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Put Some Altitude in Your Glass
22: Showdown: Denver Wine Radio Meets Wine Two Five Podcast
Oct 17, 2018
22: Showdown: Denver Wine Radio Meets Wine Two Five Podcast
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FULL TRANSCRIPT
0:00
Wiggity, wiggity, wiggity, whack. Where's the music? Cha is out of Prozac. [laughs] [laughs] You're listening to Denver Wine Radio. It's a DJ and a winemaker yakking about music and wine.
0:14
Presented by Bona Quisti Wine Company. And now here's Cha and Paulie. [upbeat jazz music] Hey, welcome everybody to, uh, Denver Wine Radio. It's Paul Bona Quisti. Cha Cha Chavez.
0:25
Hey, welcome to, uh, a special edition of Denver Wine Radio. We have, uh, two guests in the studio today. Very excited to have Val and Stephanie from the Wine To Five podcast. [laughs] Aha. Did I get it right?
0:40
I love that. That's it, yes. [clears throat] Wine, T-W-O F-I-V-E, like I-25. That's right. [laughs] That's awesome.
0:47
So, uh, what, tell us, tell us about the Wine To Five podcast, 'cause I know you both talk about wine, and maybe you can gimme, give us a little of your background too, 'cause you're into wine education and, and- We are...
0:59
yeah. What- We are... what's it all about? Steph, you wanna start? Oh, go for it, Val. All right. I love, I love how Steph usually tees it up.
1:06
So Steph and I met while seeking our certified wine educator certifications through the Society of Wine Educators.
1:12
Steph lives two and a half hours away from me, two five, up I-25 in Fort Collins, and we met through a mutual friend, and we formed a study group of women who were studying for our CWE exam.
1:25
And for those of you who don't know, that's a six-part exam. It's pretty grueling.
1:29
And, uh, Steph and I had skin in the game, so we started kind of studying really hard for this thing, 'cause we had already had our exam dates, and we just kind of clicked. Yeah.
1:39
And what we did is we recorded our lessons on a conference calling app. And so if somebody couldn't be in the study group at 7:00 AM Sunday morning, then they could listen to the recorded call. Yeah.
1:52
And there was a call that I missed, and when I listened to it in the car, you know, studying- [laughs]... I, I thought, "Val is so funny. She should have her own podcast."
2:05
'Cause I would just listen to her talk about wine whenever, 'cause she's so great. And so I told her, I said, "You should have your own podcast."
2:14
[laughs] And then, uh, it wasn't long before that that she goes, "Hey, guess what? We're gonna have a podcast." [laughs] Nice.
2:22
So, uh, Val, did you, did you guys just one day just wake up and say, "Okay, I wanna learn more about wine?" Has this been something, you know, like for years? I mean, how long have you been doing this? Oh my gosh.
2:33
Well, I always say I, I w- I'm actually retired military, so that's what I did- Right on... for 25 years, and I was looking for just something different to do temporarily.
2:42
So I actually, when I retired from the Air Force, I went to Italy to study wine for a year, and I thought it would just be a one-time thing, then I'll get back in the cubicle, start doing security clearance.
2:50
Go hang out and have fun. Yeah. You know, just kind of figure out who I was gonna be, and then I knew from there on I was gonna study and learn.
2:58
And then I returned to Italy the following year and I went right, turned right back around and went to France, and I'm like, "Oh, I'm gonna study French wine and French language," and I went and studied Italian language full-time in, uh, Italy as well.
3:10
Wow.
3:10
So I did all this, and it was the following year when I was seeking out whatever I could do in the States that I actually came up here to Bona Quisti, and I actually met Paul and sat in a class right here in this room that was being given by another agency, because I took the GI Bill and I was looking to find a place that would take the GI Bill.
3:28
And I did end, end up over at Denver Metro, but it all started from there. That instructor said, "Hey, try the Society of Wine Educators." Went to the Society of Wine Educators. "Hey, do the CSW. Hey, get the CWE."
3:40
Met Steph. And, and I am a, I am a wine education junkie. [laughs] You are. She is. [laughs] I would definitely say she's a junkie.
3:48
And, uh, it's so cool that all these things bring us together, 'cause even the, the friend of ours, Andrea Rogers, that brought us together, I had met her in like 2007 in, um, Steamboat.
4:01
So it's just funny how these things bring people together over and over again years later and, and now we're, uh, podcasting about wine so that we can really reach a greater audience.
4:13
Um, because I'm in Fort Collins and Valerie's in Colorado Springs, not necessarily wine meccas. [laughs] Yeah. You know? And we don't have people like clamoring down our doors to learn about wine.
4:25
So when we can put it out there and people can listen from all over the world, we have listeners in, uh, Italy and France and Germany- Scotland... Scotland. That's so cool. Yeah. Yeah.
4:36
So, and they communicate with us, and it's really special. That's so awesome. Yeah. Today's technology, huh? I know. It is, uh... [laughs] Yeah. So you're fluent in, uh, Italian?
4:47
I am conversational to the third-grade level. So, [laughs] so you and Paul could, like... [laughs] I'm not, uh- Oh, you're not? I'm, I'm, I'm maybe kindergarten. [laughs] Yes. If I'm lucky. [laughs] Yes.
4:58
I can have a conversation with a seven-year-old, and I always start when I'm traveling by just explaining that I'm learning, but please speak to me in Italian.
5:05
«Sto imparando la lingua italiano, per favore parla in italiano.» Please speak to me in Italian. I'm learning, and I don't wanna hear English [laughs] when I'm, when I'm traveling.
5:15
But, you know, and then I make a fool out of myself in some way, and I- [laughs]... I make an eggplant feminine when it's, or, or, or feminine, make an eggplant masculine when it's really feminine and- Right...
5:25
the old ladies in the grocery store yell at me, but that's how you learn. That's how you learn. Yeah. Yes. Exactly. Right.
5:29
So the, the Wine To Five podcast, you, you guys have been around now for, uh, you're starting your fourth season. Yeah. Right? Well, it'll be- Is that, is that correct?
5:37
We're on our fourth season, and we'll be celebrating our fourth anniversary next April. Podcastiversary. Wow. Podcastiversary time.
5:47
[laughs] So we usually try and do something fun for that, but actually- Does it get crazy? [laughs] Yeah. Yeah. Does it get nuts?
5:51
[laughs] But, uh, but before that, we'll be celebrating our 200th episode, uh, right at the first of the year. That's amazing. So it's like- Wow. That's very- Beginning of January... that's very cool... so.
6:01
That's very cool. Yeah, and you, and you were telling me earlier, you, you drop, uh, every Thursday you drop an episode. Yeah.
6:06
We have a new show every week, drops on Thursday, and you don't have to listen in sequence, so you can cherry-pick, you know, what looks good to you. You can start from here and go forward.
6:18
Uh, but we do have listeners who binge, just like Netflix, and they go all the way back to the beginning and they don't wanna miss anything. So I think that's really cool, too.
6:28
And when they tell us where they're listening, like where they're at, it's just fun to be on the journey with them, too. Yeah. Mm-hmm. Absolutely.
6:35
What are, what are some of your favorite wines that you've discovered along the way? Or you love telling people about, uh- That is a tough one. It is.
6:43
Well, you know, you mentioned earlier in our interview that you brought in some Albarosa. Yes.
6:48
And that grape, we had a very special grape gab about Am- Albarosa last year because we had met, uh, Suzanne Hoffman, who wrote The Wine Families book, and she talked about that, that grape and that producer, and he supplied some of that wine for a presentation that we did in Portland last year.
7:06
So that kind of struck something with me, 'cause that's not a grape everybody hears about- Yeah... or knows a lot about.
7:12
So discovering those crazy wines via the people we meet from the interviews or the places we go, that's kind of fun. Yeah. And it's also cool, we were just in the Finger Lakes region of New York doing a conference.
7:26
We were there as participants and, and Valerie also as a speaker, and one of our listeners brought a very special bottle of mag- a magnum sized bottle of Via Dere Vineyards, uh, with her to, in her suitcase, to share with our other listeners.
7:45
Wow. And it was something that we talked about on a previous episode. So there was a lot going on with just people having listened to the show.
7:54
We had one of our supporters, listeners as a guest on the show, and then she shows up with a bottle of wine from that episode and, you know, I think that's what makes all of these wines that we talk about and, and the people we meet so memorable and all podcasting makes it worth it, you know.
8:12
It's a community. Yeah. It definitely is. Uh, the, the shows that I follow and [laughs] I feel like I'm part of it and connect with the- Yeah... with the hosts and yeah, so. Yeah. Should I, should I get that? Yeah.
8:24
[laughs] Yeah. [laughs] Paul can't come to the phone right now. We have a caller on line one. Yeah. [laughs] That's good. Hello, caller, you're on the air. [laughs] What's your burning wine question? Yeah, really.
8:39
Well see, we should have done the show live and we could have got the, we could have put that out there. [laughs] Oh, totally. That would've been fun. Okay, that's for another time. That is definitely. That's right.
8:46
We're coming back for that. You gotta come back- That's awesome... 'cause I want to open wine on the show and 'cause Shawn and I, we taste wine on the show. Mm-hmm.
8:53
'Cause we're learning and so we definitely want to have you back and taste wine with you. Yeah. Oh, we would like that. We would like that. And you just real quick, we touched on something, we're learning. Mm-hmm.
9:03
And this is something that, you know, Steph and I have established ourselves as, as we all have, you know, we like to say, "Hey, we've studied this stuff. This isn't a hobby, this is our profession.
9:11
This is what we love." But we're always learning and I don't care, you know, if you have the diploma, if you have the MW, I don't care what you have, you're always learning and nobody knows everything there is to know.
9:22
And we drink on the show just to make sure we're always learning. [laughs] There you go. Yeah. I'm always learning how to say something correctly is what I'm learning. [laughs] We all are. We all are.
9:30
But we all speak wine.
9:32
But, you know, and, and that's so true, uh, the way you said that because even now I'm, I'm starting my 13th vintage here, but when I, I still talk to other wine makers and other people and, uh, and I'm, I ask them questions like it's my first vintage.
9:46
[laughs] Like, "Huh? What do you..." You know? And, um, uh, so, but I'm always learning and fascinated by what I fi- what I can find out. Yeah. Yeah. Us too. Well, the world of wine is dynamic and it changes very fast.
9:57
Yeah. And then when you travel on and then you, your eyes just go wide open. I've never heard of this. I don't know anything about this, you know?
10:05
So tasting it, being there, that's one of the cool things that we try and also bring to the show and connect with the listeners that live, uh, in other countries. Mm-hmm. That Val and I have been able to do that too, so.
10:17
Right. I think that's, I, that's the best part to me of, of technology is people from other countries. Yeah. You know, other backgrounds, cultures, they can listen. Yeah.
10:28
Just like, you know, I have a friend when I was on the, on the air, she lived in the Netherlands and it would be like 3:00 in the morning there. Yeah. And she would text me. [laughs] Yeah. "I'm listening." That's funny.
10:38
You know? Or, "My dad wants to hear." And it is, it's crazy because it's like, but at the same time it's awesome. Yeah. You know? Yeah. Before, uh, we go any further, I would like to say thank you for your service.
10:51
Oh, well thank you very much. Thank you very, very much for your service. Thank you. And all the years that you spent, uh, you know, protecting our country and- Thank you...
10:59
and now you're spreading the word about wine and- It was a good life. I always say the military made me drink, now I get paid to do it. So. [laughs] Yes. No, it was a good life. Thank you. Right on. Well, all right.
11:09
Is that it, Paulie? I think that's it. Till we meet again. Till we meet again. Well, until we drink wine. Till we drink wine. Yeah. Till we break glasses.
11:16
So, but, uh, so tell us, uh, tell, tell everybody where to, where to listen and how to listen. Okay. You can find us at wine2five.com. That's wine, T-W-O-F-I-V-E.com.
11:29
We are also on pretty much all the social spaces at wine2five. Sometimes I think Instagram we're at wine2fivepodcast, so, and, uh, we're building on the Instagram. Mm-hmm. Good. So that's going well for us.
11:43
But yeah, Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest, all that good stuff. And, uh, hit subscribe wherever you like to listen to your podcasts. Pinterest is the best.
11:54
You can learn how to paint your bathroom and drink at the same time. [laughs] There you go. While you're painting the bathroom. [laughs] Perfect. It's a perfect combination. I love it. It's true.
12:02
I'll have to check that out, Shawn. It is. How to make a bed frame out of a pallet. [laughs] The danger, once you're there, you never leave. And drink wine. And learn about Barbera. [laughs] Exactly. [laughs] Exactly.
12:13
It's the same thing. It's perfect. That's right. Good. Yeah. Once again, I feel like I'm at the, um, bridal... Remember when we- Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah... we did the show with Joe? Exactly. An expo or something?
12:24
I was- No... no, I was, I was the only guy in a, but it was just Shawn, uh, and our friend Joe Myers. Yeah. And, uh, they were talking girly stuff- [laughs]... and then I felt like I was at a baby shower.
12:34
Baby shower or something. [laughs] You know? And I was the only guy there. Yeah. I said you're gonna- And I sat quietly in the corner. [laughs] You're gonna play all the crazy games, you know? Oh, shoot.
12:42
That we do at baby showers. I don't like baby showers, so. So you're saying you don't do Pinterest, Paul? I don't do Pinterest. [laughs] I, I don't do a lot of it either, so.
12:50
[laughs] But my wife shares a board with me that I'm supposed to go look at. [laughs] There we go. It's full of honey-do projects, let's say that, so. [laughs] Not full of wine. [laughs] That's good. All right.
12:59
So, uh, well, hey, thanks for being here and, um, where are you guys off to? Uh, you traveling soon? I'm going to Charleston actually soon, so- Oh, nice... uh, there'll definitely be some good, uh, food scene down there.
13:11
Oh, yeah. Cocktails and food. That is food mecca down there. Yeah. You're gonna love it. Nice. Yeah. All right. Well, uh, thanks for being on the show here today and, uh, hey, listen. And? And what else? But what? Oh,
13:24
you gotta put some altitude in your glass. That's right. Yes. I love that when you guys say that. Right? Put some altitude in your glass. Put it in your glass 'cause there's a lot of great Colorado wine out there. Okay?
13:36
That's great, Paul. Yes. And then report- It'll put a skip in your step... report back to us. Exactly. Indeed
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