I am still recovering a bit from IPNC weekend, and if given a chance, I would do it all over again! I got the opportunity to meet new people from all over the world. I also got the opportunity to put some names with real-life faces! There is one moment that stood out above the rest, though.

Saturday night was Salmon Bake. Everyone brought crazy bottles to share. I decided on a 2008 Holloran Le Pavillon Riesling for Salmon Bake and didn't open it until late into the evening. As I walked around to share, I ran into Mark La Gasse, the winemaker at Holloran, who was pouring the 2021 Holloran Le Pavillon Riesling. What are the chances we were both pouring different vintages of the exact wine? He asked a couple of times, "How did you get that bottle?"

The last in-person IPNC was in 2019. I remember working on my first newsletter while looking at those pictures in awe of everyone who went. I had begun my journey of documenting wineries to visit and wines to taste. It's hard to imagine it's been three years this week I started the journey.

The first newsletter went out to 9 subscribers talking about Bella Vida. 8 of those subscribers are still reading it today! I am now eight subscribers away from 1,800 and a crazy open rate of at least 65%. It has been a fun ride, and I can't wait to see where the next three years take us!

A couple of winemakers are moving around this week. Vince Vidrine, who was at Irvine and Roberts, and Benton Lane, is making his way to Cowhorn in Southern Oregon. Bryan Weil is leaving Alexana for a new project I have very few details on (if you know something, let me know). Tresider Burns, who has worked at Lemelson, Brittan, and White Rose, will replace Bryan at Alexana. Does anyone know who is replacing Tresider at White Rose?

Barrons had a great piece on Resonance​

Time to partake in dinners while the weather is cooperating! Arlyn is having one on August 20th, and The Joel Palmer House is having another on August 25th.

It is a podcast week, and in looking at the schedule, there are nine podcast episodes left for the year. It is mind-boggling to think the end of the year is fast approaching.

I had the pleasure of speaking with Vincent Fritzsche from Vincent Wine Company. Back in 2020, when I was doing A.J.'s Happy Hour, Vincent decided to join us. Before the virtual meetup, I met Vincent for the first time in the parking lot of New Seasons so I could deliver wine to everyone. I also have to shout out to Andrew West, who said we should have Vincent join us for the Happy Hour!

Over the years, I have kept in touch and tasted at his winery in Eola, somewhat near Brooks. Vincent's background comes from academia, but in casual conversation, you would never guess how well read and down-to-earth he is. Being a one-person show, Vincent's wines fall under the "If You Know, You Know" umbrella. There is no allocation or membership. Visiting the website, there is a form to sign up for his mailing list, and that's it. He sends an email in the Fall and Spring, and if you want wine, great! If not, wait until the next release to see what strikes your fancy.

My conversation with Vincent felt like sitting with a friend to catch up. We got a little long-winded, but what struck a chord with me was how Vincent's Wine Epiphany was at the age of five. We also dive into Team Flip Flip, and his Napa Project. Below are all the links and an outline of our talk. I hope you enjoy and it helps me so much when you do all the likes and subscribes on YouTube, Apple Podcast, and Spotify (so many platforms to keep happy). Also, if you don't email me telling me the interview was awful, I will assume it was the best interview ever!

• ​YouTube​
• ​Apple Podcasts​
• ​Spotify​

Outline of our conversation

• 00:00 Intro
• 02:30 Wine epiphany at the age of five
• 07:15 Revisiting Napa and going to Grad school
• 13:15 Advice to your younger self in 2009
• 17:15 Early on grassroots marketing with the blog
• 20:30 I messed up on my research by thinking Vincent did coding
• 22:40 Lessons on letting wine do its thing instead of forcing it
• 30:54 Team Flip Flop in Napa
• 34:35 The story behind Vincent's long hair
• 39:15 The Napa project
• 51:40 Rapid Fire Questions

With Gratitude,

A.J.