A Cork in the Road

This episode features a conversation with Desiree Harrison-Brown, a wine educator, content creator, and entrepreneur based in Maryland dedicated to making wine approachable, engaging, and fun. She has built a dynamic career that blends education, storytelling, and community-building—proving that there’s no single path to becoming a wine professional. As the founder of WINO NOIRE, Desiree has created a platform that not only highlights Black and women-owned wine brands but also makes wine more inclusive and accessible to diverse audiences. She also runs The Wino Shop, an online boutique for modern wine lovers. Beyond entrepreneurship, she’s an instructor at Napa Valley Wine Academy, helping to bridge the gap between wine education and real-world enjoyment. Her expertise recently earned her recognition on Wine Enthusiast’s Future40 list, and she has collaborated with renowned brands such as Wines of Germany, Brown Estate, McBride Sisters, and Piper-Heidsieck. We talk about how she believes that wine is an experience—one that should be explored and enjoyed on your own terms, with a focus on discovery, community, and the simple joy of sharing a great glass. We also discuss her WSET Diploma journey and highlight what she has learned from visiting wine regions around the world. You can follow @winonoire and @thewinoshop on Instagram.Recorded February 16, 2025

This episode features a conversation with Kimber Warren, a wine educator and brand consultant based in Atlanta, GA who is also the founder of a forthcoming glassware company. She is originally from Savannah, GA but spent the past 15 years in New York City before returning to her family in Georgia and calling Atlanta home. She is a global marketer and works with creators, brands, and products to spearhead campaigns and programming that elevate both engagement and impact. Kimber is bringing her background from working in the tech industry and her experience in roles with entertainment giants such as Meta, Spotify, and Viacom now to the wine space. We talk about some of the skills she gained in her previous roles and highlight some of the projects that she was a part of and how she measured their impact and success. It was during her career path that she says she also discovered a passion for wine as it was part of business meetings, travels, and client dinners, so she has since earned several wine cetifications with support from The Roots Fund. To further connect with the Atlanta wine community, she is also a member of the Atlanta chapter of The Hue Society where she is continuing her studies. Keep an ear out for her advice for other fellow entrepreneurs at the end of the episode, You can follow @mrs_sip_somewine on social media platforms, and you can also connect with her on LinkedIn for a behind-the-scenes journey of building her business.Recorded February 14, 2025

This episode features a live audience conversation at The Oenophile Institute in Smyrna, GA with Laurent Noblet, the Director of Sales for USA & Canada for Henri Bourgeois Estates. He is based in Atlanta, GA but manages sales for three French wineries and one estate in New Zealand. In this current role, he researches and assigns distributors in new markets across the U.S. and is responsible for yearly sales plans, goals, and developing new business. Laurent, however, has been working with wine for 30 years and has held various positions in restaurants, retail, as well as wholsale – in the room we laughed that he basically has had all of our jobs at some point in his career. We talk about how the skills he acquired as a sommelier and working in other customer-facing roles have contributed to his skills in his current role, and he shares his insights about the U.S. market along with advice to all of us looking for ways to make an impact on the wine industry going forward. It was also so much fun to have our friends in the room for this tasting and cheese sampling session - we were joined by Jade Palmer from the forthcoming Madeira Park, Ryan Mullins from Winebow Distributors, and Chelsea Young from The Oenophile Institute. You can visit www.famillebourgeois-sancerre.com/en to learn more about these wines and follow @domainehenribourgeois on social media. Recorded LIVE at The Oenophile Institute on December 16, 2024

This episode features a conversation with George Staikos, the Founder and Educator of The Educated Grape, as well as a guest appearance from the 2024 Sommlympics "Star du Spectacle" award recipient, Marvella Castaneda. George serves as the Head of Education for the US Bureau for the Comité Champagne (CIVC), and they recently sponsored one of the Grand Prizes for the 2024 Sommlympics competition in Atlanta, GA, so we talk about what the trip to Champagne will entail for Sommlympian. George is a 35-year veteran of the wine and hospitality industry known for sharing his passion for wine appreciation. His company specializes in interactive education programs, events, and trips as well as sales consulting for 9 small, family-owned luxury wineries. Prior to his current roles, George held national sales positions for Napa and Sonoma wineries including Jordan Vineyard & Winery, Quintessa, and Ramey Wine Cellars. His national hospitality experience also encompasses food and beverage positions, such as sommelier and food and beverage director, from California, Miami, Washington DC, and New York, operating three AAA Five Diamond rated hotels. He serves as the national officer of the Chaine des Rotisseurs, a worldwide food and wine organization, serving as Grand Echanson (Wine Director) where he organizes the annual regional and national Jeunes Sommelier Competition for qualifying sommeliers under 30 years of age. Staikos is a graduate of Florida International University in Miami with a bachelor’s degree in hospitality management. He is married with three children and three granddaughters and resides in Erwinna, PA, an hour outside of Philadelphia. You can follow @educatedgrape on social media and visit www.theeducatedgrape.com to learn more about George's company, and you can visit www.champagne.fr/en to learn more about the CIVC. Recorded January 8, 2025

This episode features a live audience conversation at The Vine Club in Atlanta with Thibaut Marquis, the North America Export Manager for Maison Louis Jadot. Thibaut is originally from the Loire Valley in France, but he has lived in several countries, including South Africa, Argentina, and Canada, before living in the United States for the past 15 years. He has been working in various Sales Management positions for US wine importers (Terlato Wines' Burgundy division, Wilson Daniels), and international wineries (Familia Torres, Les Dauphins, Jaillance, David Family). He joined Maison Louis Jadot in 2022 and is now based out of New York City. Passionate about the wine industry as a whole, Thibaut has also completed his WSET Diploma, so he brings a wealth of experience but also knowledge to this role that essentially serves as a bridge between the winery in Burgundy and their importers. We enjoyed some incredibly special wines from their vast portfolio during this recording session, and it was a study and showcase of how these wines are so connected to the vineyards. We opened the mic at the end of the show to our guests from the Atlanta wine community, and we explored so many topics that impact all levels of the wine industry. You can follow @lovejadot and @louisjadot Instagram. Recorded LIVE at Vine Club on November 19, 2024 sponsored by Kobrand and Tower Beer, Wine & Spirits.

This episode features an in-person conversation with Xavier Amirault, Owner and Winemaker of Domaine Amirault located in Saint-Nicolas-de-Bourgueil in the Loire Valley. Domaine Amirault's Clos des Quarterons is a 92-acre vineyard and it has been in the Amirault family for six generations. The estate is 100% certified organic by Ecocert and certified biodynamic by Demeter. Xavier was visiting Atlanta for the first time as his wines are new to the state of Georgia thanks to Vineyard Brands and Republic National Distributing Company and Vineyard Brands. The night before we recorded together, we enjoyed a BYOB meal at Canton House on Buford Highway in Atlanta, GA pairing dishes with his wines, and it was so fun to hear his reaction to meeting the Atlanta wine community for the first time. He even had a chance to visit a winery just north of Atlanta during his visit, which he reflects on with such a beautiful realization at the end of the episode. We talk about his methods of farming 58 small plots based on soil diversity, and he also describes how he chooses an aging vessel, whether that is concrete vats, barrels, or amphora, based on soil type and age of the vines. You can visit www.domaineamirault.com/en/domaines/le-clos-des-quarterons and follow @closdesquarterons on Instagram. Recorded LIVE at The Vine Club on November 15, 2024, with generous support from Vineyard Brands and Republic National Distributing Company.

This episode features a live audience conversation at The Vine Club in Atlanta with Luke Marquis, the Global Sales Manager for Mollydooker Wines. Luke is the son of Sarah Marquis, the Owner and Chief Winemaker, and he is responsible for the US market as part of the winery’s sales team. He is also the real-life "Blue Eyed Boy", which is one of Mollydooker’s successful Shiraz labels. His work involves driving sales and building relationships with their customers all around the world. Established in 2005, the name Mollydooker is Aussie slang for a left-handed person, which Luke says is a very fitting choice given their unique practices, their quirky labels, and essentially a left-handed approach to the wine-making journey. You’ll hear how they started this brand with only $17 in their pockets, but now, a portion of their proceeds are directed towards supporting communities both locally and internationally through their ‘Sip It Forward’ program. As a female-owned business, Mollydooker’s passion for empowering women has also led them to their charity called Mercy Multiplied USA, which mentors and creates a safe place for victims of abuse. You can learn more about the Mollydooker porfolio by visiting www.mollydookerwines.com and you can follow their adventures @mollydookerwines on Instagram. Recorded LIVE at Vine Club on October 28, 2024 with generous support from Mollydooker and Winebow.

This episode features Sarah Hughes Bray, a wine educator, writer, and brand consultant who is the 6th generation of an Atlanta-based family and was recently named one of Wine Enthusiast’s 2024 Future 40 innovators in wine. After a diverse career journey in publishing and the auction world, including stints at SAVEUR magazine and Sotheby’s, she found her calling in the wine industry. Sarah is a co-founder of the women-in-wine organization Bâtonnage Forum and runs the Wine Writers’ Symposium based in Napa, CA. Fluent in Italian and French, she served as European Director of VinConnect, building out DtC strategies for wineries, and Brand Ambassador for Vini Franchetti's Tenuta di Trinoro in Tuscany and Passopisciaro on Mt. Etna. She has completed her diploma with the Wine and Spirits Education Trust, and she helped build programming and curriculum for The Wine Center at Meadowood in Napa Valley while also serving as a contributor to AFAR, GuildSomm, California Homes, VinePair, and other publications. In her spare time, she leads sales and marketing initiatives for T. Berkley Wines with her husband, winemaker Taylor Berkley Boydstun, a Loire-varietal project based in northern California. You can follow her @sarah.h.bray on Instagram, check out her “Life by the Glass” substack, and visit www.batonnageforum.com or www.winewriterssymposium.org to learn more about her initiatives. Recorded November 1, 2024

This episode features Dr. Miray Seward, a researcher and consultant who developed her love for wine while living in Charlottesville, Virginia. She holds a PhD in Educational Psychology: Applied Developmental Science from the University of Virginia with more than ten years of experience conducting mixed-methods research and evaluation. Currently, she works as a Research Scientist at an applied research firm where she leads research and evaluation projects focused on supporting youth development, but while completing her doctorate degree in Charlottesville, she spent many weekends visiting local wineries, primarily in the Monticello and Shenandoah Valley AVAs. We talk about how she was drawn to and motivated to learn more about wine because of the warm, open, and welcoming Virginia wine community. She later began her formal entry into wine by joining the Roots Fund, which provided her with a scholarship to pursue her WSET level 1. Since then, she has taken and passed her WSET levels 1 and 2 with distinction, hosted the Oenoverse wine club, served as a curator for the Two Up Wine Down festival, and more! Most recently, Miray joined the leadership team for the Veraison Project, where she serves as the Director of Data and Insights. This role allows her to bring together her expertise and passion for research and wine. Through this role, she aims to help ensure the organization systematically collects meaningful data about its programs and events. Miray is also available to provide consulting support to wine organizations, brands, and companies needing research or coaching support. October is Virginia Wine month, so it was an honor to have her on the show and hear how the Virginia wine industry continues to inspire her wine journey and foster community. You can follow her insights @curlsncorks on Instagram. ------------------------------- Recorded October 23, 2024

This episode features a follow-up conversation with Kieran Robinson of R Five Wines, a winemaker who now splits his time between his tasting room in the suburbs of Philadelphia and the vineyards of Sonoma County. We first spoke with Kieran and his wife, Kristie, back in November of 2020 for episode 8 of season 3 as they were dreaming up their new tasting room in Downingtown, PA. Kieran's story started in the Finger Lakes while attending Ithaca College, and upon returning to his hometown of Downingtown, Kieran had the opportunity to experience the challenges of making wine in a non-traditional wine region - the Philadelphia countryside. Kieran later moved to the Northern Rhone region of France to work for winemaker PIerre Gaillard, which gave Kieran an appreciation for French viticulture and winemaking philosophies. Kieran later moved to Napa Valley to expand his winemaking knowledge at Cakebread Cellars and then at Paul Hobbs Winery and Crossbarn Cellars as an enologist. In 2009, Kieran started his own label - Kieran Robinson Wines - with a focus on Syrah and Viognier. While he was the winemaker at Jericho Canyon Vineyard, Kieran also worked alongside famed winemakers Aaron Pott and Michel Rolland. Interested in a new challenge and a bi-coastal life, Kieran and his wife started R Five Wines in 2018. R Five Wines allowed Kieran to expand his winemaking portfolio to other Rhone varietals, such as Grenache, Roussanne, Marsanne, Grenache Gris, and Mourvèdre, Kieran still makes all his wine in Sonoma but the R Five Wines tasting room is in his hometown near Philadelphia, PA. We talk about how this bicoastal business model is allowing Kieran to bring his love of CA wines to PA. Recorded October 14, 2024