Episode 47: Why Restaurants Must Feature Local Wines, with Michael Warren Thomas

In this episode, you will learn about how restaurants featuring local wine makes such a huge impact from Michael Warren Thomas.

Michael Warren Thomas owns Savor Life and products and hosts four radio shows focusing on gardening, wine, food, and travel. He started his first show, Naturally Green, in April 1994. He’s added several shows since then including For the Love of Food, a show all about food, wine, and restaurants; The Grapevine, a fine wine show; and Discover the Finger Lakes, about Finger Lakes destinations, events, and regional treasures. Michael oversees all aspects of the shows from production to advertising sales and promotion. The shows air on Saturday and Sunday mornings on WYSL1040 AM and 92.1 FM in Rochester, New York.

Michael and I partnered on a project in 2013 called New York Wine Spotting with the goal of getting more New York state wines into local restaurants. New York Wine Spotting is a bi-local movement encouraging Rochester restaurants to support the Finger Lakes wine region by adding more local wines to their menus. Restaurants are challenged to make Finger Lakes and New York State wines at least one-third of their wine list. The local wine loving public is encouraged to participate by becoming wine spotters. Checking restaurants wine lists for Finger Lakes wines, recognizing the restaurants that have them and asking restaurants that don’t to carry them. The local wine industry is encouraged to participate in much the same way consumers are, along with reaching out to the restaurants to introduce their wines through education and tastings.

A transcript of this episode is available here: http://destinationontheleft.com/michael-warren-thomas/