and dining experience has been reimagined for the twenty-first century.

But we’re getting ahead of our story! What were some of the hosts’ favorite shows in the past 100 podcasts? Hint: you’ll have to tune in to hear what made the biggest impressions on them. What were common threads they heard from multiple guests over the last three years? Endless curiosity was a recurrent theme, according to co-host Misty Roudebush Cain. And there were several other memories recounted about past guests…

To celebrate the occasion, the hosts popped the cork on a bottle of Perrier Jouet Blason Rosé Champagne, a sparkling wine that came highly recommended by guest and sommelier Simone F.M. Spinner. Chef Lauren, who was trained in classical French technique at Le Cordon Bleu Culinary Academy in Portland, Oregon, prepared two delightful bites that paired perfectly with the bubbly wine. One featured a cheese slice topped with nuts, fruit and a sweet topping. The other was a slightly sweet but oh-so-light dessert olive oil cake.

While tasting away, enjoying the plush, deep velvet chairs and divan in a corner of the parlour, Lauren filled us in on her background. Originally from Mendocino, she became hooked on travel while studying at the culinary academy. She incorporates dishes she’s enjoyed during her travels into her repertoire and is the go-to chef for true, internationally-inspired Wine Country cuisine. She specializes in Mediterranean and French fare and is currently fascinated with Middle Eastern cuisine. Her Persian mezah, kookoo, and dill salmon dinner are a must-try!

Songbird Parlour began as a dream during the pandemic when the restaurant and food industry had been brought to their knees. Yet, Lauren’s catering business acumen helped the company thrive during the downturn in traditional dining.

As we wound up part one of our show with her, she divulged some of her secrets: She felt the need was there for alternative venues. Winemakers and wineries without tasting rooms could rent her space for winemaker dinners and release parties. Visitors to wine country who may be celebrating milestone events, such as birthdays and anniversaries, can hold intimate dinner parties where they can indulge and enjoy life to its fullest. Let food and wine be the center of memories and let conversation guide the night. And tune in to part two next week!

To join the celebration, or learn more about Songbird Parlour, playback the 100th show (with a celebratory glass in hand).

Songbird Parlour  |  Goodness Gracious Catering  |  @GoodGraciousEats  |  @SongbirdParlour

Kari Auringer, winemaker at Cornerstone Cellars, continued to regale us with her wonderful wines and tales in the second part of our conversation with her at their newly opened tasting room in Yountville, California. In the first show, Kari tasted us through Cornerstone’s sauvignon blanc, rosé and pinot noir, three wines from their Taste of Cornerstone experience. In this second half, she tasted us through their merlot, two cabernet sauvignons and a cabernet franc, all of which kept delivering the most delightful flavors and aromas.

It’s all “location, location, location” when it comes to sourcing grapes for great wines. In this episode, Kari started us off with the Merlot, Oakville Station. As she explained, Cornerstone has about an acre of Merlot that was once part of the famed To Kalon vineyard. Here, she is able to visit the vineyard throughout the growing season to check on progress of the three wines she makes from blocks all nestled together. Featuring melt-in-your-mouth flavor integration, this was yet another wine that could go with most dishes on any Thanksgiving table.

During the tasting, we once again experimented with Cornerstone’s current “nut and wine” pairing, noting a bit of cheddar flavor in the salted almonds went well with the Merlot. In fact, different nuts went well with the wines in the Cornerstone portfolio, as we began trying them during the first show. (Cornerstone is waiting upon final permit approval to add their menu of wine and food pairings to the tasting experiences offered to the public. Stay tuned!)

Next, Kari poured the Cabernet Sauvignon, Oakville Station, a signature grape for Cornerstone and this plot of land on the Napa Valley floor. While the hosts savored the marriage of flavors in the wine, Kari explained her process for visiting vineyards multiple times throughout the growing season to gauge the progress of each location. With her extended visits, she is better able to make adjustments in vineyard management and determine optimal ripeness for harvest.

At this point in the proceedings, we jumped to their deluxe tasting experience, sampling Kari’s Cabernet Franc, also grown “across the aisle” from the Merlot at Oakville Station. Here was a cab franc grown and harvested in optimal conditions–no pyrazine aromas or flavors poking out like getting elbowed in the ribs–just pure fruit flavors! And while this wine would certainly be enjoyable at Thanksgiving, Marcia thought it might make a great pairing with Chicken Molé, with its layered chocolate notes.

While enjoying the array of Cornerstone’s reds, the hosts discussed the challenges Kari faces: One was the general desire of Napa Valley growers to replant to Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa’s most famous grape. It commands the highest dollar per acre. But Kari expressed hope for maintaining diversity in the Napa vineyards she sources from. We also hit upon the unique label design that makes Cornerstone Cellars’ bottles so easy to spot among hundreds of wines on a shelf. Listen in to hear the story of how it developed.

With Kari’s unique background in marketing before she went into the wine business, we thought she was uniquely qualified to tell us about the goals and challenges she faces not only as a winemaker but also for the Cornerstone brand. Few have this unique background to bring perspective to both halves of the equation. This discussion and Q&A section of the conversation led to some keen insights on her success:

Kari stressed the importance of building strong relationships, as well as trusting them enough to feel comfortable asking for what you need. In fact, she cited her continued outreach, asking for specific introductions and connections as the primary reason she was able to work with Celia Welch. When Celia’s name came through on Kari’s caller ID, she thought it was a mistake. But it wasn’t! And this led to more connections (not to mention a fabulous work opportunity).

When asked about advice to her younger self or to other young women coming up in the industry, Kari kept coming back to not taking a “no” reply personally. Her point: a “no” answer doesn’t leave you in any different position than you are in the present. There’s nothing to lose in asking.

Last poured in our glasses as we wound up the show was the Cabernet Sauvignon, Howell Mountain,  Cornerstone’s flagship wine going back thirty years. Heaven in a bottle! If we could’ve just turned off the mics to savor the flavors, we would have! This was the wine that launched Cornerstone Cellars in 1991. It brought the experience full circle since we were tasting all the wines in such an historic location. (Yountville’s original, wooden train depot, now serving as their tasting room, was built by Southern Pacific in 1888, with the original ticket window overlooking Cornerstone’s outdoor seating area just behind our table.)

As we wrapped up the show, we learned Kari and her team will be hitting road again this winter to promote their wines, primarily in the Southern states, as the pandemic winds down. Staff at the Yountville tasting room follow all COVID-19 health safety protocols. While reservations are recommended, they will accommodate walk-ins as best as possible. And as these wines are sold almost exclusively direct-to-consumer, sampling in the tasting room is the best way to experience Cornerstone’s wines. Santé!

Cornerstone Cellars  |  on Facebook  |  Twitter  |  Instagram |  YouTube

Bright, airy, and elegant, with Carrera marble tables and wine bar, and a black and white checkered floor, the new tasting room at Cornerstone Cellars in Yountville, California, was a welcoming respite from a busy workday. Kari Auringer, winemaker for well over a decade at Cornerstone, greeted the hosts with beautifully appointed tasting flights, featured as their signature wine tasting experience.

We settled into the luxurious, gray velvet armchairs to hear Kari’s latest news. (The tasting room only recently held its soft opening, with food service still to come with final permitting.) “You’re going to get to taste some of our best,” Kari intoned. You would never know from the room’s modern appointments we were sitting in an historic former train station, complete with beadboard walls and the old, sashed ticket window behind us, overlooking their outdoor seating area.

We couldn’t wait—not with five wine glasses, each with a generous pour ready for us to enjoy, sitting in front of us. Hence, we jumped right into Cornerstone’s offerings for guests. First up was the Sauvignon Blanc from Farina Vineyard on Sonoma Mountain. The color of straw with aromas ranging from tropical to citrus and a bit of apple, it was the perfect wine to kick off our conversation. (We last spoke with Kari a few months ago about another wine venture of hers. Playback that show here.)

Tune in to learn how Kari sources from the best vineyards in Napa Valley, Sonoma and beyond, seeking out the best grapes grown for of each varietal wine she makes. We were a bit surprised (because the hosts are NOT winemakers) to learn it’s gotten a lot harder to find fabulous Sauvignon Blanc in Napa Valley.

Next, our conversation took a sideways turn. (No, not the movie, although it did come up later when we tasted Kari’s amazing Merlot, in part two of our show). The sideways turned out to be our impromptu wine and nut pairing. You’ll have to listen in for the longer version of the story, but the short version is that Cornerstone is currently pairing its wines during tasting experiences with a variety of nuts. You’ll be surprised to learn how well each of the wines pairs with specific tree nuts, given their unique flavor profiles.

The Corallina Rosé of Pinot Noir added yet another beautiful color to the palette on the table—pale salmon pink. Its classic, rose petal aromas gave way to the floral and fruity notes of a Provence-styled rosé. Layers upon layers of different flavor notes revealed themselves while we debated which Thanksgiving dishes it may pair best with. (Answer: There are no wrong answers if you like the pairing. But if you want to know how Kari pairs it, tune up the volume.…)

Did we mention Kari’s cooking show? Or, as she puts it, she talks about the wine while her husband, Jeff, does the cooking. Right now, you can catch Kari’s latest episode, Roasted Winter Vegetables for the Holidays, on Cornerstone’s YouTube channel. (Prepared for Cornerstone’s club members, the winery makes episodes available to the public soon after their club debut.)

Pinot Noir is the perennial favorite wine to be paired with Thanksgiving dishes. But as you’ll hear on the show, we all had much to say about their classic, Pinot Noir, sourced from Fiddlestix Vineyard in the Sta. Rita Hills AVA. The color. The aromas. The mouthfeel. And the combination of all of them put together. Kari’s leading comment, “It’s a fickle grape to grow and a fickle wine to make.” (This is why it takes an expert to handle this, um, “fickle” variety for best results.) We’d never know from tasting this wine that it might be a bit challenging at times for Kari…

She mentioned that there are a number of women winemakers and female up ‘n’ comers who work at the custom crush facility Cornerstone uses in Napa Valley. She noted how eager to learn the younger ones are about techniques, their variations (and when to apply them), and methodologies. She truly enjoys the camaraderie of being invited to taste another’s efforts, sharing reactions and suggestions, as it all helps everyone improve their work.

While you’ll have to wait another week for part two of our show with Kari to come out, we don’t want you to wait a minute to visit Cornerstone’s newest tasting room. With plentiful parking only steps away from the “station” door, not to mention a gracious hospitality team (following all COVID-19 safety protocols), they’re more than delighted to give guests the full Taste of Cornerstone experience. Bring friends! (And tune in next week for part two!)

Cornerstone Cellars  |  on Facebook  |  Twitter  |  Instagram |  YouTube

The hosts’ Thanksgiving wines show got off to a rousing start with a discussion about climate action. Twenty-two CEOs and senior leaders of the International Wineries for Climate Action just called on all wine trade CEOs to join their rigorous, science-based efforts to de-carbonise the wine sector—and begin working towards net zero emissions by 2050. In fact, they’re hoping to halve carbon emissions by 2030. It’s a tall order.

In parallel news, the hosts discussed Jason Haas’ (Tablas Creek Winery) rebuttal of W. Blake Gray’s article – Regenerative Disorder: Behind Wine’s Latest Buzzword. Haas argues that regenerative organic certified agriculture is the farming you’ve been looking for.

Regenerative farming takes the soil health and biodiversity core of biodynamics (without its mystical origins) then adds the prohibition of chemical inputs and government oversight from organics and the focus on resource use, animal welfare, and farmworker equity from the best sustainability certifications. All in all, we’re seeing more news entreating members of the wine community to join in with their efforts to help abate the climate crisis.

The hosts then turned their attention towards Thanksgiving plans and recommendations. They noted that recent Thanksgiving wine pairings have run the gamut, from wine pairings with November horoscope zodiac signs, to pairing with Netflix movies.

What wines pair with Thanksgiving dinner? Of course there were plenty of traditional pairings offered during the show, such as Pinot Noir and Beaujolais Nouveau. (Under French law, Beaujolais Nouveau is released on the third Thursday of every November at 12:01 am, just weeks after September’s “vendage”, when grapes are harvested. And its release always coincides with American Thanksgiving celebrations.)

Here’s a quick summary of some of the hosts’ tips for a relaxing and joyful Thanksgiving celebration:

About the Thanksgiving wine:

As the show wound up, Misty Rodebush Cain offered a couple of great pairings: First, she recommends Mimolette French cheese as an excellent pairing with big red wines. As a hard cheese, its strong flavors pair well as an appetizer for those in need of nibbles ahead of the big meal. Last, Misty offered up a family recipe for dessert that she swears thrills her family year after year:

2 eggs, beaten

¾ c. sugar

2 T. flour

1 tsp vanilla

2/3 cup white corn syrup

1 Cup whole pecans

2 T. butter

Mix in order given. Pour into unbaked 9” crust (Betty Crocker Pie Crust how to).  Bake at 350 degrees for about 40 minutes until firm.

Helpful Tip: Wrap foil on the edge of the crust so that it does not get overbaked.

Tune in to hear more and Happy Thanksgiving!

Valerie Fisch, a woman wearing many hats at the Pillsbury Wine Company in Cottonwood, Arizona, is very expressive. (See the pics!) The hosts loved hearing her stories, laced with fascinating observations. Since the Pillsbury tasting room is in Old Town Cottonwood, we were curious if they’d participated in the recent and nearby Sedona Wine Festival? (See our earlier show on the festival with Paula Woolsey.)

Valerie’s story about it was telling of the current state of the wine hospitality industry: Staffing was challenging. The festival was always so heavily attended they could count on overflow traffic to visit their tasting room to the north. Sure enough, even though they couldn’t participate in the festival directly this year, they had one of their best weekend’s ever, hosting a large number of guests in their own tasting room.

We wanted to know if Valerie grew up in a “wine family” or had been drawn to the industry for many years before landing a wine job. And as it turns out Valerie gave no thought to a wine career growing up in Southern California. But a family camping trip in 2014 changed everything. She and her family fell in love with the Verde Valley nearby. And wine accompanied the new fascination.

They moved to Cottonwood the same year, seeking out jobs in the wine industry. Both she and her husband were pointed in the direction of Pillsbury Wine Company.

No “dough boy,” Sam Pillsbury grew up far away in Auckland, New Zealand, and became a filmmaker and director, running his own documentary production company. Hollywood eventually called, prompting a move to the states. Then a taste from an amazing bottle of a 1997 Arizona Chardonnay blew him away. He had to investigate wine growing (and then wine making) in Arizona.

Following his documentary roots, a vast research project ensued: Enchanted with the Verde Valley and also the Sulphur Springs Valley near Wilcox in southeast Arizona (where he now grows the estate vegan wines for his brand at a 4,350 foot elevation), Sam Pillsbury’s first vintage was 2006. He’s been building his wine business ever since.

Valerie’s husband landed a wine job with Pillsbury before she joined the company. In 2014, Pillsbury’s wine club had 150 members. Valerie was brought on to organize and manage the club. Today it boasts more than 500 members, much of its growth no doubt attributable to Valerie’s infectious, bubbly personality and inquisitive nature. She’s since added on tasting room management duties to her work.

Valerie told the hosts she just fell in love with the people in the wine industry. She loves learning about wine and is endlessly curious and excited about it. (You’ll hear it in her voice telling stories on the show!)

Today, the Pillsbury wines have racked up impressive accolades, garnering 16 honors in the 2021 San Francisco Chronicle Wine Competition, including Best of Class for their 2019 Malvasia; Double Golds for both their 2018 Grenache and Mourvedre; and three Golds for their 2018 Petite Sirah, Syrah, and 2019 Chardonnay.

Inquiring about their signature wine, Valerie immediately cited their very popular Wild Child Red, a co-fermentation of Syrah, Grenache, Mourvedre, Petite Sirah, and Sangiovese, made in a Côte-Rôtie style. But there are many other Rhône style wines in the Pillsbury portfolio, made from Pinot Gris and Symphony (in white blends) to Shiraz. And, oh, yes, Arizona Chardonnay…

Returning to the subject of what Valerie sees in her crystal ball for the future and what she hopes to accomplish, she simply stated her focus was her customers visiting the Cottonwood tasting room. She wants them to feel like they’re getting an escape from everyday life, and the wine bar is their second home with cozy sofas and nooks. There, they can visit with their wine “family,” sharing their own stories and making memories.

The hosts’ list of wineries to visit in Arizona just keeps getting longer and more fascinating. It’s wonderful to see this up and coming region flourish and thrive. And as for Valerie, she’s clearly having the time of her life learning new things about wine and the industry every day. With each new guest visit, she gets to make new lifelong friends when they join the Pillsbury wine club. We can’t wait to hear what’s next for Ms. Fisch!

To learn more or visit the tasting room or vineyard, go to Pillsbury Wine Company.

Like many, Michelle Rulmont arrived at a career in the wine industry unexpectedly. Having dabbled in teaching, and raising twins with husband Marc, Michelle found herself working as the sponsorship coordinator of the Red & White Ball in Sonoma one year, contacting wineries for donations. (The ball is a fundraiser for Sonoma Valley schools.)

She had never considered working in the wine industry at this point but was enchanted to find most wineries she contacted were very enthusiastic to support her and the ball with donations of wine. Their open-hearted nature and easy-going manner struck Michelle as refreshing.

When the Rulmonts got a Mercedes Sprinter several years ago, one of their twins suggested to Michelle that she get into the winery tour business using the van (like a friend of theirs was doing). And the more Michelle thought about it and discussed it with Marc and their friend, the more the idea appealed to them. La Belle Vie Tours was born!

Today, Marc and Michelle take turns driving up to seven tour guests at a time through the Sonoma and Napa Valleys. As they say, La Belle Vie Tours started over a glass of wine, as they love exploring local wineries while enjoying picnics with a glass of Zinfandel in their hometown.

The company name, of course, came from a sense that they feel so fortunate to live ‘the good life’ in the Sonoma Valley. They love to share the local secrets and what they love about wine country with their guests.

Michelle smartly realized they needed a unique hook to stand out from the many wine tour businesses in the North Bay. And she found it almost accidentally when queried about vegan wine opportunities. She realized no one was offering vegan wine tours and that many visitors would often turn to the one vegan in a group of visitors to say, “You pick where we go; we can go anywhere to be happy.” Thus, Michelle began querying winemakers about whether or not their offerings were vegan. And she compiled a list of vegan wine providers for her tours. (To learn more about vegan wines and food, visit barnivore.com.)

Realizing that many visitors fatigue of the “rinse and repeat” process of visiting one winery after another, Michelle also introduced another unique offering that has become a huge hit with her clients: a visit to Charlie’s Acres Farm Animal Sanctuary.

With well over one hundred forty rescued farm animals (that would have otherwise landed on someone’s dinner plate), the nonprofit sanctuary dedicated to the care of rescued farm animals offers Michelle’s tour guests an opportunity to get up close and personal with pigs, goats, cows and numerous other four-legged residents.

Now Michelle’s Vegan Wine Tours, with a stop to visit Charlie’s Acres, has been featured in United Airlines’ Hemispheres in-flight magazine. This has provided La Belle Vie Tours greater exposure and brought guests from as far away as Germany.

Besides this unique niche, the hosts asked Michelle about the keys to her success. She cited a number of things that all add up to La Belle Vie’s continued growth and success. First, Michelle says she loves the match-making aspect of her job, i.e. listening to what her clients are looking for in their custom tour. Many visitors are not vegan, but she says that doesn’t deter their interest in visiting Charlie’s nor does it make a difference to non-Vegans that the wine is vegan as long as it tastes fantastic and the experience is memorable.

Second, she’s inspired by her own clients and loves to see how happy they are while on the tour and admiring the beautiful surroundings. She says it drives her to seek out even more wonderful experiences for guests. Lastly, she said her partnerships with about a dozen wineries help her do a better job, and membership with organizations like Wine Country 2.0 provide resources to expand her offerings with other members. (Listen to our show with Alison Kilmer from earlier this year about Wine Country 2.0 here.)

As to what’s next, Michelle and Marc are planning to add new tours and locations down the road and even take their services abroad! Vive la tour—La Belle Vie Tours!

Lauren Maldonado is such a breath of fresh air! Our latest guest is co-owner (with her husband) of The Art of Wine in Sedona, Arizona.

Our conversation with Lauren was so refreshing due to (at least) two proclivities that have served her well in life: First, she has boundless curiosity. It led her to Sedona and to the wine industry. (You’ll have to hear her story in the podcast to learn how infectious her curiosity really is.) Second, Lauren has dogged determination. While she never said (out loud) that she never gives up, you can tell it’s true from listening to her stories.

Lauren’s journey into wine started in 2012 when she settled in Sedona after touring the western states. She hadn’t planned a career in wine, but at each turn learning about wine, she was drawn to understanding more about it and working in the industry. In 2013, Lauren joined the team at Page Springs Cellars, outside of Sedona, serving in the tasting room, on events, and as a tour guide. She joined the vineyard crew and helped farm their vineyards for four years as the only female on the crew.

More recently, along with the other women of Page Springs Cellars, Lauren co-founded of Vin de Filles, which takes a specific wine from its birth in the vineyard through to its harvest, winemaking, and bottling, entirely by women. Not only did they oversee nurturing of the vines through winemaking production and marketing, but also the wine’s net profits will be donated to The Verde Valley Sanctuary, a local nonprofit organization that provides shelter and support for women who have survived domestic violence. (Listen to our podcast on Vin de Filles from earlier this summer.)

If that wasn’t enough, Lauren made a big leap this year from her work at Page Springs Cellars to co-ownership of Uptown Sedona’s premier wine bar and tasting room, The Art of Wine. Located within the Hyatt Pinon Pointe Shops, they offer over 40 Arizona, U.S. and international wines by-the-glass or for sampling. They also offer craft beers, local meads, seltzers, and non-alcoholic beverages. The shop portion of the wine bar includes a 300+ bottle selection as well as a growing selection of wine accessories and wine art.

As Lauren’s experience includes a background in graphic design, she gets to flex her artistic and creative muscles throughout The Art of Wine by curating their art selection and overseeing upgrades to the wine bar’s décor and promotional materials.

With a number of light fare options, wine flights, by-the-glass, and happy hour offerings with discounts, and the ability to ship wine, visitors have ample choices to enjoy great experiences at The Art of Wine. (They can even join the recently launched wine club, which offers more customization than we may have seen anywhere! It’s a great way to enjoy a bit of Sedona at home.)

We wondered what hadn’t Lauren tackled? What did she find challenging? And what would she advise others entering the industry? Her answers didn’t disappoint. (Listen in to get the fully story!) She told us she was particularly looking forward to expanding the wine bar and tasting room’s selection of art and accessories now that they had just leased the adjacent retail space. The expansion added 500 square feet to the facility.

The addition sounded like a necessity given what we were hearing about the visitor traffic to Sedona, which continues to grow at a good pace. Lauren cited the continuing traffic challenges Sedona faces. As more and more visitors arrive to commune with the red rocks, dark skies, award-winning restaurants, and nearby wineries, the more guests she meets from behind the wine bar. Thankfully, she says, they have very knowledgeable staff who are well-versed in the many wines they carry to assist their growing clientele.

As for the challenges she faces, Lauren cited the number one problem was insufficient hours in the day. (We couldn’t agree more!) While she said she finds all aspects of owning and growing her wine business extremely rewarding, it remains challenging to juggle those demands with raising a family and keeping home life running smoothly. During the show, Lauren and co-host Misty Roudebush Cain traded some stories on juggling motherhood duties with their respective wine industry challenges.

You will find us at the bar—The Art of Wine—bar, when next the Wine Women Radio Hour hosts can make their way to wonderful Sedona!