Ep 279: Greg La Follette of Alquimista Cellars and pioneer of Sonoma, CA Pinot Noir
Release Date: 06/03/2019
Ep 333: Richard Betts, Former Master Somm, Shows What Moral Fortitude REALLY Looks Like
Wine for Normal People
After nearly two decades as a Master Sommelier, feeling disillusioned by the lack of evolution in the organization, Richard Betts altered the wine world forever by being the first person to resign as a Master Sommelier. In the show, he tell us about his journey and his decision. He shares what it really means to choose integrity over status and exclusivity and we talk about why the Court of Master Sommeliers is such a problematic organization riddled with bias and fear.
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Ep 332: Tahiirah Habibbi from the Hue Society Is On a Mission to Diversify Wine
Wine for Normal People
Tahiirah Habibbi is an accomplished sommelier who has worked in some of the most prestigious hotels and restaurants in south Florida. As a black female sommelier, however, it has been a mixed bag. While her experience fostered her love of learning and wine, it also exposed her to the ugly world of racism in the wine industry. She tells us about her journey, how she founded The Hue Society to help other black and brown people who want to pursue wine, and what we can do to be more inclusive in wine.
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Ep 331: Carnuntum -- Austria's Newest, Oldest Quality Red Wine Region with Christina Netzl
Wine for Normal People
Carnuntum is a small wine region in Austria with only 2% of the wine growing area, but it packs a punch in quality. A short drive from Vienna, Carnuntum is an old Roman hub, with a rich history and its wine is only just making an impact on the international wine scene. Christina Netzl, from Weingut Netzl joins – a producer who is largely responsible for putting this region on the map and making its red wines, especially of Zweigelt, so well-known and respected.
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Ep 330: Journalistic Integrity in Wine with Don Kavanagh of Wine-Searcher
Wine for Normal People
The question comes up again and again in wine: who can we read that is trustworthy and who reports on the truth? We know it isn't the glossy magazines or writers who are in the inner circle.
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Ep 329: Muscadet - The Overlooked White of the Loire
Wine for Normal People
The wine world often looks at Muscadet with disdain for its lighter body and subtlety of flavor. But for white wine lovers who care less about showiness and just want something with the interplay of acidity with nutty, bread flavors and soft textures, this historic wine is a thrill. This week we discuss this westernmost area of Loire Valley, which lies along the banks of the Loire and its tributaries and how it has remade itself into a place with serious wines.
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Ep 328: The Wines of Lebanon
Wine for Normal People
With a history that stretches back perhaps 9,000 years to 7,000 B.C., Lebanon contains some of the original winemaking areas. In spite of political turmoil, violence, and opposition to wine and winemaking, this country has always found a way to keep production alive. Its unlikely location and small size may seem, at first glance, to be an impossibility for quality wine but the geography and the fortitude of the people here have created a unique and enduring wine culture.
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Ep 327: Wine Ingredient Labeling Pushes Forward in the EU -- with Barnaby Eales
Wine for Normal People
This topic may seem too dorky, but consider a world where you could look at a wine label and see if there was unwanted sweetness, or if the wine was packed with chemicals. Barnaby Eales, noted international journalist, discusses the benefits of transparency -- for wine drinkers, for "conventional producers" who are vilified by natural wine advocates, and for the entire wine industry. As the EU moves to make this law, we can only hope it will set a new worldwide standard -- learn the details in this show.
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Ep 326: The Best Spanish Wines You've Never Heard of -- Jumilla and Yecla
Wine for Normal People
Tucked into a small corner of southeast Spain is one of the greatest sources for delicious, multi-layered and decadent reds you’ll find. In the province of Murcia, at latitude 39˚N lay two regions of Monastrell (Mourvèdre) production that have quietly churned out wine for more than 3,000 years: Jumilla (joo-ME-yah) and Yecla (YAY-clah).
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Ep 325: The Greats -- Alsace Riesling
Wine for Normal People
Alsace Riesling is, without a doubt, one of the greatest white wines of the world. With its rich body, effusive flavor that ranges from flowers to fruit to nuts and spice, and acidity to keep it in balance, this liquid gold has been famed for centuries. It was the wine that got me into wine, my "aha" wine but even without that, I would still love the wine.
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Ep 324: Chile's Cool Climate Wines of Casablanca, San Antonio Valleys
Wine for Normal People
Cool climate wines from 33˚S latitude? YES! Just west of the famed red wine regions of Maipo and Aconcagua are the Casablanca and San Antonio Valleys, which make cool climate wines for incredible value.We let you in on the secret of these exquisite wines!
info_outlineGreg La Follette is known in the wine world as a founding father of California Pinot Noir. A former seminarian and biochemist with degrees in Plant Biology and Chemistry, he was an early AIDS researcher at the University of California San Francisco before earning his masters degree in Food Science and Technology at the University of California Davis.
Greg has worked for BV, started La Crema and Hartford Court for Jackson Family Wine (Kendall-Jackson), started Sonoma Pinot cult brand Flowers and his own brands LaFollette (which he sold) and now Alquimista. Greg has consulted all over the world – in northern California, Oregon, Europe, South America, and Australia. He is widely considered an expert on Pinot Noir.
Here are a few things we chatted about:
- Greg's early history, including his time with André Tchelistcheff, the father of American Viticulture (also mentioned in Ep 275: http://winefornormalpeople.libsyn.com/webpage/category/ep-275-lane-tanner-the-pinot-czarina-of-santa-barbara-county-california)
- The allure of Pinot Noir and the various styles Greg has made over the years -- from big and brawny at Flowers to elegant and earthy at Alquimista. Greg talks about winegrowing and the challenges of Pinot Noir (and why Chardonnay is important to grow as a sanity check!)
- The influence Burgundy has had on Greg's wine over the years
- The fascinating chronicles of working at La Crema, starting Flowers for someone else, starting and selling Tandem (now La Follette) and then departing to the best stop: Alquimista Cellars!
- We discuss Patrick Dillon, Greg's partner in Alquimista (and a Pulitzer Prize winning journalist, writer, editor), and how their styles combine to make a style of Pinot Noir and Chardonnay you won't find elsewhere in California.
Alquimista's wines are spectacular. Check them out!
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