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Videos

Sept. 9, 2025

Wine, Culture, and Collaboration: Inside Armenia’s New Path to Global Acclaim

Not of all wine news is about a drop in sales or activity...wine tourism is up. On Wine Talks I regularly discuss the idea that wine is headed back in time to the days where the experience of wine is driving the interest in wine. Winery tastings, wine pairing dinners,…

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Sept. 8, 2025

How the Right Wine Glass Changes Everything: Paul K Talks with Maximilian Riedel #winetasting

Once I was asked to meet a vendor at a local diner...a diner like the one at the end of the movies Sideways. Complete with amber plastic tumblers. IN walked one of the old time great wine slaesman with his wares in tow. I must have looked cross-eyed because I…

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Sept. 8, 2025

Selling Wine Is Harder Than Making It: Cecilia Guzman on Chilean Wine and Terroir

When people enter a room, you instantly get a sense of their disposition in life. Are they smiley? Frowning? friendly? Gregarious? and you instantly if this is going to work. I knew instantly that this was going to work when Cecilia Guzman walked into the studio. Sitting down in the…

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Sept. 8, 2025

From Heineken to Pinot: Why Winemaking Is Never the Same Year to Year

The wines of the Monterey Peninsula, and particularly those of the Carmel Valley, are exquisite. It is always just so interesting to have the some grape grown in different parts of the world and be so different...soely on the location and environmental influences of the vineyard. When tasting Bernardus wines,…

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Sept. 1, 2025

Flavor Journeys: Elizabeth Falkner on Taste, Texture, and the Art of Bitterness

Famed celebrity chef was in the house! She speaks of the entire culture of cuisine and hospitality and Chef stardom. I was enamoured with her new date based Amaro and distiliate. Realizing that California has a corner on America's date supply, she set out to bring this California flavor to…

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Aug. 28, 2025

Greed, Murder, and Wine: Tangled Histories of California’s Vineyards with Frances Dinkelspiel

Frances Dinkelspiel hardly seems the type to expose the underbelly of California’s wine country, but you’ll be glued to your headphones as she uncorks the sordid, surprising, and criminal history behind some of America’s most beloved vineyards. You’ll emerge from this episode with a new appreciation for the untamed spirit…

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Aug. 28, 2025

Wine Glass Evolution: From Sommeliers’ Influence to the Invention of Lead Crystal

Wisdom comes from experience (I would like to say age...just because of my personal situation), and 11 generations of experience would constitute much wisdom. And there lies what I think is one of the greatest values of an honest wine: The wisdom of the winemaker based on his/her experience that…

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Aug. 28, 2025

Science, Grapes, and Adventure: A Wine Student’s Summer at Chateau Haut-Bailly

A few years ago, a young woman was interning at the Original Wine of the Month Club. Her internship revolved around social networking, office duties, and one particular job that may have set her career path. Lisa Kassabian was to write the talking points for all my podcasts that featured…

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Aug. 27, 2025

AI In The Wine Trade? Exactly.

AI in the wine trade. Without a doubt. I am not an expert in AI, but I do use it daily. I am not Nostradamus on what it will do to the wine trade, but it will do something...and quite a bit. And I will pat myself on my back,…

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Aug. 26, 2025

The Changing Tastes of Wine: Trends, Innovation, and Restaurant Realities with Chef David Slay

I have been hanging around the South Bay beaches since my youth. Maybe you caught my Instagram posts about how that happened. As a family, we spent much of our time in Hermosa Beach; I love the SoCal beach culture. There is an established group of restaurants under the moniker…

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Aug. 21, 2025

Wine, War, and Women’s Rights: The Fascinating Life of Empress Eugenie

You know the Kladstrups. Frankly, anyone interested in wine, whether through in the trade or as a consumer, should/must read their first book on wine: Wine and War. Since they have published 3 more books and just releasing the latest: Eugenie; The Last Empress of France. I was honored to…

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Aug. 19, 2025

From Australia to Paso: Jane Dunkley on Authentic Wine, Bezel Vineyards, and California’s New Wave

Wine needs a fresh face. Well, that is if you ask the pundits in the industry. I am not sure I agree. Certainly, any industry needs to keep up with the times, I suppose marketing ideas and packaging ideas would follow. I am not sure I even agree with that...…

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Aug. 19, 2025

Creating Immersive Wine Adventures with World Wine Destinations

Enotoursim has been a staple in the tourism trade. One of my favorite podcast was with XXX Duput, the woman who delivered the wines from Napa to Steven Spurrier in Paris for the Judgement In Paris. She was the leading Enotourist company in America. As time would have it, Enotourism…

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Aug. 12, 2025

Wine, Paris, and Power: Inside the Untold Story of Empress Eugenie’s Legacy

You know the Kladstrups. Frankly, anyone interested in wine, whether through in the trade or as a consumer, should/must read their first book on wine: Wine and War. Since they have published 3 more books and just releasing the latest: Eugenie; The Last Empress of France. I was honored to…

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Aug. 11, 2025

Inside Bordeaux: Veronique Sanders of Chateau Haut-Bailly on Wine, Legacy, and French Terroir

eronique Sanders knows how to take you behind the centuries-old gates of Bordeaux—not as a tourist, but as a true insider. On this episode of Wine Talks, listeners will come away with far more than just the names and dates of Château Haut Bailly’s storied past. You’ll get a rare,…

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Aug. 11, 2025

Inside Bordeaux: Veronique Sanders of Chateau Haut-Bailly on Wine, Legacy, and French Terroir

Prepare to be captivated! In this episode of Wine Talks, host Paul Kalemkiarian takes us on a truly fascinating journey into the heart of Bordeaux’s Graves region with none other than Veronique Sanders, the President and Director of the legendary Château Haut-Bailly. This conversation isn’t just about wine – it’s…

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Aug. 9, 2025

Wine, Culture, and Connections: Behind the Scenes with Paul Kalemkiarian

Lisa Kay, Enology Student and Future Winemaker: Lisa Kay began as a talking points writer for Wine Talks, then pursued enology at Cornell after being inspired by the show’s women winemakers. Her journey led her to a six-week internship at Chateau Aubay in Bordeaux, highlighting wine’s power to foster personal…

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Aug. 6, 2025

How Riedel Wine Glasses Enhance Wine Flavor: Maximilian Riedel Shares Expert Insights

Once I was asked to meet a vendor at a local diner...a diner like the one at the end of the movie Sideways. Complete with amber plastic tumblers. IN walked one of the old-time great wine salesmen with his wares in tow. I must have looked cross-eyed because I was…

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Aug. 1, 2025

Why Wine Pairing Rules Are Made Up Tim Hanni Explains

This is absolutely incredible. During this conversation with Master of Wine Tim Hanni, I had to step back and take a breather. He speaks on such a level about wine and the errors of the industry and packs so much into a single sentence, one must just ask him to…

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July 31, 2025

How Our Past and Culture Influence the Wines We Love

As someone who has spent decades walking among vines, talking with winemakers, and tasting bottles that hold centuries of tradition, I’ve always believed that wine is about so much more than just what’s in your glass. This philosophy is at the heart of our latest Wine Talks episode, ‘Wine Terroir:…

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July 31, 2025

From French Influence to California Innovation: Jason Haas Details Tablas Creek’s Wine Journey

Legacy in the wine trade is not guaranteed. Not every child wants to take on the wine trade. I have many stories of famed children of iconic brands setting out to carve their own path to only lnad back in this passionate business. Jason Haas of Tablas Creek came around…

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July 29, 2025

Chasing Passions and Building Promise Winery: The Journey of Stephen and Jennifer McPherson

wine podcast, Napa Valley, Promise Winery, Paul Kalemkiarian, Stephen McPherson, Jennifer McPherson, wine industry, passion for wine, wine stories, wine tasting, winemaking, entrepreneurial journey, Napa wine, wine business, winery experience, food and wine, wine education, family business, wine culture, artisan wine, wine community

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July 28, 2025

From Executive Desk to 50 Yard Line: Eva Horton's Hidden Cheerleading Life

No one expects a high-powered executive to moonlight as a cheerleader—especially not one with pom-poms stashed next to multi-million dollar portfolios. That’s exactly where Eva Horton flips the script on all of us, as she sits down with Paul Kalemkiarian for a jaw-dropping conversation on Wine Talks. This episode unpacks…

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July 24, 2025

Saving Private Ryan and the True Meaning Behind Every Bottle of Wine

Think about it...Robert Vardanian has. Rob describes wine as the story of a particular place, time, and the people who made it—essentially, each bottle is like a message in a bottle from a unique corner of the world. He draws a fun parallel to a scene in the film "Saving…

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