On today's show, Mark and Jessica have a meandering conversation based on some more abstract concepts that Mark has be exploring. While it was originally intended to be a conversation about learning wine and wine education, Mark takes a different course and explores the relationship between wine and art. "Do we find beauty in wine" and "can imperfect wines be attractive," are some of the larger topics Mark and Jessica tackle.

Cited:

What Art Does: An Unfinished Theory, by Brian Eno

On today's show, Mark and Jessica celebrate October as Texas Wine Month with a recap of the 5th annual Texas Vintner's Cup. Sponsored by the Texas Department of Agriculture's Uncork Texas Wines program, Jessica along with Master Sommeliers Jack Mason and Steven McDonald have judged hundreds of Texas wines to come up with a full case of the top 12 wines from this year. Plus, there are an additional 30 wines that received honorable mention.

Listen in as Mark and Jessica dive into the trends, surprises, and the fun from behind the scenes of this year's judging. Also, Mark and Jessica kick off this episode by talking about Jessica's forthcoming book Italianality, due to hit shelves in March of next year.

Useful links:

Preorder Italianality by Jessica Dupuy and Andrea Lonardi

Full article on the Texas Vintners Cup at Texas Monthly

Online article on the Texas Vintners Cup

Sevenfifty Daily: Jessica's article on Volatile Acidity

On today's episode, Jessica is joined by the Marchese Anselmo Guerrieri Gonzaga, the current owner and managing director of Tenuta San Leonardo in Trentino. Over 1,000 years ago, San Leonardo was founded as a monastery, but it has served as the residence of the Marchese Guerrieri Gonzaga family for over three centuries. Anselmo elaborates on the winemaking traditions of the estate, starting with his father the Marchese Carlo being drawn to Bordeaux and eventually working with the Marquis Mario Incisa della Rocchetta at San Guido (before Sassicaia was made).

Anselmo is such an advocate for Trentino and the Bordeaux varieties in Northern Italy vs the coastal Bolgheri. Additionally, he breaks down the fascinating history of Carmenere in the region and his uncompromising attitude to creating an honest and drinkable style of wine. So many great stories in this episode, please enjoy!

Fact checking:

The weather is actually cooling off in Austin; we're currently experience a delightful Texas fall.

Bordeaux and Coonawarra Australia are both Region II on the Winkler scale of 'Growing Degree Days' with Trentino being Region III on the valley floors and Region II on the higher elevation vineyards.

Links:

San Leonardo Website