I'll Drink to That! Wine Talk

About I'll Drink to That! Wine Talk

A former sommelier interviews incredibly famous and knowledgeable wine personalities in his tiny apartment. He gets them to talk candidly about their lives and work, and then shares the conversations with you. To see new episodes sooner and to see all of the hundreds of back episodes in your feed, it is important to FOLLOW or SUBSCRIBE the show. It is free to do either, the show is free. Contact info- Email leviopenswine@gmail.com for advertising, consulting, speaking, or guest inquiries Instagram @leviopenswine Website illdrinktothatpod.com

Publisher

Levi Dalton

Category

arts · leisure · society & culture

Language

en

Explicit

Yes

First episode

22 Jun 2012

Latest episode

23 Jul 2026

Latest episodes

1 of 505 episodes have a transcript.

1. 

   23 Jul 2026TRANSCRIPT

   504: Is Cory Empting Writing the Next Chapter of Napa Valley Cabernet at Harlan Estate?

   Cory Empting, Managing Director of Winegrowing at Domain H. William Harlan, discusses his evolving winemaking philosophy and the future of Napa Valley Cabernet at Harlan Estate in this interview.

2. 

   13 Aug 2025

   503: Peter Jakob Kühn Found Quality Along With Pain

   Peter Jakob Kühn made the wines at Weingut Peter Jakob Kühn in Germany's Rheingau region for many decades before retiring and passing the family winery on to his son Peter Bernhard Kühn. Peter Jakob, who was born in 1954, alludes to the constrained economic situation that existed in the German countryside following the Second World War. He recalls his grandfather, who had lived through two World Wars, and the relationship that his grandfather had with the rest of the family. Peter Jakob then describes meeting his wife and taking over the family winery in 1979 in the wake of his father's death. He recalls what steps he took to improve the quality of the wines and add to the size of the estate in the early days after assuming control. He contrasts his approach to the vineyards with the post-War emphasis on high yields that some of neighbors pursued. Peter Jakob speaks about a trip to Burgundy that served as an early inspiration. He also describes the setting and landscape of the area within the Rheingau where the winery is situated. Peter Jakob converted the estate to Biodynamic farming, and he describes the very personal reasons for that and other key decisions. As the quality of the wines improved, so did Peter Jakob's level of satisfaction with his own wines and their renown in the critical press. Peter Jakob describes how his mindset changed in response to both praise and some failure from others to understand the direction he was taking the wines. Specifically, he addresses the 1999 vintage for the winery and the malolactic conversion that took place in that year and others afterwards. He then talks about how a malolactic conversion changes the characteristics of a Riesling, and describes his vision for what a Riesling can be. Then he contrasts that vision for a Riesling with the stereotype of a racy, fruity German Riesling, which he was trying to avoid. Looking back from this vantage point, Peter Jakob describes the importance of his experimental phase in the early 2000s, as he tried different techniques in the winery. He also pinpoints his motivations for making those experiments and changes in the winery. He further discusses dry Germany Riesling and his thoughts on the topic, which are intertwined with a change in the climate as well as his personal experience. As the interview comes to a close, Peter Jakob talks about handing off the winery to his son Peter Bernhard and how he has experienced the change. This episode also features commentary from: Clemens Busch, Weingut Clemens Busch Tomoko Kuriyama, Chanterêves See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

3. 

   1 Apr 2025

   502: Matt Dees Likes How Grapevines Think

   Matt Dees is the winemaker at JONATA, The Hilt, and The Paring, wineries which are located in California's Santa Barbara County. Matt recalls studying plant and soil science, and then his first job at a winery, at Shelburne Vineyard in Vermont. He then describes a chance encounter with a bottle of Staglin Family Cabernet Sauvignon, which prompted a phone call to the Staglin family and a trip to California to visit. Soon enough, Matt was working at Staglin, alternating between vintages there and in New Zealand at Craggy Range Winery. Matt discusses various early influences on his winemaking, including Andy Erickson, Doug Wiser, Adrian Baker, and Michel Rolland. He touches on learning to blend for texture and structure, with an approach to blending for the mid-palate. Matt also notes the handling of press wines, and when blending decisions are made. He talks about avoiding blending for aromatics. Matt contrasts the harvest conditions in New Zealand and in the Napa Valley in the early 2000s, as well as the resulting wines. He further talks about how some of the elements of each can be found in the wines of Santa Barbara County, and about his own transition to making wines there at JONATA. He emphasizes the diurnal shift in Ballard Canyon, the difference between the daytime and nighttime temperatures in the vineyard. Matt speaks of Santa Barbara County - and specifically Ballard Canyon - as a young region, noting the wide range of grape varieties that have been planted at JONATA as they try to figure out what works well at the site. Matt also addresses the ageing curve of the JONATA wines. He distinguishes between ageing as surviving and ageing as evolving. Matt addresses the fundamentals of the wines that he is responsible for, including harvesting and winemaking decisions. He details his approach to picking Sauvignon Blanc at different ripeness levels for the same eventual wine. He talks about a purity of fruit as an overrated concept, and explains his approach to Cabernet Franc. He shares the nuances behind picking decisions for Cabernet Franc, Syrah, and Sangiovese. He touches on the peculiarities of Sangiovese during fermentation and maturation. Matt also addresses what is necessary for a successful Merlot. He talks about Viognier, and whether or not he blends some into his Syrah. In terms of vineyard decisions, Matt discusses own rooted Cabernet Franc and Syrah, and what possibilities own rooted vines present. He talks about trial blocks of Assyrtiko, Picolit, Furmint, Xinomavro, and possibly Nerello Mascalese, as he searches for grape varieties that may do well in drought conditions. Building on that discussion, Matt touches on the characteristics of Xinomavro and Assyrtiko as wines from Ballard Canyon. After the owners of JONATA purchased further properties, Matt was presented with the opportunity to make regular trips to Burgundy, and to produce Chardonnay and Pinot Noir for The Hilt. The Hilt is centered around the vineyards of Radian and Bentrock in the Southwest corner of the Sta. Rita Hills appellation, in California. Matt talks about that area and those vineyards specifically; discussing the exposition, soil type, and peculiarities of the sites. He talks about the wines from Radian and Bentrock, which include Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Riesling, and Syrah. He details the winemaking protocols for both the Pinot Noir and the Chardonnay, and how his approach to both has changed over time. He talks about what may happen next at the property. He shares as well a frank discussion of drinking windows for Sta. Rita Hills wines. This episode also features commentary from: Andy Erickson, who co-owns Favia Wines and consults for a number of other wineries in California See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Inside a recent episode

504: Is Cory Empting Writing the Next Chapter of Napa Valley Cabernet at Harlan Estate?

Published 23 Jul 2026 · Transcript excerpt

[…] Because historically, if you go back to the seventies, you can find mountain fruit with rustic tannins and kind of a drying kind of dusty note to the tannins. And among many things that Bob was trying to do was get the tannins phenolically ripe and soft. Yeah. And when you guys took somewhat of a similar playbook over to Promontory, you were like, oh, this site is expressing entirely differently. And then how did you approach what you did next? I'll point out a small detail. And I think like, you know, there's no real definition for what makes a mountain wine versus hillside, but we certainly differentiate between hillside and mountain. […]

Reach and audience

Public platform figures. Ratings count people who left a rating, not total listeners.

Apple Podcasts (US)

4.8 / 5

1,001 ratings

Spotify

4.9 / 5

152 ratings

Podcast Authority Score: 65 / 100

A composite of feed quality, social presence, YouTube performance and engagement. Read the methodology.

Quality

93

Social presence

0

YouTube

0

Engagement

94

Contact I'll Drink to That! Wine Talk

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Based on episode analysis; this does not confirm that the show is currently accepting guests.

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