Episode 49: Where’s That Merlot? A Royal Good Time With The King
It’s Jeff Solomon from the Stay Rad Wine Blog and We Like Drinking podcast joining us from Gilroy, California. We had a blast with “The King of All Wine Media,” this week so strap in, listeners. Jeff brings his west coast flair to the Wine Two Five show, and we packed a lot into this episode including a factoid that will totally surprise you. There are lots of laughs, cool wine nuggets … and then there was that one night in Chico… Happy #ThirstyThursday and enjoy this extended treat!
Val: “Welcome Wine-Two-Five listeners! Thank you so much for joining us for Episode 49! Oh, and hey, it’s Super Tuesday. Again. It’s like one bad groundhog day after another … hence, we drink. Although KLG & Hoda on the Today Show have what they call “Spanky Tuesday.” That’s way more super.
“Drinking with us this evening is Jeff “The King of All Wine Media” Solomon. But before we introduce Jeff…. Steph …”
Steph: “Hey Val! And high-fives and hello to Jeff out in California. Too bad I can’t give either of you a spank for #SpankyTuesday…”
Drinking:
Val: Glenmorangie Quinta Ruban, 12 year Scotch finished in Port Casks
How to say “Glenmorangie:”
Steph’s Spring 44 Gin
Jeff: Viognier from Aver Family Vineyards
Steph: Gin & Tonic with Spring 44 Gin, Q Tonic and squeeze of fresh lime juice.
Discussion: Chatting with our guest:
Jeff Solomon, “The King of All Wine Media”
Jeff Solomon is a high school Biology teacher and wine blogger, living in Gilroy, California. He grew up deep in the redwoods of the Santa Cruz mountains, surrounded by Surfers, Cowboys, Hippies, and Punks. The woods that he called home helped him to develop a deep appreciation for the beauty of nature, and pointed him in the direction of Biological studies at San Jose State University, where he would meet his future wife, Kara.
Early on in their relationship, Kara convinced Jeff to take her wine tasting in the Napa Valley. It’s on these early wine-tasting experiences, where Jeff started to see the connection between Biology and what was happening in the wine bottle, and he fell in love… with Kara and the wine.
He started blogging for his website, StayRadWineBlog.com, in 2011, and was a finalist for the Wine Blog Awards in 2013.
He is a California Sustainable Winegrowing Ambassador.
He is a fantasy football champion.
He is an award winning guacamole champion.
And, you can hear him every week on The We Like Drinking Podcast.
He is Jeff “The King of All Wine Media” Solomon!
Jeff chats with us about the beginning of his wine blogging days, the story behind the Stay Rad name, and shares his “desert island wine desires” with us. There’s also some ‘guac talk’ as he spills how you can get his award-winnning recipe … after all, we now believe Kara fell in love with him over his guacamole. For those listeners who aren’t familiar with Jeff’s classic rants on the WLD show, he gives us a little behind the scenes 411 on what sparks a rant – you’ll want to dig up a few, promise. From wine blogger conferences to Merlot misconceptions in Chico (we all had ‘those nights’ in Chico, right?) we covered a lot of ground this week.
Factoid:
Val: “Idaho. Yep. I said Idaho. Did you know that they not only make wine (well, all 50 states make wine), but they make some not too shabby vino from Riesling (including Ice Wine), Chardonnay, Chenin Blanc and Gewurztraminer, and reds from Syrah, Cabernet, and Merlot. Their main growing area is the Snake River Valley which stretches into Washington State, and has been an American Viticultural Area (AVA) since 2007. It is here among ancient soils we find Idaho’s oldest winery, Ste Chapelle, founded in 1975. It is Idaho’s largest winery, the fifth largest Winery in the Pacific Northwest and boasts some of the highest altitude vineyards in the US! Yes. Idaho wine. I’m going to look for some for the #W25Challenge.”
Winoradar:
Steph: “Shameless plug for my entrepreneurial love child, Albarello luxury hand soap for wine enthusiasts. I launched the Albarello Youtube Channel last week and have 2 badass videos up for the world to see. They are super short and really help explain the product. So if you’ve been wanting more information about Albarello’s hand soap to share with your wine loving friends, the videos are perfect!”
Val: “Irish Whiskey in 60 Seconds, by Liquor.com. We’ll post the link in honor of St. Patrick’s Day, when this episode airs. Erin go Bragh and all that, if you’re Irish.” Here it is!
Shoutouts:
Steph: “Hillary Siebels, she is the owner/founder of Skosh Wine Consulting and the beverage director and sommelier at Cafe Vino here in Fort Collins. Not only am I impressed with her by-the-glass selection (and totally excited about the new list coming out next week) … you can see on our W25 FaceBook page her recent “sommelier selection” I tasted last week… but her bottle list is carefully crafted too. I ordered a bottle last night that had the ladies smiling – Tenuta TorCalvano Vino Nobile di Montepulciano. Plus, there’s more, Hillary started her wine education and consulting business last year under her brand called Skosh. She has a series of wine classes starting on April 13th in collaboration with Pringle’s Fine Wine & Spirits and Master Sommelier Doug Krenik who works for Breakthru Beverage. The classes are $65pp and include 12 wines with tapas.
Andy, Certified Cicerone and Local Brand Ambassador at Elevation Beer Co. in Poncha Springs, CO.
“We will have links on our blog for you to learn more about Hillary’s classes and how to get in touch with her. Awesome job, Hillary!”
Val: “My shoutout is to Elevation Beer Co. and their fine brews in Poncha Springs. WE stopped by to fill our growler with their Little Mo’ porter, and of course had to do some tasting. Andy, a former Sommelier (also a Certified Cicerone) is their Local Brand Ambassador and chatted with us about how they made some of their beers, including their Signal de Botrange where they age the beer in Chardonnay Barrels (formerly Rombauer, now Gloria Ferrer) and their Lavender IPA. I also tasted their Oil Man American Double/Imperial Stout, and their Arete American Barley Wine. As always, can never get anyone to put the beer in a sippy cup to go … with a straw.”
#W25Challenge Update:
We had entries from Lynn and Susan with a Coteaux du Layon and some fun Martini cocktails on our facebook page. Thank you, ladies! There are still two more weeks to enter your new experiences as well, using the #W25Challenge on Twitter or Facebook.
Susan: “At Generations in Loveland … happy hour martinis with Steph for #W25Challenge – Strawberries & Mint (vodka and sparkling wine) and Sisters (chai liqueur, vodka and cranberry).”
“Coteaux de Layon, a mildly sweet Chenin Blanc” for #W25Challenge from Lynn! “Although I’ve had dry Chenin, I’d never tried this specific style.”
Val: “Annnnd that’s all we have for this week. Thank you for listening and supporting our show! Next week Steph and I are tasting together and bringing you another fun-filled episode.”
You can listen to this week’s episode in its entirety here: