Another Bottle Down – Détails, épisodes et analyse

On today's show, Mark and Jessica gear up for the big Barolo and Barbaresco World Opening event in Austin by interviewing Patrick Olds.  Patrick recently left MML Hospitality and started his own consulting firm, Sidecar Hospitality.  He's a big Barolo and Barbaresco fan and gives tons of juicy insights on the region, the grape (Nebbiolo), and how to approach a large scale tasting such as the World Opening.

Purchase tickets to Barolo and Barbaresco World Opening on March 25th:  Here

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On this week's episode, Jessica visits a very iconic Scilian producer, Donnafugata.  She interviews the 5th and 6th generation of the winery, first José Rallo and then her daughter Gabriella Anca Rallo.  There's so much to talk about with Donnafugata from the western areas around Palermo to Mt. Etna to the rustic island of Pantelleria.  There's lots of history, legacy, and innovation wrapped up in these conversation.

History on Donnafugata here.

Buy a ticket for Barolo and Barbaresco World Opening on March 25th in Austin Here.

Pietro Russo is the third Master of Wine in Italy and part of the group of Italian MW's who are now being referred to as the "Three Muscateers" (coined by Stevie Kim of VinItaly).  He grew up in the region of Marsala and after travelling the world and making wine in other countries returned to Sicily to make wine at Donnafugata.  In 2024, he transitioned from official winemaker of Donnafugata to consultant and started a project based on old vine Grillo called Officina del Vento.  Jessica digs into all facets of passing the MW exam along with the genesis of this new project all about high-quality and camaraderie. 

Donnafugata website: https://www.donnafugata.it

Pietro Russo on the Master of Wine website: https://www.mastersofwine.org/pietro-russo-mw

Announcement of Officina del Vento: here.

Giannis Tselepos has been making wine in Greece, the Mantinia in particular, since the 80s, and can be considered one of the pioneers of the grape Moscofilero.  Giannis, and his importer Andreas Zinelis (Cava Spiliadas) come on the podcast to explain Greek wine in general and talk about the regions of his three wineries: Mantinia, Nemea, and Santorini.  Check it out to get a modern perspective on Greek Wine and a guide to pronouncing Greek varieties and regions!

http://www.tselepos.gr

http://cavaspiliadis.com/

In 2006, Randy left Houston to carve out a life with his wife in Napa, with the 10 year plan to come back to TX to make world class wine and push the industry.  An internship at Cakebread lead to a job, then to a position at Colgin, then to work under cult winemakers like Mike Hirby and Andy Erickson.  All this lead to served as the foundation of his own label, Lightning Wines, focusing on Grenache.  In 2014, Randy came back to TX to launch C.L Butaud to push the possibilities of Tempranillo.  Check out the podcast to hear Randy tell his story.  He's made a splash already!

clbutaud.com

http://lightningwines.com/

Regan and Carey Meador come into the KOOP studios to share with us their quest to first produce highly acclaimed wine on the North Fork of Long Island then their transition to Texas.  We get all the juicy facts of Long Island wine as well as a strong argument for why we should all be excited about Texas as a growing region!  Get the inside scoop, cause they still have some LI wines to sell, extremely interesting Lagrein and Teroldego (yeah, that's right), and everybody's getting excited about their first 2017 Texas vintage!

https://www.southoldfarmandcellar.com/

Michel and Marla are the husband-wife team behind Michel Thibault Wine, which specializes in Bordeaux, Burgundy, Champagne, and some select producers from Italy and the US.  We dig into French wine, the Bordeaux Futures campaign, their travel business and so much more.  Incredibly knowledgeable and down to earth, Michel and Marla give may tidbits to savor.

Isabella Pelizzatti Perego is 5th generation wine producer in the Valtellina of Northern Italy, and comes on the show to talk about her amazing wines, vineyard and cru-focused Nebbiolo.  She talks about the differences of Nebbiolo from her vineyards, locally called Chiavenasca, and that of Barolo and Barbaresco.  We also get into some of the sub-regions and special wines they make; it's so inspiring to hear Isabella's story!

Music is performed by a local female choir for which Isabella sings, called Coro Clara Wieck, and they're coming out with an album towards the end of 2017:  www.clarawieck.org

Alois Clemens Lageder, 6th generation winemaker in the Alto Adige, and Jo Pfisterer, head winemaker, tell the story of their region in the north of Italy.  We dig into their histories, the experimentation they have going on, the grapes they're producing in the Alto Adige, and so much more.  I bet you didn't know they grow Tannat and Assyrtiko in Italy!  They clearly had a good time with traveling through Austin and spreading the good word. 

Dr. Shelly Sethi has a family practice specializing in Integrative and Functional Medicine in Austin, Texas.  She delves into her philosophies on wine as part of a balanced diet and lifestyle that promotes good digestion and low inflammation.  We also talk about some of the lesser known health benefits of moderate consumption of wine as well as the famous anti-oxidant resveratrol.  Love wine, life, friends, and good livin' with Dr. Shelly!

http://www.drshellysethi.com/