Viva la Vino

🚨 Episode 1 is live 🚨

We are so excited to present “The Wine Pro & The Wino” where we answer the questions wine lovers everywhere are constantly asking, reclaim the term “wino,” and prove that wine pros can’t possibly know everything there is to know about the world of wine. Listen in each week to hear us ask and answer a new question — and if you have episode ideas or questions of your own, let us know. We’d love to add your list to our lineup!

Make sure to click the link in the account bio to submit ideas, subscribe wherever you get your podcasts, and leave us a ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ review! We appreciate all of your support so far ❤️

- Brielle & Michelle

Ever feel like you need a wine pro to help you navigate the wild world of wine? Or do you find yourself answering wine questions from all of your wino friends? We can relate!

Brielle + Michelle, two friends who met through Instagram, have teamed up to bring you The Wine Pro & The Wino podcast, where we ask and answer your most pressing wine questions, complete with movie references, stories of what’s going on in our lives as we build small businesses in the wine world, and guest hosts who will help us all learn more about the juice we love.

Follow on Instagram and click the link in our bio to subscribe on Apple, Amazon, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts.

Thanks in advance for your support!

Cab I tell you a story?

I went to a wine tasting a few months back in LA where we tasted through a huge lineup of Cabs — mostly Cabernet Sauvignons — from the US and beyond. Some of the most well known labels were represented: Camus, Justin, Ridge, Stag’s Leap 😍 along with some new-to-me stunners.

And then…this bottle.

Here’s a funny story (you knew this was coming) about 📖

You may or may not know that Matt and I work together. We actually met working together, but at another company. That’s a meet cute for another time. Anyway, we were on a business trip in Atlanta and went out to eat at a restaurant I’d visited with once before 🙋‍♀️ We sat at the bar next to two real estate developers who had just closed a big deal. They were splitting a bottle of 2017 Dunn Howell Mountain Cab and we got to talking. Any friend of wine is a friend of mine, after all.

Before they left to meet up with the rest of their colleagues, they sent us a bottle of the wine and told us to enjoy it. We ended up bringing it back to our hotel room and finishing it the next night as a nightcap. Just as delicious on day 2!

I love how certain labels or bottles or winemakers can leave that kind of impression on the imbiber. In addition to Dunn wines being delicious (I promise this is ) I’ll always remember the kindness of strangers and the first time I tried this label, by accident, because of it.

What’s a wine you have a distinct memory with?

As you learn about food and wine, it’s totally fine to create pairings that are outside the norm or even totally unadvised. That’s how you learn what YOU prefer…and hey, wine so only good if YOU like it, right?

Are you a German Riesling fan? Tell me what to try next!

Wine will always have a pizza my heart ❤️

There's an old adage in wine: "Where it grows, it goes" which is used to suggest that wines and foods from the same area (country, region, general area of the world) often complement each other easily. I think there's no better example of this than Italian wine and pizza.

Tonight we had a family pizza party so my FIL could use his Christmas gift -- a baking stone that you heat up in the oven and then use to cook personal pizzas. My pizza of choice always includes sauce, cheese (traditional mozzarella and also something creamy like ricotta, or burrata added after baking), pepperoni, lemon-tossed arugula, peppers, and onions. That's a lot of complex flavors right?

We pulled out two bottles of 2010 Toscana -- one Sangiovese and one Super Tuscan -- and every sip tasted like magic. There's something seriously otherworldly about Italian wine: it's both simple and easy to drink AND complex and nuanced. I loved the way the dark fruit flavors of the Super Tuscan in particular danced with the saltiness of my pizza toppings. YUM!

What's your ideal personal pizza? Have you ever from-scratch-ed a pizza night like this before? 🍕

Wine and coke? That MUST be a joke…

I learned recently about ‘calimocho’ (or kalimotxo) which is a Basque name for a mixture of Rioja wine and Coca Cola, dubbed by the New York Times in 2011 as ‘the poor man’s sangria.’

Interestingly, once Coca Cola built a manufacturing facility in Spain in the 1950s, the prevalence of this drink skyrocketed. Soon it was appearing in restaurant menus and becoming a classic Spanish wine cocktail.

This 1:1 red wine to coke ratio is enjoyed in several other countries too: in South Africa and Argentina according to friends of mine who have visited!

…and while we DIDN’T try this 1996 Rioja with Coca Cola, now I am intrigued.

Has anyone else tried a ‘calimocho’ before? Would you?

🏃‍♀️ WILL RUN FOR WINE! 🍷

It's almost 2023 and you know what that means: New Year's resolutions! Now that we're allllllmost settled, I need to get back into a workout routine, so I'm committing to running (or walking!) at least one 5K every week. That's over 250K for the year and hopefully a healthier, happier me!

Did you know that out of the 41% of Americans who set New Year's resolutions, only about 9% of them actually follow through?

My friends at are helping me beat the statistics by offering wine as an incentive — and you can join me!

Buy a limited edition all-reds 6-pack of Maker cans using the link in my bio (or code VIVALAVINO at checkout) for 15% off and, along with your cans, I'll send you a racing bib so you can join me (virtually) on January 22nd for a run and a tasting of some of my favorite cans. Once you place your order, you'll also receive a calendar hold and Zoom link so we can all sip together.

Each 6-pack is enough to split with a few friends, so invite a group and let's keep our "get fit" New Years Resolutions together...for a few weeks at least!

What a ~bloody~ good Christmas!

Today was a day of sleeping in, watching eyes open wide with delight as we sat around the tree, and a traditional California feast of chips & guac, grilled romaine salads, authentic tamales, and strawberry rhubarb pie. YUM! Along with dinner we shared a bottle of rosé and another absolutely lovely bottle-aged red: a 1996 Rioja!

Before the food and festivities, my SIL created a build-your-own Bloody Mary bar and we loaded up on pickles and olives and candied bacon to help fuel us for gift giving and receiving.

I realize how fortunate I am to have a second home to come "home" to for the holidays and to get to celebrate with people I love every year. Sending all of the love to those out there for whom the holidays are tough or complicated.

Wherever you are and whatever and however you celebrate: happy everything. Wishing you a lovely week of relaxation and joy -- and warmth. It's cold out there!

This Christmas, wEVE had some delicious wine!

Every Christmas Eve (or New Year’s Eve depending on our schedules), we head to our favorite LA restaurant, Peppone’s. It’s a classic, old-school New York restaurant…smack dab in Los Angeles. It feels like home and the types of restaurants my family visits in NYC.

We bring our own wine and eat dishes that are unmatched anywhere else: lemony cauliflower, the BEST beef carpaccio I’ve ever had, and cioppino that is so big I can’t finish it!

Today while we were sitting in our usual booth, we saw a framed issue of with Peppone’s on the cover!

I always say that wine brings people together, and I constantly love finding myself in situations where I’m gathered with people I love sipping and talking about wine. Tonight was no exception.

Regardless of where you are and what you celebrate, I hope you have moments in the next few weeks where you share wine (virtually or in-person) with people you love.

Merry everything, friends!

What a wineup!

Every time we are in LA, my father in law pulls out his glasses and absolutely stupendous wine. Tonight’s lineup was a toast to a week of PTO — a 1986 Burgundy, a 1990 Bordeaux, and a 2005 Bordeaux.

Even when I’m not in the mood for a glass of wine, how can I resist?

In case you’re sitting at home wondering why these wines are so exciting, I’ll explain:

— the year on the label is the year in which the grapes were picked
— the year in which the grapes are picked is called the “vintage”
— when you hear about “fantastic vintages” you’re hearing about years in which the weather was especially favorable and the grapes ripened on an ideal timeline and were able to be made into delicious wine

In general, as wine ages it develops different aromas and flavors and the older the wine, the more of a risk you take that the wine has spoiled…but the more of a chance you take that the wine has developed beautifully and is *chef’s kiss* delicious!

(FYI, this is more relevant for red wines and for wines that are intended for long bottle age, meaning time spent in a bottle after purchase.)

If wine and aging still seems fuzzy, sign up for a class with me! We will try new releases, recent vintages, and older wines so you can see the difference for yourself!

I’ve got this year’s Christmas gifts in the bag! 😏

I give a LOT of wine gifts — wine tools like systems, wine accessories like glasses and decanters (I have a favorites round up coming soon!), and of course, bottles of wine! 🍷

I always try to make my gifts stand out, so I’m constantly on the hunt for fun packaging ideas or cute gift bags like this one from the Bullseye’s Playground section. Serve me up a good pun (or something like it) and I’m hooked!

Are you gifting wine for the holidays? If so, how are you packaging it?

Did you think we were staying in one place for the holidays? Fir-get about it! 🎄

Wishing I were back in Northern California sipping Salvestrin wine tonight with my pal Paige amongst the vines, but the weather in Los Angeles will have to do!

We left Portland today for LA to visit my in-laws for Christmas and I am already thankful for the warmer weather. Who knew this east coaster could become such a cold weather wimp?

The next week and a half will be spent tackling my end of year to do list, which includes the bigger projects I don’t have time for throughout the year but help get me back on track and organized for the year ahead. This year my list includes reviewing my wine allocations and mixing things up, updating my monthly budget, making sure I have updated contact info for friends and family, and going for runs to get back in the habit.

I’m also going to spend the time cooking meals and learning some favorite recipes from my FIL. I can’t wait to be able to replicate his French onion soup at home 😍

There’s a lot of magic in the works and I can’t wait to share it with you! What are your holiday break plans?