Join Ali and Ute for this quick half-hour episode where we share our biggest takeaways from the Oregon Wine Symposium from February 14th and 15th.
Also, Ali brought a great bottle of 2017 Siduri Pinot Noir for us today and we’re chatting about Victoria, Queen of England, who reigned for over 62 years and influenced the global wine trade. Listen in and find out!
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Sources used for this episode:
2017 Siduri Anderson Valley Pinot Noir
Queen Elizabeth II’s favorite drink
Queen Elizabeth II doesn’t drink wine?
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Full episode transcript:
Ali: Hello again and welcome to the Thru the GrapeWine podcast and another episode of
Ute: A GenXer
Ali: and a Millennial walk into a winery. My name is Ali Simpson.
Ute: And I am Ute Mitchell. And before we get started, did you know we have a private VIP Facebook group just for women? It’s such a great place for women interested in wine, but also in community to share thoughts, beverages, and of course a lot of laughter. And of course, it’s also a wonderful place to learn a bit more about wine and this great industry. Check the show notes on how to join.
Ali: It feels like we have not seen each other. We’ve seen each other recently but not been able to really catch up lately.
Ute: Right.
Ali: Yeah.
Ute: Exactly.
Ali: So we just did the Oregon Wine Symposium February 14th and 15th up in Portland. And we got to hang out and, and chat there cuz we did both stay at the hotel close to the convention center.
Ute: And those rooms were so beautiful. And the views of Portland were just spectacular and especially at night.
Ali: Oh yeah.
Ute: So what would you say your biggest takeaway was from the symposium?
Ali: Oh gosh. I don’t even know where to start with this. There were so many great sessions and getting to network and socialize, like I, I loved it. I loved actually getting to put faces to Instagram profiles.
Ute: Mm-hmm.
Ali: So that was pretty cool. Hello to everyone that we actually got to meet in person.
Ute: I know, so great!
Ali: But I would have to say my favorite session was actually the smoke affected wine panel. I did go in thinking that the sparkling session, obviously, was gonna be my favorite! But I was blown away by the panel for the smoke affected wines.
Dr. Elizabeth Tomasino, who just won Wine Enthusiast’s Innovator of the Year, along with her team for her work on how smoke affects wines like grapes and the vines, the plants. That research was done through the Oregon Wine Research Institute. Eric, I believe his last name was…
Ute: It’s Herve.
Ali: Herve.
Ute: Yeah.
Ali: Okay.
Ute: He’s, he’s French.
Ali: Yes. Yes. He’s with the ETS Laboratories, which is the lab that everyone in Oregon was trying to send their grapes to during the 2020 smoke event. And you know, just panicking of, oh my gosh, “what are my, what are my wines gonna turn out like?” Nicole Schulte, she’s a winemaker. And did she say she was also the co-founder of the West Coast Smoke Exposure Taskforce.
I don’t remember if she said co-founder, but she’s definitely involved with it.
Ute: Yeah!
Ali: Which is really cool! And drum roll. Sarah Cabot!
Ute: Seriously!
Ali: She’s a winemaker. And if you’ve listened to our last GenXer and a Millennial episode, you will recognize her name as the winemaker of the 2020 Willamette Valley Pinot that we tried from Costco.
And we were like, “we wanna, we wanna talk to you. Anyone have a connection?” And then we walk into this room and we’re like, “it’s Sarah Cabot!” So of course Ute went up and talked to her.
Ute: Yes, of course!
Ali: But I just remember sitting through that whole panel absolutely fascinated at the brilliance and resilience that each of these panelists went through in that 2020 smoke event.
Ute: Mm-hmm.
Ali: Here in Oregon. And if you look in Ute’s notebook, you will see Ute commenting to me how badass these women are. Eric, you are also a badass. Don’t worry. And me responding with something like, “seriously, the longer I listen to these women, the more I want to pursue the winemaker path.”
Yeah. The fact that we had just discussed, albeit briefly, Sarah Cabot’s 2020 Willamette Valley Pinot, and then to actually get to hear from her how that vintage went.
Ute: Mm-hmm.
Ali: Like it was mind blowing. I knew 2020 was a hard vintage, but still, after hearing her thought processes and just a few of the decisions that she had to make, like, of course she knew her grapes had or had the potential to develop smoke taint.
Ute: Mm-hmm.
Ali: She, she commented on that right away. But she also made a comment that really stuck with me about how she still had these contractual obligations to the labels that she serves.
Ute: Yeah.
Ali: And so she needed to figure out how to still honor those contracts and present a wine. I mean, she’s a winemaker, of course she wants to be proud of the wines that she’s presenting.
Ute: Yeah.
Ali: So, yeah, I have mad respect for her, and it definitely reminded me that there’s another side to the 2020 Oregon wines to keep in mind as I taste through them.
Ute: Yeah.
Ali: Cuz I remember that was one that neither of us were, were too fond of just because of that smoke taint in there.
Ute: Yeah, exactly.
Ali: And then of course to hear all the scientific terms and research findings just roll off, off Dr. Elizabeth’s tongue was such ease. I was like, I mean like, yeah, it’s her job and she’s clearly very good at it. She knows what she’s doing, but it was quite humbling and inspiring to be soaking in all of this knowledge from such badass women.
Ute: Yeah, for sure. I, I am totally with you. And I listened and you know, in some cases we’re thinking, I don’t know any idea what you’re saying. But it makes me want to learn and understand, you know, what they were saying and, and saying it with such ease.
Ali: Right. I think it was the ease part, like, yeah, how do I get to that knowledge level?
Ute: Yes, exactly!
Ali: Yeah. What about you?
Ute: So my biggest takeaway was, you know, this is the wine industry talking, right? Many winemakers, tasting room managers, wine club managers, and of course owners all in one place, which was really cool. And so there’s all this talk about who drinks wine and how old they are, and how they are so many different types of beverages now competing with wine.
Which is true. You know, we have hard seltzer, cider, hard kombucha, alcoholic, non-alcoholic alternatives to wine, and all of them have their space in…
Ali: Mm-hmm.
Ute: …this modern 21st century world. So they showed a bunch of charts showing who are the core drinkers, the occasional drinkers, and the non-adopters as they call them, which, you know, a beer drinker might be a non-adopter. And while they were definitely, there was definitely some talk about how millennials and Gen Z are more difficult to market to because they tend to be more health conscious, socially conscious. They like convenience though, different flavors, et cetera, et cetera. There was one thing that really stood out to me and that was there was a very strong message that millennials are really not the problem.
Ali: Just brush my shoulders off!
Ute: It’s how they’re communicated to.
Ali: Mm-hmm.
Ute: And I do think we touched on this on a previous episode, someone said the average millennial does not pick up Wine Enthusiast Magazine and start reading that magazine beginning to end. And again, we’re talking about the average wine drinker. Social media is where it’s at: Instagram, TikTok, even Pinterest are the places where you can reach the younger generation and make wine more interesting and approachable to them. That is not to say that they are not gonna go and find out more or read an article about wine or a topic that interests them. It’s just that this is basically the gateway to this younger generation.
So I thought that was really, really interesting. And the wine industry, sorry to say, is slow to adopt these new ways of marketing. They just are. I’m seeing this over and over when I go on Instagram and I look at some wineries. There are some that are super on top of their social media game. Not a question you can tell their social media channels are run by people who know what they’re doing. They hire professionals for it. But many, too many still have not figured out this piece of the puzzle. So of course, I’ll admit that it is not easy with the constantly changing algorithms of Instagram. We just talked about this before recording this episode.
We’re like, “oh my gosh, , what do we do? How do we get better at this?” Still, you know, if you are staying consistent and if you are, you know, working on it and you are looking at who is your ideal client and where are they and what are they looking for? And you can still adjust to that.
Ali: Yeah, for sure. I mean, we’ve had the conversation, just you and I previously I… other millennials will jump in and I assume agree with me, but I, I don’t answer my phone if I don’t know the number. And so the, like the cold calls I’ve come to, obviously I saved the wineries that I’m a member at, so I know their numbers, but I am not going to answer a phone call if I don’t know the number. I’m gonna sit there and stare at my phone while it rings, and I’m gonna be Googling that number to see if it’s a scammer or if I know the person.
So half the time it’s like a doctor’s appointment confirming my appointment and they’re, yeah. And then I have to call them back, which is…. a lot easier for me than just answering. And …yeah!
Ute: To be fair, I don’t take as many calls as I used to. Because when it’s a number, I don’t know. Oftentimes it is actually a scammer that masks with a phone number that has my area code.
Ali: Yeah.
Ute: And makes you think, “oh, well it’s my area code. They probably need something from me.” But then you pick up the phone and it’s just a stupid machine and that’s… (insert frustrated noises)
Ali: Yeah. My theory is if it’s important enough, they will leave a message
Ute: That is… Exactly right!
Ali: But maybe just text me and save yourself some time. I also don’t answer my door if I’m not expecting someone! I’m checking my Ring camera, like, “oh, just Amazon delivering again!”
Ute: Yeah, I mean, and I, it kind of makes sense, you know, also, and not to get too deep into that topic, but as a woman, if I’m home alone,
Ali: Oh yeah!
Ute: You better damn well believe that I’m not gonna be answering the door if I don’t know who’s at front of the door.
Ali: I listen to plenty of true crime.
Ute: Yeah, exactly!
Ali: I stay sexy!
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Ali: I use Apple and so I can only speak to that. You can have it auto download new episodes in the setting. It’s super quick and easy to set up and then you know you are helping us out each week! And of course, by rating and reviewing us! It’s quick, it’s easy, it’s free, and we are so, so grateful for you.
Ute: That’s right. Of course, as always, do check our notes for all information, sources, and your free downloads.
Ali: Woot woot!
[end ad break]
Ute: So you wanna talk about wine?
Ali: Yes I do!
Ute: Okay.
Ali: Today I brought a pretty fun bottle from my own cellar. Ooh, I did think… I have a bunch of Cabernet Sauvignons in my cellar that I know Robbie’s not gonna drink with me because he’s not a Cab Sav fan. He would much rather drink some Syrah or Pinot with me. But I know that Cabs are the way to your heart. But all of mine are way too young. All the ones in my cellar are way too young. So maybe in a year or two, I’ll surprise you with those. So I guess we gotta keep going with this podcast.
Ute: Wait, did you just tell me that you were gonna bring a Cab but you didn’t?
Ali: Yeah.
Ute: Oh, okay. Cool.
Ali: I said I was going to bring a Cab, but they’re all too young. So in a year or two, I’ll bring those.
Ute: Fair. All right. Fair.
Ali: Which means we need to, I guess, keep this podcast going.
Ute: Just keep doing this!
Ali: Going for a few years. But the one I did bring, I haven’t tried it before. I have a feeling we’re gonna like it though, just from reading some tasting notes on it.
It is a 2017 Siduri Pinot Noir from Anderson Valley in California. This bottle retails for about $35 and Siduri is part of the Jackson Family Wines group. So fairly easy I think to… especially the American Jackson Family Wines. They’re pretty easy to find in the area, so!
Ute: For sure.
Ali: Yeah. Do you wanna go ahead and open that one up and I will chat Anderson Valley and Siduri?
[screw cap twists off bottle]
Okay…
Ute: It’s a, it’s a…
Ali: It was, it’s a twist off!
Ute: Screw cap thing.
Ali: Yep. . Okay. So first off, Siduri is actually the name of the Babylonian Goddess of wisdom, fermentation, and merrymaking!
Ute: Ooh!
Ali: So already a pretty sweet name. I mean!
Ute: Merrymaking? Okay!
Ali: Named after a Goddess! The winery was founded by Adam Lee and Dianna Novy. Novy
Ute: Sure.
Ali: And is located in Sonoma County. They source fruit from all over California and Oregon for single vineyard and AVA blends. And their first wine was released in 1994, and they have definitely made a name for themselves in their Pinot production.
I found this quote on their website that I just really love. It is, “we believe wine shouldn’t be pretentious, it should be enjoyed. Serious wine and serious fun aren’t mutually exclusive.”
Ute: There you go.
Ali: Yeah. So the Anderson Valley AVA is a cool maritime (coastal) climate region. About 110 miles northwest of San Francisco.
The AVA itself is rather small at only about 15 miles long, but it produces some of the highest quality wines in the world.
Ute: Yes, cheers!
Ali: This smell’s amazing. Like as soon as you poured it I just had all this like rich dark fruit in my, in my face.
[Slurping, sipping, and swishing noises].
I’m not like… it’s a 2017, but I would almost say this is still young.
Ute: Yes. I feel like it could definitely still rest a couple more years.
Ali: Holy cow. So a signature of Anderson Valley Wines is the dark rich fruit flavors paired with some earthy undertones. As for production notes… do you wanna, do you wanna talk about what you’re tasting before I go through what Siduri says you should be tasting in their wine?
Ute: So I’m definitely getting oak pretty much right away.
Ali: Okay.
Ute: Which I don’t find unpleasant.
Ali: Mm-hmm.
Ute: I actually have like this slightly burning sensation in the back of my mouth and throat, which I really, really enjoy. So call me crazy, but pomegranate.
Ali: Okay. Yeah.
Ute: That’s like, that’s instantly something that I thought of, was like, I’m, I’m getting this nice tart, fruity, pomegranate flavor.
Ali: Mm-hmm. I’m really enjoying this cuz I, obviously, having written the notes for this, I’m really enjoying what you’re picking out. So, as for production notes for on Siduri’s website, it says the 2017 was “cold soaked for four days and aged for 15 months in 35% new French oak.”
Ute: All right!
Ali: So there you go. You got the oak right away.
Ute: Yes!
Ali: But I, I think that really helps balance the acidity.
Ute: Mm-hmm. Yes.
Ali: And as a cold growing region, these are naturally going to have that higher acid profile.
Ute: Yes, for sure.
Ali: The website also gives some flavor notes.
Ute: Okay.
Ali: There are quite a few. So, we have “warm oak spices, cinnamon, pomegrante, black plum, fresh boysenberry, Portobello mushroom, chestnut, sage, chamomile, and forest floor.” And their final profile notes say, “bright acid leads at the front of the palate with a full, juicy texture in the middle with flavors of tart red plum, raspberry and red currant.”
Ute: Mm-hmm.
Ali: So you had oak, you had pomegranate, you had tart.
Ute: Oh my gosh!
Ali: Yea! So!
Ute: All right. My job is done.
Ali: What’s the alcohol in this one? You have the bottle over there.
Ute: Mm-hmm. , and I will say real quick, I am actually really glad that I don’t taste a Portobello mushroom because I don’t do mushrooms.
14.1%
Ali: I I was… it is a little hot. Yeah.
Ute: Yeah.
Ali: But I have actually been more open to mushrooms lately.
Ute: Really?
Ali: Yeah. I’ve been the one like recommend, like we just got pizza when we were on the coast this last weekend, and I, for the first time I was like, “let’s get the one with the mushrooms on it. I’m fine.” So,
Ute: Dude, I gotta say it’s, it’s something… mushrooms. I so want to like them. I really do, because I know that there are so many good things about mushrooms. Especially, you know, things like Lions Mane and the Reishi and whatnot. But that’s a whole story about my trauma from childhood and having to eat mushroom stew from canned mushrooms!
Ali: Yeah, it’s definitely a texture thing. So if I know that the mushrooms are gonna be pretty quality, then, or like cooked well, then I’ll go for ’em. I’ve always enjoyed the flavor. It’s, it’s the texture for me. I’m a texture driven person.
Ute: Dude, this is, this is really great and with each sip I’m like liking it more.
Ali: Yeah. I’m just like, when you’re looking at the color, you definitely get that browning because it is a 2017.
Ute: Yeah, for sure.
Ali: But you hold it up to the light and it is this gorgeous…
Ute: That’s so beautiful.
Ali: …like purplely red almost. It is… It’s so pretty!
Ute: And, you know, just throw this in here real quick. When we’re doing Patreon, we’re gonna do stuff like this where we’re tasting a wine and we’re gonna have a little video to go with it so that you can follow along as we’re tasting. And you can see the color, you can see the bottle. So that will be coming up soon.
Ali: Yes, yes. I’m very excited to have a little more interactive and
Ute: Yes!
Ali: And I don’t know the words I was looking for there… Be more interactive with our listeners!
Ute: Yes. . . I’m not cutting this out!
Ali: I don’t expect you to. Alright! Anyway, I’m gonna sit and drink this wine. Do you want to tell us about our… as, as was hinted earlier this week, our royalty?
Ute: Yeah. Yes. So, believe it or not, today we are talking about a queen, as our special guest is Queen Victoria of England, who was actually pretty influential in the global wine trade as it turns out.
But let’s start at the beginning. Victoria was actually born May 24th, 1819, and she was the daughter of Prince Edward. Duke of Kent and Strat… Strathearn.
Ali: Would say Strathearn. Strathearn.
Ute: Of course, who knows the Brits might disagree. Who was the fourth son of King George III and her mother was Princess Victoria of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld. So, you guessed it. The Holy Roman Empire of the German nation.
Ali: I was gonna say, you got Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld. Way better than Strathearn!
Ute: Yes. Saalfeld? Not a problem. So she was crowned Queen at 18 years old. Again, one of those things that just blows me away when I think of myself as 18 year old. I, I felt like I was the queen, but I was clearly not.
So she was only crowned queen because her father’s three older brothers died and her father, Edward himself, died when Victoria was only a year old and there were no other legitimate heirs. So Victoria became queen.
Ali: Woot woot!
Ute: Yeah! She was actually unmarried for quite some time, which led to all kinds of issues, of course, at the time.
Ali: [gasp] An unmarried woman?!
Ute: An unmarried woman! She had to continue living with her mother, whom she didn’t get along with, and called it torment for many years. Which when I say she had to live with her mother, they all lived in Buckingham Palace, but she put her mother into an apartment at the very end of the palace so she wouldn’t have to run into her.
Ali: I can’t wait till I’m at Buckingham Palace this summer and I can just be like… because like you see photos or you see videos of the palace.
Ute: Yes.
Ali: And you’re like, yeah, it’s a big place, but I feel like standing in front of it, I’m gonna be like, Victoria was there and her mom was all the way over there.
Ute: All the way over there. Which this is actually a fun little tidbit to throw in there too. When her mother died, she saw her mother’s diaries and she saw her mother had written that she really loved Victoria a lot. And so Victoria was heartbroken to find out that she was so loved by her mother and that their relationship was so complicated. But details about that. I’m not gonna go into.
Ali: That is kind of heartbreaking.
Ute: Yeah, it’s It’s really kind of sad.
Ali: It’s tragic.
Ute: But what’s funny is when she was told by a good friend that she could remedy the situation by just getting married, she called this a “shocking alternative”. But eventually, of course, she did get married to none other than her first cousin, Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. Ew.
Ali: It was pretty common practice.
Ute: I know.
Ali: Especially in royalty. They wanted to keep it in the family.
Ute: I know.
Ali: Yeah. Ew.
Ute: I love my cousins, but no thanks!. So, but she actually really loved him and she went into mourning for quite some time after his death in 1861. After her wedding she wrote just the most heartwarming journal entry about how much she loved him and how his quote again, “his excessive love and affection gave me feelings of heavenly love and happiness I never could have hoped to have felt before.”
Ali: Aww.
Ute: Is that not adorable?
Ali: Aw.
Ute: Yeah. And they didn’t even do it on their wedding night. You had a headache.
Ali: That’s what she said.
Ute: That’s, yeah.
Ali: You can cut that if you want.
Ute: No, I’m not cutting that. We’re clicking E!
So Victoria’s children of course also married into royal and noble families, and we all know how that went back then. You didn’t choose… the decisions were made for you, especially for young women. And they were, you know, very strategic. So she had heirs all over Europe, including Russia and France and Spain and, and all those places.
Anyway, because her kids were married into royalty all over Europe. She was eventually named the grandmother of Europe.
Ali: Aww!
Ute: Yeah, there is so much to say about Victoria and her life. She was on the throne for over 60 years.
Ali: I was gonna say, isn’t she… after Queen Elizabeth II. She’s the long, longest reigning…
OH! Queen Elizabeth I… Maybe in there
Ute: Was even longer? I don’t…
Ali: She reigned for a very long time!
Ute: Okay. Well these women lived a really long time, which is incredible. So anyway, she was on the throne for over 60 years. But I definitely would recommend that you are, if you are really interested in reading more about her to check out Wi Wikipedia.
There is so much information about Victoria and then of course the various family members and how that all went down and came together.
Ali: Yea.
Ute: So what is more interesting though, is of course how the queen influenced the world of wine. Ali, you wanna tell us a little bit about that?
Ali: Yes. I’m over here googling Queen Elizabeth I. She reigned for 45 years, so she is the third.
Ute: Oh, okay.
Ali: Okay. So the wine industry in England really began to flourish during Queen Victoria’s reign. As you may remember from a conversation that we had in an episode about Louise Pommery, Queen Victoria had a personal interest in wine and was highly supportive of British winemakers.
With the British Empire expanding, more and more wine was brought into the country from around the world. As a result, as you can imagine, the demand for wine in England grew rapidly and the country became an important player in the global wine trade.
Ute: How cool to be a trendsetter like that, you know?
Ali: Right.
Ute: She actually established trade agreements with many countries like Italy, Spain, and France, and that made it possible to bring a large variety of wines into the country and to really help develop the citizen’s taste for wine.
Ali: She also had a bit of a love for champagne, so really a girl after my own heart! She had her travel director contact a famous champagne house to order 100 bottles of champagne for the British Embassy in Paris. Dining in style.
Ute: Yeah.
Ali: The Queen herself also drank champagne every day, and the tradition continued after her death in 1901. I also read that the late Queen Elizabeth II was known to enjoy her adult beverages throughout her day, starting with her top drink of choice, an aperitif of gin and Dubonnet with a slice of lemon and a lot of ice. That was according to her former Royal Chef.
Ute: Ah.
Ali: So I also know the next drink that we need to be trying. Beacuase I’ve never tried Dubonnet, have you?
Ute: No.
Ali: It’s like a…
Ute: I don’t really like gin.
Ali: Oh, well. Hmm. More importantly, Queen Elizabeth II was known to enjoy a glass of champagne after dinner every evening. And I mean, gin and champagne? I think I may have been British royalty in a previous life!
Ute: Who knows? Maybe you are, you know, reincarnation of someone really big.
Ali: Maybe!
Ute: So you really enjoy gin?
Ali: I love gin.
Ute: Oh yeah?
Ali: Gin is, yeah!
Ute: To me that’s like chewing on a juniper tree. I
Ali: mean, if you get the wrong gin. I’ve got some really great gins that you can just sip straight.
Ute: Okay. Well if you say so, I’m gonna count on that and have you tell me what that’s supposed to be.
Ali: Okay.
Ute: Although, I will say I actually. . So this past weekend I went, as you know, while you were in Astoria getting tattoos at a beer fest.
Ali: Wahoo!
Ute: I had a murder mystery party that I went to with my husband and my friend who invited us, she made some kind of gin cocktail, whatever.
So there was gin and I know there was grapefruit juice in there and some bitters and something else, and I couldn’t even taste a gin.
Ali: There you go.
Ute: So in this case… Totally game for it. As long as you don’t really… can tell, you know that Juniper?
Ali: Yeah. I mean, I’ve had plenty of cheap gins in college that, yeah. No, I’ve, I’ve found some better ones since then. And the one that my, my gin of choice is an Oregon gin. It’s Vivacity gin out of Corvallis or I think it’s Albany, Corvallis area. They have two different gins: the Banker’s gin and the Native gin, and I recommend the Native gin.
Ute: The Banker’s?
Ali: Yeah. I don’t know.
Ute: Okay. . . But you know, to get back to this, can you imagine being rich and drinking champagne every single day?
Ali: I know, right? But luckily enough for us non royals, I mean, I may have been a former royal, so…
Ute: Yeah, who knows?
Ali: All the other non royals . Just kidding. Spit take! Luckily for us non royals , there are a few options out there that will not break the bank.
Ute and I have actually put together a handy dandy, but by all means not exhaustive, list of wines to try in various budget ranges. Whether you’re wanting to try actual champagne, prosecco, cava, sparkling wine. There will be a link to that guide down in the show notes, so make sure you check out that if you want to have a few recommendations for your next bottle of bubbly.
Ute: Yeah, that sounds great. So with us, having reached the end of this episode already, which we were both actually kind of surprised about because we thought for sure that we’re gonna be talking for like at least 45, 50 minutes, but you just never know.
Ali: Do we, do we talk fast? Do you think we talk fast?
Ute: Yeah. Please let us know. Do we talk fast?
Ali: Do we need to slow down? I sometimes talk fast when I get like really in the zone on topics that I love, so…
Ute: Yea! As you all know, we do transcribe and with we, I mean, Ali transcribes all of our episodes, which makes me so happy because it’s the bane of my existence.
Ali: I was just thinking it makes me happy because it’s just one more way that people can interact with us. And our episodes.
Ute: Yes,
Ali: Great. Here come the giggles again!
Ute: Anywho. So Ali transcribes these episodes for us and puts them up onto the blog, which is really great. So if you are looking to read up on any of the episodes, but you don’t really need to or don’t want to listen to it all, you can literally just hop onto the blog and do even like a control F and look for a specific piece of information.
Another thing that we’re gonna do on the blog, and I started this a little bit already, there’s going to be blog posts that are either connected to our episode. So the next one is going to be about, you know, royalty, or it is going to be about a topic that really interests us, that we think we want to share, you know, with the world. Like that little tastevin, the little wine cup that I posted about on Monday.
Ali: And I have one coming shortly. It should be this week that you’re listening to, that this episode drops about a little, a little more of a deep dive on what is considered fine wine and the, the ideas behind the term fine wine. So, look for that one coming.
Ute: So there’s gonna be a lot of really good stuff on the blog, so head on over there. We do have the comments section functional, so if you have questions that you just wanna ask real quick and you don’t wanna contact us, just drop it into the comments and we’ll make sure to read the comments regularly and also respond.
But yeah, so this was basically it.
Ali: Yeah.
Ute: We’re at the end.
Ali: Another episode: done.
Ute: Yeah. It was fun. Thank you for bringing the wine.
Ali: Yeah. I, I hadn’t tried it before, but after reading the tasting notes on the website, I was like, some dark fruits, some more in your face tannins and acid? Yeah. I think Ute will like this one.
Ute: Yeah. Yeah. So she did . . So I am curious though, what you all think about our new intro song, because undoubtedly, if you’ve listened a few times, you’ve noticed that there’s a new one. It was composed by a young musician by the name of Celine Mitchell.
Ali: I am in love with it!
Ute: It’s so great, isn’t it? So, yeah. She also happens to be my daughter, so I am of course, especially proud to feature her music.
So let us know how you like it, and if you are a podcaster or you know someone who is, or you know anyone who needs a quick intro music written for them, let us know. We’ll put you in touch with her.
Ali: Yeah, it was, it was a great process. She gave us a few… we told her some, some ideas of what we liked and sent her a few clips of what we liked, and she took that and, I mean, fairly quickly. She’s so freaking talented because that came back way quicker than I thought it was going to. But she had three options for us. And it was, it was really hard to choose between those. They were so good.
Ute: Yes, for sure.
Ali: I just wanna use ’em all!
Ute: Right. Yes. I mean, we can always like, you know, when we have a little break, we can maybe use one of the other songs as a little intermission.
Ali: Mm-hmm.
Ute: So of course with all of that said, we only have one thing left to say and that is of course, Prost!
Ali: Cheers!
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