Like all great songwriters, Matt Quinn from LA band Mt Joy started all of his formal music training – in his bedroom in Philly
Even though Matt always had a desire to write and create music, he eventually started law classes.
He was deep into tort law class when he saw that his first release Astrovan had 60,000 plays in one day on Spotify.
So much for the law career.
The second Mt Joy album is called Rearrange Us
Matt describes the release as a “breakup album” with an ending that speaks to personal growth and progress in the face of sorrow and is filled with hits!
Jason Priestley. Naomi Priestley – North Hollywood, Ca.
The Priestleys
I’ve been very happy to call them friends for a long time.
Jason Priestley and I would see each other at auditions for TV and film roles in Vancouver.
Then he headed for LA and the rest you know.
Jason and TDM
Along with Producer Chad Oakes., we created and co hosted Hollywood and Vines TV. 3 years of shows from vineyards and kitchens in Italy, USA (California, Washington and Arizona), Mexico and across Canada.
He met Naomi while acting in London. Jay didn’t know it yet but he was “done, like dinner”.
Naydog is a force… We had lots to get caught up on. The kids, the USA and it’s pandemic and political crisis.
Plus three wines. The Rose they were drinking and my two – both with stories attached. Winemakers Cut and “The Mulligan” from Behrens and Hitchcock.
Nay asks about returning to The Guadalupe Valley outside of Ensenada Mexico. It was just waking up to the possibilities of winemaking there when we visited over 10 years ago. Now it’s just exploded.
We talk about the status of his current series Private Eyes, thoughts on shooting film and tv down the road and how their family, their neighbours and fellow Californians are handling 2020.
Its casual but a lot of fun. It gets serious a couple of times because it’s a serious time we’re all living in. Cheers. Enjoy!!
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jason_Priestley
Mark Wachtin and Mich Pambrun (Storied Wines and Spirits)
These two interviews were left over from our coverage of Swirl and Untapped in Parksville earlier this year.
Parksvilles gorgeous beaches!
I really like these guys and their outstanding portfolio. They represent…
(Vancouver Island)
Rathjen, Unsworth, Wayward Distillation
(Okanagan)
Anthony Buchanan
Bella
Lock and Worth
Desert Hills
Kitsch
Nagging Doubt
Nichol Vineyard
Synchromesh
Ursa Major
Skaha Vineyards
Scenic Road Cidery
Tall Tale
That is an impressive list of clients.
You can tell these guys know their wines and winemakers.
Mark Wachtin
Mark Wachtin
Founder – Storied Wines & Spirits
It’s all about the people—conversations, stories and histories. Vancouver Island raised (free range) with a lifetime in hospitality, Mark’s drawn to smaller, family-run operations, sustainable farming and handcrafted production methods.
Motivated by both the traditional and the new wave of producers, Mark has paired wine and food in world-class hotels, restaurants and eateries. Mark’s commitment is best expressed in his strong relationships with sommeliers, chefs, bartenders, servers and retail product consultants.
Mich Pambrun
Mich Pambrun
North Island Sales & Marketing Representative
Michel Pambrun, former DJ and hospitality pro from Manitoba, is an Internationally accredited sommelier. Michel celebrates natural, sustainable terroir-driven wines and their environments.
His many distinctions include participation in multiple Gold Medal Plates events curating pairings and perhaps his finest harvest, the raising of two incredible daughters.
Kinnie Starr just co-wrote the powerful single, THE BEST, with Amanda Rheaume and is looking into the future with hope!
2020 will see the release of her soundtrack for the award-winning Edge of the Knife directed by Gwaai Edenshaw and Helen Haig-Brown and a follow-up podcast to Play Your Gender, the documentary film Kinnie released in 2016 on gender equity in the music industry.
September 4-5-6 Kinnie will co-headline with Buffy Ste Marie and Snotty Nose Rez Kids at 2RiversRemix, a live stream of Contemporary Indigenous Music
Normally it would have taken place in Lytton. BC but nothing is normal about 2020.
Kinnie and I talk about her thoughts on Nation Indigenous Day, her soundtrack for Edge of the Knife, and the 2RiversRemix event next weekend.
We started April by showcasing the wine events that would have happened in early 2020 except for the fact that the Earth was fighting a pandemic.
First was event was –
Locals Only. Vancouver Islands best showcase of distillers, winemakers, brewers and cider makers.
Then Okanagan Falls & Skaha Lake Wine Assn pour in Vancouver. They were shut down. So we went back to 2019 and talked to the very same wineries. When people could shake hands and stand next to one another.
This week its Top Drop Vancouver/Victoria.
Top Drop is simply one of the best small wine festivals anywhere.
They ask of applicants to be sustainable, honour the fruit, don’t mess with the winemaking and be true to the land.
Unsworth Cowichan Valley
It’s become an astounding collection of “must taste” wineries.
We go back to years 4 and 5 to relive the interviews.
To salute BC Wine Month, we have collected only interviews with BC wineries.
Living and Working in New Zealand. Work is singing and songwriting in the music business.
Actually, the real work is being a mother and wife. Then comes work.
If you like the power of voices like Etta James & Patsy Kline then Tami is your kind of singer.
But she’s more than that.
A feminist, mother, and social activist.
Her latest album is Chicka Boom. It’s fantastic. Just like Tami
We’re going to talk about starting over, women in country music, expectations of a Mother in music, double standards, and what being a Canadian still means.
The Grand Crew Collective and Graham Pierce pours Kitsch in Victoria!
THE SHOW
The Press Release said it all.
The Grand Crew is a Collective of fiercely committed Okanagan wineries with a passion for sustainable farming and small-lot winemaking.
Unlike other “regional gatherings,” these wineries are from four different Okanagan regions. What they have in common is a “garagiste “ attitude. Smaller batches of wine, a true “hands-on” approach.
Each winemaker creates something unique, but they meet regularly to share insights, growing and winemaking tips, and resources so that they can each continue to craft some of the best wines in the region.
They have joined with Kelowna’s Public Liquor to offer a sample box of their releases, curated by the winemakers themselves! The limited-edition inaugural Grand Crew Collective box is available in-store or online, visit Public Liquor to get yours.
Black Market Wine Co. Rob Hammersley Owner/Winemaker (Kaleden)
Black Market Wine Co.
2019 Omerta Syrah Rose $24
A crisp, dry rosé made from 100% Syrah. Aromas of wild strawberries, cherries, and a hint of watermelon. The palate dominated by wild red berries and rhubarb. With crisp acidity, this wine finishes dry.
2017 Syndicate. $35
50% Merlot. 31% Cab Franc. 19% Petit Verdot. 100% Yummy
21 months French Oak. (40% new) Lots of black fruit, Dark chocolate. Tobacco.
Estate-grown Chardonnay shows yummy citrus, pear, and mineral notes with a subtle touch of vanilla from aging in 25% new French oak puncheons. On the nose and palate, lemon, green apple, and minerality. A true cold-climate Chardonnay, this wine offers beautiful balance, crisp acidity, and hangs a long time in the mouth.
2018 The Leap – $23. Rob says The Leap is the younger brother of The Pull. Plumb, Blackberry, and Cherry. Oak and Vanilla note. 60% Merlot. 27% Cab Franc. 13% Malbec. 18 months in new French oak. Bingo!
The Leap
Niche Wine Co. Joanna and James Schlosser. Owners/Winemaker (West Kelowna)
Joanna – James Schlosser Niche Wine Co
2019 Small batch bubbles – $26
Buttery texture. Homegrown. Handmade. Stirred weekly for 5 months. Limited production. Off-dry. Only 185 cases. Much sought after.
Pinot Noir Blanc – $24 Strawberries, lots of berries frankly. Made from just two barrels. 95 cases.
Again. $24 bucks. Oysters. Charcuterie. Or by itself. Hide from family and friends.
Tender Hope Winery – Efi Perel Owner. Winemaker (West Kelowna)
Eli Perel – Rob Westbury
Efi began his winemaking in Israel. Now 25 years later he’s fully Okanagan.
2019 Rose Bubble. VQA. $23
Whole cluster. Combo of Stainless steel and French oak. Melon. Strawberry. A light touch of PNE Candy Floss.
2018 Fire Dance Meritage
This wine is made up of a ripe and balanced blend of 50% Merlot, 21% Cabernet Franc, 15% Cabernet Sauvignon, and 14% Malbec sourced from the southern limit of Canada’s pocket desert. Rich dark fruit, blueberry, chocolate, wood spice, and smooth mouth feel and a spicy finish.
Winemaker’s Cut – Michal Mosney co-owner and winemaker. (Oliver)
Michal and his wife moved from winemaking in Croatia directly to the Okanagan.
They have become a force, making us even better.
Michael Mosney Winemakers Cut
2019 Gruner Veltliner $26
Shades of Slovakia!
Peach, pear, and citrus aromas along with beautiful minerality and a touch of white pepper and marzipan. Hello Gruner!!!
2018 Bohemia Cuvee $26 and $36
Michal makes a Blanc and a Rose.
Blanc is Sauvignon Blanc, Semillon, Viognier.
Rouge is Cab, Merlot, Cab Franc, Petit Verdot, AND Syrah. (Pepper. Herbs. Dark Fruit)
Winemaker and GM Graham Pierce – Kitsch Wine pours in Victoria.
I felt I owed this revisit with Graham Pierce. First, he’s a friend, second he’s one of the best winemakers in Canada (think Black Hills and Note Bene) and lastly, my previous interview placed Graham in the uncomfortable position of having to explain the wines of former gifted winemaker Grant Biggs.
Graham Pierce
When I saw that Graham was pouring for the wine community in Victoria I headed South from Nanoose Bay and met him on the 6th floor deck at Laurel Point in the inner harbour.
Beauty spot but windy that day. Plus it was the first time I was doing an interview with masks on. So the audio is a tad muffled but that goes with the times. Mask Up!
Here’s what we tasted.
2016 Blanc de Blancs ($39)– Lime, Granny Smith apples, crème Brulee. In other words delicious. New vintage coming soon.
2018 Ester’s Block Riesling($25)– classic Riesling. Nectarines and Apricots..add peach and ginger notes and you’ll love this wine.
2019 Pinot Gris ($22) – clean citrus on the nose. Green apples and minerality. Beauty.
2019 Block Party ($21) – I’m a Block Party fan. Pinot Gris, Chardonnay, Riesling, and Pinot Noir all from the same block. From the 5 blocks on the family vineyard. You just know this is going to be an interesting experience.
2018 Chardonnay ($24)– (Tentree) Really approachable wine. One bottle bought plants 5 mangrove trees in the Village of Mahabana, Madagascar. Get your bottle soon.
2018 Pinot Noir ($40)– Star anise, forest floor, clean and bright.
2018 Cabernet Franc ($36) Oh Hell yes. More, please. Elderberries, lilacs. Intriguing minerality. Spice and red berries.
Sandra Oldfield & BC’s Women in Wine and Jeff Hundertmark from Mt Boo & Modest Wines!
THE SHOW
Sandra’s email said it all “let’s feature BC women in wine”.
Sandra Oldfield is currently the President of Elysian Projects Inc., a company that supports BC’s wine industry. Sandra is best known as the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Tinhorn Creek Vineyard, kick starting Oliver’s Festival of the Grape in 1997 and has always advised tourism in the province.
Her recent tweet says she’s was born in the same Oakland Hospital as Kamala Harris a year and a half after the VP candidate.
It’s fair to say we took some time organizing these names.
Sandra describes some of them as unsung heroes and some you’ll recognize instantly.
It appears we will be doing this feature again soon as there were LOTS of winemakers/owners we had to leave off just to make room. That’s a good thing.
BC is blessed with an abundance of women in wine and there are many more joining them each year.
“We are a team of artists & technologists passionately building an efficient, friendly and transparent marketplace where anybody can perform, host, or curate shows for their communities”
And then this –
“Although our company was originally for in-person shows only, we quickly expanded to the online sphere, once gatherings became unsafe. Our job is to help artists, curators, festivals, and venues keep creating shows and help audiences find them.
When faced with a crisis, it is always art that helps us through. Whether it offers comfort, community, understanding, solace, distraction, or perspective, art has always been something humanity employs to make it through pain and suffering. We are committed to supporting the creators in safe and innovative ways to connect to their audience.”
Laura Simpson Co-Founder & CEO
Laura’s founding partner is Dan Mangan, a singular artist who knows about endless road trips, rooms full of strangers, and surviving the hard road.
SideDoor started several years ago as a way for emerging artists to play stages in towns, cities, regions, and provinces.
The stages were storefronts, backyards, front rooms, porches, tennis courts, and actual stages.
Forward to 2019 and a World epidemic that changed everyone’s life.
Dan tells the story of where he was and how Sidedoor Access became “The Thing”
Here’s the story of how Dan, Laura, and Sidedoor became a sensation and changed their lives. Again.
This is the first repeat that we’ve presented on the Podcast. It comes from working on a Mulligan Stew special celebrating our many years at the Edmonton Folk Music Festival. One interview stood out. This one with Rhiannon Giddens. It was 2018 and she was returning to the festival for the first time since taking time away from her friends in Carolina Chocolate Drops. She was now a solo artist with T Bone Burnett producing and mentoring. That’s a matter of record. What was outstanding were her comments 2 years ago on Black Lives Matter, civil rights, the history of black struggle in America, and her place in that struggle. Powerful words and opinions. As essential today as they were 2 years ago. We present Rhiannon Giddens. The complete interview.
Recorded live at the Edmonton Folk Music Festival, Rhiannon Giddens talks to Terry David Mulligan about stepping into the spotlight as a solo artist, the influence T-Bone Burnett has had on her career, her latest record ‘Freedom Highway’ and her thoughts on the recent sea change in American politics.
Kinnie Starr just co-wrote the powerful single, THE BEST, with Amanda Rheaume and is looking into the future with hope!
“Although our company was originally for in-person shows only, we quickly expanded to the online sphere, once gatherings became unsafe. Our job is to help artists, curators, festivals, and venues keep creating shows and help audiences find them.
