The Wine Makers on Radio Misfits

Ren Harris is the “unofficial” Mayor of Napa. This year will be his 60th harvest and his accomplishments read like a novel about the history of Napa Valley. He is soft spoken but seems to get his way more often than not, and we all owe him for paving the wine road in California. You can still find him at the table in the back of the winery, looking out at his beautiful vineyard, sharing his stories and wines, still made by Heidi Barrett. Grab a glass and listen in, this one goes deep. [EP271] paradigmwinery.com @paradigmwinery

Jack Sporer is a leader in the new school of Natural Wine, experimental and adventurous, but also pragmatic and reasonable. He has made wine all over the world, from Bordeaux to Bedrock, and brings a fresh perspective to his own wine making for Fresh Wine Co. From style, to varietal choices to bottles and corks the wines are thoughtful, delicious and yes, fresh! Listen in as we go through the latest releases of Fresh Wines and learn all about Jack’s travels and experiences in wine. [EP270]

We all agree that wine is about the stories that are associated with them. Kira Ballotta began working in wine in 2011 helping a winemaker on her days off. Then while working in the field of Valuation she had the opportunity to analyze vineyard projects and felt drawn to the “going-ons” behind her spreadsheets. She was hooked Kira then made her way around Napa and Australia learning the craft of winemaking and engendering a true reverence and love for winemaking. She spent four years at Alpha Omega in Rutherford running Enology research. Then in 2019 she took as winemaker for Olivia Brion and in 2021 she started another inspired label called Cantadora Wines. She is dedicated to a business organized around sustainability and gentle practices for the earth. We talked about a lot of subjects and ideas and the time just flew buy. Check out the show and thanks for listening. [EP269] oliviabrion.com cantadora.wine instagram.com/oliviabrionwines

Tor Kenward has been a part of Napa’s growth from the beginning, seeking advice from Robert Mondavi, getting tips from André Tchelistcheff, and collaborating with Julia Child. We share a couple bottles of wine with him at his house in Napa Valley to discuss his start at Beringer, his current label Tor, and his new book “Reflections of a Vintner”. There is a lot of history here. Enjoy [EP268] Torwines.com @torwines

By day, Kelly Cornett is an accomplished public health scientist, by night she is a wine educator, host of A Cork in the Road wine podcast, all around enthusiast and a ringleader in Atlanta’s wine community. She was in town to lead a wine class in between visiting some of her favorite wineries and seeking new exciting producers she learned about listening to our shows! We learn all about Kelly’s journey into wine, from her family dinner table growing up on Minnesota, to the burgeoning Virginia wine country to the vibrant and diverse Atlanta wine scene. In between, there’s some talk of Corgis, track and field and a whole lot of laughs! @acorkintheroad on Twitter and Instagram acorkintheroad.com

David Morell, Ph.D., Sonoma Ecology Center & Doug Beck, Science Officer at Monterey Pacific Vineyards. David and Doug give us a good introduction to BioChar and its use with compost in wine grape growing. David gives us some background on BioChar and all the work that the Sonoma Ecology Center is doing here in Sonoma County and beyond. Doug shares his experiences and findings from a recently conducted four-year trial to test the impacts of biochar and compost as soil amendments on wine grape growth, water use, yield, and water quality. [EP266] sonomaecologycenter.org sonomabiocharinitiative.org Scaling Sustainable Biochar Research Commercialization for Agriculture Conservationing Sustainable Biochar Research Commercialization for Agriculture Conservation.pdf

Brenae Royal runs Monte Rosso, one of the most historic vineyards in California, growing Cabernet, Zinfandel and Semillon since 1886.  Brenae grew up in the Central Valley of California and was originally interested in animals, in part due to her exposure to F.F.A., future farmers of America. Weeks into college she decided to pivot, focusing on vines and taking a job with Gallo right out of school. [EP265] Website

António Amorim – Amorim Corks Corticeira Amorim is the world’s largest cork processing company and makes an unparalleled contribution to the business, market, economy, innovation and the sustainability of the entire cork industry. Founded in 1870, we are joined this week by its Chairman & CEO António Rios de Amorim. This is a great show, António’s knowledge and passion for the cork industry is infectious. You might be amazed to hear what cork is used for beyond the wine industry. The incredible sustainability that the cork industry has and practices should not be overlooked, and truly agricultural business. This show should answer most of your cork questions. And if they arent answered, let us know we will find out. [EP264] Amorim.com Instagram Twitter

This week we attended the Direct to Consumer Symposium which is a benefit for the Free the Grapes Campaign. [EP263] Our good friend M.J. Towler the Black Wine Guy was also in attendance so we decided to do some joint interviews. We hope you enjoy these conversations. https://freethegrapes.org Hugh Scallon of Vayner Media will give us a look into TV 3.0 and he sees an opportunity for wine advertising. https://vaynermedia.com Steve Gross, VP, State Relations, Wine Institute talks a bit about the implications of recent legislative wins and priorities for winery compliance in 2023. https://wineinstitute.org Friend of the pod Jason Hass of Tablas Creek joins us to share some of his experiences in alternative packaging. www.tablascreek.com Shana Bull is a Digital Storyteller + Marketing Educator, and Children’s Book Author based in the East Bay, CA (and Wine Country). She writes about Social Media + Food + Wine + Travel + Parenting on her blog, and other Bay Area publications. https://shanabull.com Shae Frichette and her husband were living in Southern California when they met and got married. They wanted to move closer to family in either South Carolina or Washington. They used the flip of a coin to determine they would relocate to Washington. They wanted to create a business that would give them goosebumps. With a little research and cheerleading from friends, they decided to go into wine. www.frichettewinery.com Ross Halleck planted the Halleck Vineyard in 1993, one of the first in the hills of Sebastopol, in western Sonoma County. The primary intent for this vineyard was to serve as a college fund for our three boys, Connor, Adam, and Quinn. Of course, a passion for Pinot led the charge. www.halleckvineyard.com Barbara Gorder is a consultant and Owner Undisclosed Location, Inc. Over the past 20 years, she has helped to build and design some of the world’s most powerful brands. She has broad marketing and advertising expertise across all channels and disciplines with an emphasis on new technologies. Barbara is Kino chair for the direct to consumer wide symposium. https://www.unlo.com

Founder Robert (Bob) Craig began his career in wine at The Hess Collection on Mount Veeder in the 1980s. Prior to starting the winery, Bob’s passion for Mountain Cabernet had him spearheading the official recognition of both the Mount Veeder and Spring Mountain District AVAs. In 1995 22 acres were purchased at the summit of Howell Mountain – the vineyard property that would become their estate winery. Elton arrived in 2004 and spearheaded the overhaul and reinvestment of the farming, winemaking and sales structure at. Now the managing partner at the winery, he spends much of his time traveling around the country spreading the Craig word. Elton’s has brought his passion for old world wines to the new world of Craig with a production philosophy based on site expression. We had a great visit with Elton and his infectious passion for wine will come through the speakers and make you want to try these mountain grown wines [EP262] robertcraigwine.com instagram.com/robertcraigwinery instagram.com/eltonslone2