Pairing Comfort Wines with Comfort Food (Video)

As the weather cools, we enjoy heartier dishes, including comfort food. But which wines should you pair with them? Here with her tips is Maritimer Natalie MacLean who offers Canada’s most popular online wine classes at nataliemaclean.com. Welcome Natalie. First off, are there such things as comfort wines? After much research on this topic, I concluded there were no “uncomfortable wines” since I found them all of great comfort ;) However, I found that certain wines tend to pair better with comfort food than others. Great! Tell us about your first pairing. Comfort food tends to have rich, robust flavours. […]

Riesling, the Four-Octave Diva + Austrian Wine Revival with Valerie Kathawala

Introduction Why should we change the way we talk about Riesling? How have Austrian and German wines transformed in recent years? How can you pair German-speaking wines with food? In this episode of the Unreserved Wine Talk podcast, I’m interviewing journalist and co-founder of TRINK magazine, Valerie Kathawala. You can find the wines we discussed here. Join me on Instagram, Facebook and YouTube Live Video Join the live-stream video of this conversation on Wednesday at 7 pm eastern on Instagram Live Video, Facebook Live Video or YouTube Live Video. I’ll be jumping into the comments as we watch it together so […]

The Grapes of Laugh: How to Host a Wine Tasting or Start a Wine Club

We had such fun on The Social yesterday chatting about how to organize an informal wine tasting party at home. There are many excellent reasons to host a wine tasting party—or even to form a wine club. For one thing, wine is a social beverage—one that’s meant to be shared with friends. And it’s more fun to drink than to buy Tupperware—unless, of course, you’re drinking from the Tupperware. The only goal is to enjoy yourself and perhaps find a new favorite bottle. Although wine does lend itself to serious technical analysis, that’s not really necessary. You don’t need […]

Oregon’s Undiscovered White Wines & How Soil Changes Wine Taste with Eugenia Keegan

Introduction How has Oregon white wine evolved since it was first produced? Which elements make up the “classic Oregon” style of wine? How do different types of soil express themselves in wine? In this episode of the Unreserved Wine Talk podcast, I’m chatting with entrepreneur and winemaker, Eugenia Keegan. You can find the wines we discussed here. Join me on Instagram, Facebook and YouTube Live Video Join the live-stream video of this conversation on Wednesday at 7 pm eastern on Instagram Live Video, Facebook Live Video or YouTube Live Video. I’ll be jumping into the comments as we watch it together […]

How Humor & High Tech Help Wine with Served Up Podcast’s Julie Milroy & Bridget Albert

Introduction What makes high tech a great complement to wine? How does humour help when you’re learning about wine? Why is the personal aspect of wine becoming so important? In this episode of the Unreserved Wine Talk podcast, I’m chatting with Bridget Albert and Julie Milroy on their excellent podcast called Served Up. You can find the wines we discussed here. Join me on Instagram, Facebook and YouTube Live Video Join the live-stream video of this conversation on Wednesday at 7 pm eastern on Instagram Live Video, Facebook Live Video or YouTube Live Video. I’ll be jumping into the comments […]

Cosmo’s Sex & the City, Champagne, Whisky Women in Mallory O’Meara’s Girly Drinks

Introduction How did the Cosmopolitan become an iconic cocktail on the TV show Sex and the City? Did you know an illegal shipment of Champagne revolutionized the entire industry? Which women are responsible for America’s increase in scotch and bourbon consumption after Prohibition? In this episode of the Unreserved Wine Talk podcast, I’m chatting with Mallory O’Meara, the author of the just-published Girly Drinks: A World History of Women and Alcohol. You can find the wines we discussed here. Join me on Instagram, Facebook and YouTube Live Video Join the live-stream video of this conversation on Wednesday at 7 pm eastern […]

Pairing Books & Bottles, Organizing Wine Tastings

Introduction What do great books and great wine have in common? Why does it feel like the wine changes when you taste the same vintage years later, apart from it maturing (and possibly you as well)? How can you pair books and bottles? How can you organize an informal wine tasting with friends or your book club? In this episode of the Unreserved Wine Talk podcast, I’m chatting with Sam Hiyate on his podcast, Agent Provocateur. You can find the wines we discussed here. Highlights Which Niagara wine pairs well with haunting books that stay with you long after you finish them? […]

What You’ll Learn in Online Wine Classes and Courses

Back to Wine School Now that the kids have headed back to school, let’s chat about how the adults have changed the way they learn about wine, especially with online courses. It’s a virtual world of wine learning at your fingertips. Here with her tips is Natalie MacLean who offers Canada’s most popular online wine classes at nataliemaclean.com. Welcome, Natalie Great to be here! First, tell us why online wine courses have become so popular? Online courses offer the best of both worlds: they’re accessible to everyone no matter where you live, they’re more comprehensive than a one-off […]

Fruit Wine, Pet-Nat Bubbly & Slovenian Wines with Nikki Goddard

Introduction Why are fruit wines becoming more popular and how do they differ from grape-based wines? What is Pét-Nat-style wine and which ones should you try? What are wines from Slovenia like, and which foods pair best with them? In this episode of the Unreserved Wine Talk podcast, I’m chatting with wine writer and educator, Nikki Goddard. You can find the wines we discussed here. Watch Party Join me for the debut Watch Party of the video of this conversation that I’ll be live-streaming for the very first time on Zoom on Wednesday, August 18th at 7 pm eastern. You can […]

Pairing Wine and Cheese Like a Pro (Video)

Recently, I hosted a wine and cheese tasting inside Amy Porterfield’s online course creator membership group. So. Much. Fun. You’ll get lots of pairing tips from this session as well as other wine tips during the Q&A, from why certain wines cost so much more than others to which types of wines tend to cause headaches. You can find details on my flagship course at this link: The Wine Smart Course: A Full-Bodied Framework to Taste, Pair and Buy Wine Like a Pro It’s on sale with $200 off the regular price right now for Black Friday. It also includes […]