Clémence Lelarge-Pugeot is the marketing and export manager for her family’s grower Champagne house, Champagne Lelarge-Pugeot.

Learn more about Clémence here

In this episode, Clémence and I dig into her and her family’s story, how she is working to grow the company while living in Petaluma, California, one particular popular wine that they make called Les Meuniers de Clémence, and her dream of helping more grower producers in Champagne to grow their businesses by exporting to the US & Canada, which is much more difficult than you may think.

SPONSOR

The Grand Tour is a fresh new take on a wine club. It was created by master somm, Dustin Wilson and the team at Verve Wine. 

They believe that part of the fun of wine is learning about and exploring the many regions from around the world. They also know that it can be difficult to navigate through the vast number of wineries out there. Who makes the best wines from a particular place? How do I get my hands on them? These are the reasons that they started The Grand Tour.

Every month they will highlight a new wine region of the world. They spend that month tasting through hundreds of wines to find what they think best represents the region. They want to take you on a journey through and showcase the different types of wines that help tell the story of that place, while featuring producers that they feel are some of the best; the insiders, the ones who really know what's up.

A subscription to The Grand Tour will get you four different bottles of truly special, sommelier-approved wine for $95 each month (plus shipping), along with expert insight into the stories behind the wines, from the people and places who produce them to how they’re made, tasting notes, pairings and more. So you can go on with your life, leave the research to the geeks, and look forward to enjoying unique, remarkable, trustworthy wines in the comfort of your home.

Sign up for The Grand Tour at GrandTourWine.com

At 24-years old, Caleb Forlong is the Director of Marketing & Business Development for the only single estate winery in Upper Wairau Valley in Marlborough, Hillersden and spearheading the winery’s growth in the United States.

Caleb originally began his studies in theatre, but after observing the creative, sustainable methods being implemented by his father in the vineyard, he decided to plant himself in the family business and sought to learn as much as he could about wine. Caleb now splits his time between a set a farm clothes at the Hillersden winery in Marlborough and a sports coat in Los Angeles where he is spearheading the brand’s U.S. operations.

Learn more about Caleb at CruPodcast.com

SPONSOR

The Grand Tour is a fresh new take on a wine club. It was created by master somm, Dustin Wilson and the team at Verve Wine. 

They believe that part of the fun of wine is learning about and exploring the many regions from around the world. They also know that it can be difficult to navigate through the vast number of wineries out there. Who makes the best wines from a particular place? How do I get my hands on them? These are the reasons that they started The Grand Tour.

Every month they will highlight a new wine region of the world. They spend that month tasting through hundreds of wines to find what they think best represents the region. They want to take you on a journey through and showcase the different types of wines that help tell the story of that place, while featuring producers that they feel are some of the best; the insiders, the ones who really know what's up.

A subscription to The Grand Tour will get you four different bottles of truly special, sommelier-approved wine for $95 each month (plus shipping), along with expert insight into the stories behind the wines, from the people and places who produce them to how they’re made, tasting notes, pairings and more. So you can go on with your life, leave the research to the geeks, and look forward to enjoying unique, remarkable, trustworthy wines in the comfort of your home.

Signup for The Grand Tour at GrandTourWine.com

Alan Viader, second generation winemaker and Director of Operations for Viader Vineyards & Winery in Napa.

Learn more about Alan at CruPodcast.com

 In this episode, Alan shares with us the story behind his family’s estate on Howell Mountain, how his mother used dynamite to move rock in order to plant the vineyard all while raising three kids, and how working with winemakers in Argentina, Alan realized that he wanted to become a winemaker.

We then get into the viticultural and winemaking practices used at Viader. From trellising to blending, Alan gives us some insight into the science and art into how Viader wines are made.

But before we get into the episode, I want to tell you about our sponsor.

The Grand Tour is a fresh new take on a wine club. It was created by master somm, Dustin Wilson and the team at Verve Wine. 

 They believe that part of the fun of wine is learning about and exploring the many regions from around the world. They also know that it can be difficult to navigate through the vast number of wineries out there. Who makes the best wines from a particular place? How do I get my hands on them? These are the reasons that they started The Grand Tour.

 Every month they will highlight a new wine region of the world. They spend that month tasting through hundreds of wines to find what they think best represents the region. They want to take you on a journey through and showcase the different types of wines that help tell the story of that place, while featuring producers that they feel are some of the best; the insiders, the ones who really know what's up.

A subscription to The Grand Tour will get you four different bottles of truly special, sommelier-approved wine for $95 each month (plus shipping), along with expert insight into the stories behind the wines, from the people and places who produce them to how they’re made, tasting notes, pairings and more. So you can go on with your life, leave the research to the geeks, and look forward to enjoying unique, remarkable, trustworthy wines in the comfort of your home.

Go to GrandTourWine.com or click the Wine Club tab on the Verve Wine website to sign up

Rachel Silkowski is the assistant winemaker for Loring Wine Company & the founder/winemaker of Rasi Wine Company, both based in Lompoc, California.

Learn more about Rachel here.

pronounced rac·y
1. full of zest or vigor; having a strongly marked quality; piquant; risqué, suggestive
2. having the distinctive quality of something in its original or most characteristic form

Rachel and I dig into how she initially got into wine, her curiosity of the winemaking process, and the feeling of holding a tangible finished product. She then shares with us the story of how she started Rasi Wine Company, where the name comes from, and how she intuitively approaches each aspect of how she makes her wines & markets them from place of authenticity. I can’t wait for you to hear how she came up with the labels for her first wine called One.

Then, if that wasn’t enough, Rachel shares with us her plans for the future of Rasi, how her wines have been rated 93 – 95 points with only has three vintages out, we chat about urban wineries, and how she is giving back to the community in Los Angeles through an event that you can attend called Women, Wine, Makers.

I absolutely loved chatting with Rachel; she has really inspired me to take a more authentic approach to life and my work. I hope you enjoy hearing her story.

SPONSOR

The Grand Tour is a fresh new take on a wine club. It was created by master somm, Dustin Wilson and the team at Verve Wine. 

They believe that part of the fun of wine is learning about and exploring the many regions from around the world. They also know that it can be difficult to navigate through the vast number of wineries out there. Who makes the best wines from a particular place? How do I get my hands on them? These are the reasons that they started The Grand Tour.

Every month they will highlight a new wine region of the world. They spend that month tasting through hundreds of wines to find what they think best represents the region. They want to take you on a journey through and showcase the different types of wines that help tell the story of that place, while featuring producers that they feel are some of the best; the insiders, the ones who really know what's up.

A subscription to The Grand Tour will get you four different bottles of truly special, sommelier-approved wine for $95 each month (plus shipping), along with expert insight into the stories behind the wines, from the people and places who produce them to how they’re made, tasting notes, pairings and more. So you can go on with your life, leave the research to the geeks, and look forward to enjoying unique, remarkable, trustworthy wines in the comfort of your home.

Sign up for The Grand Tour here.

In this episode we mention…

Loring Wine Company
Rasi Wine Company
Oregon State University
Loring Pinot Noirs
Close Pepe Vineyard
Santa Rita Hills AVA
One, Pinot Noir (Rasi’s first wine)
Three Barrels, Santa Rita Pinot Noir (Rasi’s second wine)
Paso Robles Mouvedre (Rasi’s third wine)
Wine Advocate 93-95 Points for Rasi
Wine Enthusiast 93 Points for Rasi
Rasi One Labels (first wine)
Women, Wine, Makers Monthly Event
Space 15 Twenty
Vinley Market
Sine Qua Non Winery
Andremily Wine 2013 Syrah
Levo Wine
Flying Colors Grenache

Follow Rachel & Rasi on…

Rasi’s Website
Rasi’s Instagram
Rasi’s Facebook
Rachel’s Instagram

Shannon Westfall (@vinfluence) is the founder of Vinfluence, the wine club that is helping you drink better by sending you handpicked wines from boutique wineries every month while supporting nonprofits that are making a difference.

Learn more about Shannon & get a transcript of the episode here.

In this episode, Shannon share with us how Vinfluence was born out of her love of helping people and sharing wine. She tells us her story of how she broke into the wine industry with no experience from a career in wealth management. We then dig into how Vinfluence works from a business side, how it’s helping small producers reach a wider audience, and how Shannon is working to educate more people about wine through this company.

And, Shannon was kind enough to offer you as a Cru Podcast listener the opportunity to get $20 off your first order from Vinfluence! I wish I were living in the US so I could take advantage of this opportunity, but alas, I live in the UK, so I can’t. But, I hope you will in my absence! Go to Vinfluencewine.com to join the club and get $20 off your first order with the code CRUPODCAST.

By the way, while you’re signing up for Vinfluence, why don’t you kill two birds with one stone and subscribe to this podcast on iTunes? It’s quick and easy to do, all you have to do is go to iTunes, either online, or on the podcasting app on your phone, search Cru, and click subscribe. That’s it. Now you’ll get the latest episodes of Cru as soon as they come out. Can’t beat that.

In this episode we mention…

Vinfluence Wine
Vincent Arroyo Winery
Retro Cellars
Brian McClintic MS
Randy Dunn
Mike Dunn
Calitals, Italian varietals grown in California
Nero d’Avola