Episode 79: Wine Life and Legacy With Violet Grgich

Episode 79: Wine Life and Legacy With Violet Grgich

Grgich Hills Estate Co-Proprietor & Vice President for Operations and Sales, Violet Grgich, shares part of her day with the W25 ladies as well as priceless accounts of family history, philosophy and wise wine words. Her beautifully told stories will surely make you smile and have you planning your next trip to either stomp grapes or visit Croatia. We also are happy to bring you some delightful words from a listener which pair well with this very special episode you won’t want to miss. And what do  Marco Polo and Franz Liszt have to do with any of this? To find out, please pour a glass, click play, and enjoy!

In the Glasses & Across the Pond

Steph was Skyping from her villa in Perugia, sipping on some vino bianco that she picked up at the grocery store. In her glass a 2015 Lungarotti Torre di Giano – a blend of Vermentino, Grechetto, and Trebbiano. Basically this is a standard Umbrian house white wine, for 5.70 Euros.

Val managed to switch from half-caff coffee to wine between the interview with our fabulous guest and found a bottle of 2013 Sterling Cabernet that had originally been tasted back in June. Yes, while prepping for the WSET Diploma she had 18 bottles open at one time, and thanks to her trusty Coravin, can still pull the corks months later. (This is not an ad – this is Val loving that she didn’t have to waste wine while practicing for practicals. This thing is a huge money- and liver-saver if you’re studying or don’t want to open a bottle for just one glass).

Interview with Violet Grgich, Co-proprietor; Vice President of Operations & Sales, Grgich Hills Estates

Violet’s passion for wine began at an early age, as she literally grew up accompanying her father in the vineyards and cellar. She spent her summers at the winery, doing everything from bottling line work to laboratory analysis and working in the tasting room. Attending the University of California, Davis, Violet earned a BA in music while taking classes in biology, chemistry, and enology. After graduation, she returned home to Grgich Hills to continue her education in the wine business, learning about daily operations of the winery from Mike. She received her Master of Music in harpsichord at Indiana University, and then joined the winery full-time in 1988. She’s now responsible for daily management of the winery, as well as sales and marketing. She says that she has the ideal job: “I believe that wine is part of a healthy, happy and long life. Wine brings people together and makes them happy, which makes my job extraordinarily fulfilling.”

Involved with every aspect of the wine business, Violet enjoys wearing many different hats, often at the same time. She explains, “My dad insisted that in order to lead the winery I needed to work at every single position, starting at the bottom.” Violet continues to enjoy learning something new each day and following her grandfather’s and father’s philosophy of “Every day do something just a little better.” Violet is pleased that the next generation has joined the winery: Noel Grgich Shipman, her son born in 2005, accompanies her on sales trips, and enjoys every minute of it.

The Ideal Job

Violet told us why she has the ideal job and why wine had a special place in her heart since the time she was a little girl. As you can imagine, having a dad who was a famous winemaker and icon in American wine history was a large part of her influence. The new book, A Glass Full of Miracles, talks about his humble beginnings of Miljenko (Mike) Grgich and his eventual role in putting American wine on the world map. Remember the Chateau Monetelena 1973 Chardonnay? Yep. He made that. And Violet got to pour a bottle of the the wine that won the Judgement of Paris tasting into the corner of the new Grgich Hills facility on July 4th, 1977. Talk about being a part of history!

But there’s much more to the Grgich story that begins with his fleeing the former Yugoslavia that anyone who loves wine and a good (true!) rags-to-riches story. Speaking of the Judgement of Paris there is a film in the works portraying the true events (as opposed to the liberties that were taken in a different film about the event). Fingers crossed filming will begin next summer. If you haven’t read the book by George Taber it is also a must read to understand better the Napa wine culture and history.

Bringing it Home – Literally

We were enchanted by Violet’s story about Grgić Vina, an absolutely stunning property in Croatia. As she shared a little bit about the winery’s beginnings at what was previously military building, we were ready to book a flight and go taste their special wines for ourselves! Other things we learned from Violet: how her studies of music have influenced her approach to wine – and life; what Marco Polo has to do with the Grgich family’s wine roots. Finally, she shares her funny wine story, and we think you’re going to appreciate what happened to her when she got up to speak to a room full of somms in New York with a full glass of Zinfandel.

We hope you’ll click the play button below, pour a glass, and listen to our chat with Violet!

You can purchase A Glass Full of Miracles here:

If you’d like to reach out to Violet, she can be found at Grgich Hills Estate website (where you can also buy their wines directly!) or email her at violetta@grgich.com. They are also on Facebook and Twitter.

Listener Love:

Let’s check out our our latest Speakpipe message from YuanJUIN Zh Juanjun talking about the #W25Challenge & her studies in France.

Thanks for leaving us the message. We’re so glad you’re enjoying the show and the challenge – and, are making new friends in France! Speakpipe is really cool for listeners – so feel free to drop us a message anytime, folks. How about we move on to Patreon love…

Patreon Love:

We have another EXCLUSIVE for our uber fans on Patreon. Steph posted her recipe for Villa Nuba Ragu with her photos. Go to www.patreon.com/winetwofive to see what she’s cookin’ in her kitchen in Perugia, Italy. Grazie mille to our Patreon supporters! You guys keep this show going.

TENacious Tasters: You are just as dedicated to our Wine Two Five podcast as you are to your adult beverage, wine or otherwise. We appreciate your TENacity!

Jeff E from the hilarious drinking show, We Like Drinking

“It’s not five o’clock and we don’t care” listeners. You want your podcast when you want it, and your wine when you want it. Nobody’s going to tell you when it’s time to pull that cork. Thank you:

We love you Meg from South Dakota!

Thank you Clay from Arizona!

Many thanks also to our newest patron, Jon, from California!

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Connect

Connect with Val on Twitter @WineGalUnboxed and on the Vino With Val FB page, and oninstagram as Vino with Val.

You can find Steph on Twitter @Albarellosoap and on the AlbarelloSoap FB page, and check out the videos on the Albarello YouTube channel! One more thing … don’t forget to use the #W25Challenge when you are trying new wines and drinks. Until next week …. Cheers!