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ISO The Good Life Show - Food, Wine, Travel & Lifestyle

Bio: Mike Wreyford, AKA Mike the Wine Guy, is a wine educator, writer, radio show host, and lifestyle expert. Mike is the host & producer of “The Good Life” Show, a popular radio talk show, on air since 2011. As one of the most “casually authentic” wine experts in the industry, Mike Wreyford, AKA “Mike the Wine Guy,” has blazed his own trails and made it his life’s passion to educate, inform and entertain his audience with his extensive knowledge and passion for wine, and the lifestyle that goes with it. His weekly radio program and podcast, “ISO the Good Life” has become a must-listen for travel conscious wine enthusiasts and curious foodies alike. With countless hours of Live Radio, and 1,000+ interviews, Mike’s show has earned a reputation for being informative, entertaining, and uniquely original. As a native Californian, Mike’s adventurous lifestyle and world travels have undoubtedly influenced his approach to wine and food. His dedication to bringing an “all of us” approach to his topics has earned him a loyal following of listeners who appreciate his ability to make even the most complex subjects accessible. In addition to his radio program, Mike is known for his involvement in charitable events and fundraisers, including the highly successful “World of Wine” tasting events which he has been instrumental in developing and hosting since 2011. Mike’s talent for uncovering the stories behind the wine and food he covers is unmatched. His loose yet thoroughly prepared style of interviewing guests allows him to dig deep and discover the true passion and journey of each guest. With his extensive network of contacts throughout California, the West Coast, and beyond, Mike is able to develop unique story ideas that captivate and inspire his audience. As a dedicated professional and wine expert, Mike Wreyford is undoubtedly a name to watch in the industry, and his commitment to bringing the best of wine and food to his audience is unwavering.
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Now displaying: Page 4
Nov 25, 2017

Diane Lang has dedicated her career to helping people turn their lives around and is now on a mission to help them develop a  sustainable positive attitude that can actually turn one into an optimist, literally. A therapist and educator/coach of Positive Psychology, she has seen that it can provide a strong foundation for finding great happiness and is gratified that it is becoming a mainstream method of treatment.


A parent herself, Lang has taught Positive Parenting to parents and written extensively on the benefits of using it with even the youngest children. She has also spoken or conducted seminars on postpartum depression, striving for balance versus having it all and practical tips on interviewing, networking and dressing for success and is the author of “Baby Steps: the Path from Motherhood to Career.”


Diane is a Therapist and Life coach in NJ. Her clinical experience includes treating patients with different forms of mental illness, physical and emotional abuse and relationship issues. Lang is also an Adjunct in Psychology at Montclair State University, her college work includes mentoring students for individual career counseling and personal issue advisement.


As an expert in her fields of therapy, Lang has been featured in the Daily Record, Family Circle, Family Magazine, Working Mother Magazine and Cookie Magazine, seen on NJ 12 TV, Good day CT, CBS TV, Style CT, The Veira network and the national television program “Fox & Friends”. She has also participated in a reality based Internet show, ourprisoner.com, hosted Generation X-tinet and appeared in various educational videos including Columbia books.


Lang has an M.A. in Counseling and a B.A. in Liberal Arts from the New York Institute of Technology. Diane has her Positive Psychology coaching certificate from Wholebeing Institute. Diane’s latest book is: Creating balance & finding happiness.

Nov 25, 2017

Alyssa Rapp is the founder and CEO of Bottlenotes, Inc., an online resource in the world of wine dedicated to educating and entertaining wine enthusiasts through newsletters, interactive events, social media platforms, and iPhone apps. Bottlenotes is geared towards new to intermediate wine enthusiasts interested in learning about wine, but is useful for more experienced wine consumers as well. The site was developed as an e-commerce site that pairs users' taste preferences with wine selections and allows users to share tasting notes and exchange reviews with other members. It has been featured in a variety of publications including Wine Enthusiast, Entrepreneur, and Success. Rapp is also the author of Bottlenotes Guide to Wine: Around the World in 80 Sips.

BACKSTORY

Rapp came up with the idea for Bottlenotes while getting her MBA at Stanford. She says, “I knew I wanted to be an entrepreneur, but thought I’d probably follow in my father’s footsteps in the real estate or health and fitness space. But, I ran a wine club at Stanford Business School for a few hundred people with a classmate of mine. We did two to three events a week. I was struck by how intimidated our relatively well-traveled, well-educated peers were by wine. While I didn’t have all the answers by any stretch of the imagination, I felt empowered to find them and to get experts to come and teach us what they knew.”

OF NOTE

While Bottlenotes was successful from the start, Rapp realized she had to make some changes to keep her company growing. She explains, “This role we were playing - as a wine marketing firm helping wineries and importers market their wines directly to consumers - in many ways was limiting our success. I realized we had the model backward. Where we had looked at the shipping of wine as really the profit center, and the media business as a cost center, what would happen if we reversed the model? What if we thought of ourselves as the Wine Spectator or Wine Enthusiast of the 21st century? What that means for the website, is that it has had to evolve from an e-commerce platform to a media platform. Our vision for Bottlenotes.com is to turn it into a vibrant community platform.” Rapp connects users through newsletters, events, online games and quizzes, videos, and other social media sites like Facebook and Twitter. Rapp’s newsletter, The Daily Sip, is received each day by over 300,000 wine lovers via email and over 180,000 through Facebook.

PERSONAL

Alyssa earned a B.A. in Political Science and the History of Art from Yale University in 2000 and an M.B.A. from Stanford University’s Graduate School of Business in 2005. She serves on the Board of Trustees for Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, the country’s preeminent contemporary dance company, and on the Executive Board of Spark Program, a non-profit that provides apprenticeships for middle school students. Alyssa and her husband, Hal Morris, welcomed their first child Audrey to the world in September 2012.

Sep 26, 2017


If travel experiences and looking for deals on cool places to stay is in your future, you’ll want to check out this interview with
Nick Winikoff, the co-founder of Vuepeer.

Vuepeer.com is one of the largest search engines for vacation rentals on the web. It’s a new vacation rental search engine that deals exclusively with peer to peer owned properties and experiences. Think of it like Kayak for all the Airbnb type companies.

Nick co-founder of Vuepeer. Traveling is one of my passions and I hope to keep growing my destination list. He thinks P2P travel is the future as the possibilities are endless. He really enjoy meeting new people and find the hosts I’ve stayed with to be fascinating.

At Vuepeer Nick has too have many roles including acquisition, business development and making sure our service has as much user input as possible. He vision for the future of Vuepeer is a tool that is designed to be easy to use and one that focuses on bringing true value to travelers.

They compare over 2,500,000 listings from a multitude online marketplaces, and by combining results from multiple marketplaces, they can save you time and money on travel.

Vuepeer’s mission is to make searching and finding travel rentals easy and fun. By travel rentals, we are referring to peer-to-peer (P2P) lodging, car, boat, experience, bike, etc. rentals. Anything specific, rare or different.

“A while back we noticed that there were hundreds of special, really quite good, websites with P2P rentals on-line. We gathered that people had an interest in using these websites, but had no interest to find, or personally discover each one. This is the seed that grew into Vuepeer. We are on a mission to create a tool you can use to discover great rentals from all over the Internet and the world.”

Aside from their search, (which is awesome) they want to create and curate content that you the consumer and traveler find entertaining and helpful. They talk about P2P travel rentals and try to make it relevant to you. To achieve this goal they include interviews, stories, advice, comparisons, top lists and opinion pieces on their blog. They’re actively searching for new writers, travelers and hosts to contribute in anyway to add to the community. So help yourself out, help others out, give them some honest feedback so they can provide you and the community with valuable content  every day.

Sep 26, 2017

Michelle Khouri is a natural-born storyteller with a keen eye and inquisitive spirit. A lengthy career in communications gifted her with a mind for strategy and project management. Michelle is a PR veteran and magazine editor whose multidisciplinary communications experience includes planning complex, large-scale events, art directing photo shoots, hosting travel videos, leading media outreach campaigns, and creating thousands of pieces of content. A longtime writer, Michelle is passionate about uncovering hidden stories about the arts, culture and society.

She believes in the power of skilled storytelling. Think of her as a Renaissance woman of modern communication.


Michelle serves as the Atlanta editor and Nashville editor for Where. She has been to 22 countries throughout the Western Hemisphere, and says her next goal is to explore the Eastern Hemisphere. "My parents and grandparents are from a total of five different countries, and I credit my mom for making travel the highest priority in our household." Follow her on Twitter as @michellekhouri and on Instagram as @michellekhouri. She also tweets for @whereatlanta and updates Where's Atlanta Facebook page with awesome content.

Michelle's Take on Atlanta: Atlanta is full of juxtaposition—it is at once rich with Civil War history and bubbling with an innovative population of artists and entrepreneurs. Atlanta both embraces its Southern heritage and strives to pave new roads in almost every industry. I’m dazzled by this city every day.

Michelle's Take on Nashville: Nashville is often pigeonholed as a music city—and in many ways it is. But when you dig deeper into Nashville, you find one of the largest and most collaborative communities of artists in the nation. What I love most about these people is that they aren’t just talented leatherworkers, clothing designers, jewelers or sculptors—they’re brilliant entrepreneurs.

Most memorable travel experience: My mom, sister and I backpacked through Germany, Austria and the Netherlands, and we stopped in Salzburg for a day. I have yet to see a city as small as Salzburg packed so full of history and beauty. After walking through the cobblestone streets and visiting Mozart’s birth home, we sat on the grassy banks of the Salzach river and fell asleep. We napped there for about an hour, bathed in sunshine and enveloped in the city’s floral aroma. It was heavenly!

Last notable trip: London. I created the day’s itinerary each morning, choosing my stops based on the weather and my mood. I also got a tattoo and spent tons of quality time with good friends while I was there. It was heaven!

Place you always return to visit: Colombia. My family is Colombian and I grew up entrenched in the culture. Colombia is a breathtaking, geographically diverse country with some of the kindest and happiest people I’ve ever known.

Sep 26, 2017

Hali, after graduating from The University of MA- Lowell with a degree in Sociology, I became one of the founding members of UnCharted Studios –an amazing art gallery, in Lowell MA. I decided to travel to Italy to study classical painting for a month. Little did I know I would fall in love with Italy (and my husband) and extend my stay- by nearly five years!

My grandfather’s soft spoken words “where there’s a will, there’s a way” define much of what I have achieved in life thus far whether it be co-founding an art studio, traveling to Italy to paint in the hallowed halls of Master painters, or finding a way to stay in Italy! I found work in the travel industry, and went on to work in many well-known and highly rated travel agencies in both Italy and the US including Romaround, KissfromItaly, L&B Italian Tours, Rome Urban Adventures, and Easy Vatican. If you search TripAdvisor or Google using key words “Hali, Italian, Travel” you will see many 5 star reviews of my performance.

She created the Hali's Boutique Italian Travel and craft unique itineraries for my guests traveling to Italy. She work with some of the best wineries, restaurants, guides, and hotels in Italy. She have been in the industry for the past 6 years, spending thousands of hours visiting and researching the very best things Italy has to offer.

Sep 16, 2017

Andy is the owner of CrossFit LA (CFLA), one of the most successful CrossFit training centers in the world. Established in 2004, CFLA was the ninth licensed CrossFit affiliate in the world (out of 10,000+), and the first to be featured in national media. A former professional adventure racer, extreme athlete, and master white-water kayaker and mountaineer, Andy has completed three Eco-Challenges, one Raid Gauloises, and the La Ruta de los Conquistadores (a three-day mountain bike race known as the world’s hardest). A classically-trained trumpet player (Eastman School of Music) and a Marine Gulf War veteran, Andy was the oldest participant, at 43, to qualify for the 2009 CrossFit Games.

Andy has been a CrossFit trainer for over 11 years and hold CrossFit sports-specific certifications in Olympic weightlifting, gymnastics, powerlifting, the Pose Method of Running, endurance, and nutrition. Andy is a VIVOBAREFOOT running coach and a CHEK level 2 corrective high-performance exercise kinesiologist and nutrition and lifestyle coach. With an undergraduate degree from the University of Rochester and a master’s degree in spiritual psychology from the University of Santa Monica, Andy lives in Los Angeles with his wife, Julia, and their son, Dashel.

While the workouts might seem random, there is actually a system to Andy’s method of training general physical preparedness. Andy does not write his workouts for a specialized athlete, but rather for a student looking to get better at a lot of things. “I’ll sit down to write a three week cycle and I’ll try to make that be a complete balanced program in three weeks. I look at the whole picture and think, if this were a complete cycle someone was going through, do they hit as many of the ten fundamental skills and does it give balance in all the metabolic pathways? And then, is it fun, and are the lengths of the workouts variable? I look for balance in that three week cycle.”

Sep 16, 2017

Greg Schwem’s comedic take on the 21st century workplace and work/life balance has landed him on SIRIUS RadioFOX News, Comedy Central and the pages of Parents Magazine. More than just a business humorist, Greg is also an author, nationally syndicated humor columnist, award-winning greeting card writer and creator of funnydadinc, voted one of the top Dad humor sites of 2016.  He has shared the concert stage with the likes of Celine Dion and Jay Leno.

A graduate of Northwestern University’s prestigious Medill School of Journalism, Greg never envisioned a career in laughter. Instead, he settled in Florida, becoming an award-winning reporter for NBC-owned WPTV in West Palm Beach. But the comedy bug bit Greg hard and he returned to his hometown of Chicago, where he honed his standup act in nightclubs. When he began inserting material about business and technology into his act, audience members approached him and said, “You really should come down to my office and tell those jokes.” Behold! A new approach to comedy was born.

Greg’s show provides a hilarious look at today’s corporate environment and the latest tools used to conduct business. Indeed, Greg’s client list includes such corporate heavyweights as McDonald’s, Microsoft, General Motors, IBM, Hyatt Hotels, United Airlines and Cisco Systems. What sets Greg apart from other corporate entertainers is his ability—and willingness—to customize material for his audience while working within the parameters of the corporate environment. That means no profanity or politically incorrect material. “That’s never been a part of my show anyway,” Greg recently told a reporter.

When Greg hits the stage he already has perused the company’s Internet site, combed the internal message boards and even sifted through numerous PowerPoint presentations. “There is no such thing as too much information,” Greg says. “I know corporate audiences like to laugh at themselves so the more ammunition I get, the funnier it will be. Just don’t give me a 10-K report. There is NOTHING funny about that.”

Greg’s preparation always includes a conference call with company executives and, in some cases, an onsite visit.

Besides customized material, Greg entertains audiences with stories about tedious business meetings, SmartPhone addiction, “frequently” asked questions and his fascination with the American Girl Doll company. In addition to his hefty speaking schedule, Greg  writes a weekly humor column nationally distributed by Tribune Media Services. He also is the author of Text Me If You’re Breathing: Observations, Frustrations and Life Lessons From a Low-Tech Dad and The Road to Success Goes Through the Salad Bar:  A Pile of BS (Business Stories) From a Corporate Comedian.

Sep 16, 2017

Karen MacNeil is the only American to have won every major wine award given in the English language.

These include the Wine and Spirits Professional of the Year (James Beard Foundation) and the Global Wine Communicator of the Year (International Wine and Spirits Association).  In a full-page profile on her, TIME Magazine called Karen “America’s Missionary of the Vine.”

But deep global wine knowledge is only part of the story. Karen is considered America’s foremost wine presenter–a speaker who can enchant audiences from 5 to 500, and from wine novices to wine collectors alike. Her customized TED-like talks are accompanied by extraordinary wines which she personally selects for the event.

Karen is also the author of the award-winning book, THE WINE BIBLE, the single best- selling wine book in the United States, praised as “The most informative and entertaining book I’ve ever seen on the subject” (Danny Meyer), “Astounding” (Thomas Keller), and “A masterpiece of wine writing…the single best wine book written in years…” (Kevin Zraly).

The former wine correspondent for the Today Show, Karen was the host of the PBS series Wine, Food and Friends with Karen MacNeil, for which she won an Emmy. Karen is the creator and editor of WineSpeed, the leading digital “e-letter” in the U.S. for fast, authoritative information about wine. Her articles on wine and food have been published in more than 50 newspapers and magazines including The New York Times, Town & Country, Elle, and Worth. She was the first Food and Wine Editor of USA Today. Karen currently hosts #SipWithKaren, the leading Twitter tasting in the global wine sphere, which each month reaches 20+ million timelines from Indiana to India.

Karen’s firm, Karen MacNeil & Company, creates customized corporate events and wine tours around the world for companies and individual groups. Among Karen’s corporate clients are Lexus, Merrill Lynch, Disney, General Electric, UBS, and Singapore Airlines, as well as numerous law and biotech firms.

Karen is the creator and Chairman Emeritus of the Rudd Center for Professional Wine Studies at the Culinary Institute of America in the Napa Valley, which has been called “the Harvard of wine education.”

Sep 15, 2017

Megan Peterson (Executive Director) has been involved in features, television, and documentary film-making for more than 15 years, and is passionate about all things film and story. She has produced, directed and written more than 150 hours of on-air programming for a wide range of cable networks, along with multiple distributed independent features, industrials and music videos. Recently, Ms. Peterson made her feature film directorial debut with the critically acclaimed feature Heathens & Thieves, starring Don Swayze and Gwendoline Yeo, and is currently in development on her second feature.  In her spare time, she has served as a juror for such prestigious festivals as the Los Angeles Film Festival, the Milledgeville Film Festival, Sundance Writing Labs, and the International Documentary Awards, and was a founding member of the United Nations Association Film Festival.

Having recently relocated to Scott Valley, Ms. Peterson continues to write and produce cable programming in addition to her work with the Scott Valley Film Coalition. She received her MFA from the University of Southern California under the mentorship of Robert Zemeckis, and is a graduate of Stanford University, magna cum laude.

Sep 15, 2017

Lisa Johnson Mandell is an award-winning multi-media journalist, author and relationship expert. She has been featured in The Wall St. Journal and The New York Times, as well as on Dr. Phil, Rachael Ray, Bravo, Forbes, the CBS Early Show, NBC’s Today Show, ABC News Now, Fox News, CNN, Yahoo, AOL, The Huffington Post, Oprah.com and many other media outlets.

She has also been a popular speaker at seminars, meetings and conferences, and has appeared on radio and television shows all over the world. She is fluent in Spanish, and audiences in Latin America, Europe, Asia and the South Pacific have embraced her.

Lisa's education and experience have enabled her to extensively cover relationships, careers and entertainment. Whether you're looking for the ideal partner, job or movie, Lisa can help. Her first two books are still selling briskly: “How to Snare a Millionaire” (St. Martin’s Press) and “Become Your Own Matchmaker” (Atria) which she co-authored with Bravo’s Millionaire Matchmaker, Patti Stanger. Her latest is the much-requested sequel, "How to Snare a Millionaire NOW." Her previous book, "Career Comeback-Repackage Yourself to Get the Job You Want," (Hachette) is still helping women all over the US get those well-deserved jobs and promotions.

Lisa graduated cum laude with a degree in journalism, and currently lives in Los Angeles with her husband James and their Golden Doodle, “KC.” When she’s not helping people with their personal relationships and careers or raising funds for causes she’s passionate about, she’s probably interviewing celebrities or sitting in dark theaters, preparing film reviews for radio stations across America.

Sep 15, 2017

Christina Julian writes snarky rom-coms that celebrate the underdog and live to make people laugh. She adores dysfunctional leading ladies and the tangled twisty lives they lead. She adamantly believes there is nothing in life that can’t be conquered with a bodacious wine, strong cup of coffee, or a generously iced cupcake. When she is not tapping out her next novel or wrangling her 3-year-old twins, she can be found swilling and swirling in the name of research as a wine and food columnist in Napa Valley. She strives always to live her life to the extreme.

Her debut novel, THE DATING BENDER, is a hysterical dramedy about a woman unhinged and at a crossroad. The book explores dysfunctional family relationships, women who love the wrong men, and one epic hunt for happiness.

Prior to fleeing to the Wine Country Christina worked in technology and publishing before, during and after the dot.com bubble burst, which was glamorous during the heyday but not so much once those days ended. That’s when wine came in handy. But there were a few more pit stops before the real dream took root. There were the days in Manhattan as a food and nightlife critic, followed by film development and slinging ads in Los Angeles, the latter, which came just a little too close to actualizing the “Mad Men” fantasy, minus one smoking hot Jon Hamm.

LA gridlock and the allure of a wineward way of life drove her up the coast to Napa Valley. After working and writing about a grape soaked season during harvest, her professional wine swilling career took root. As a columnist for NorthBay Biz magazine, the wine country her beat, Christina combs the valley in search of the never-ending scoop and the perfect glass of wine to go with it.

Her work has appeared in the San Francisco Chronicle, Wine Enthusiast, California Home + Design, 7×7, Napa Valley Register, Napa Valley Life, Bohemian, Weekly Calistogan and beyond.

Sep 15, 2017

Danny Zoucha, a.k.a. The Well-Ordered Husband, is just a guy who loves a girl and thinks the rest of the world should have a life as good as he does.

From growing up, literally, in the middle of a cornfield in a trailer home to living beachside in one of the most desirable places on Earth with the love of his life, and a child who adores him, Danny has developed a unique ability to carve out the life of many people's dreams. He originally thought his calling was in business. As a result, he attempted several and saw success, but ultimately found himself uninspired. He looked inside and discovered that what he's actually mastered as a result of his passion for it is being a husband to his wife, and a father to his son. Knowing what his true purpose in life is has allowed him to touch people all over the world, and inspire them to personal greatness in what he feels is the single most important part of life: family.

Sep 13, 2017

Matt Deller MW is the Chief Wine Officer for Wine Access, who are leading the online revolution in direct-to-consumer fine wine e-commerce. Backed by top-tier investor, Norwest Venture Partners, Wine Access with the help of Matt and his team is now bringing the wine world’s best kept secret to everyone in America.

Previously he was at Constellation Brands for five years, most recently as Director of Fine Wine Development for Constellation Brands, developing the sales strategy for Robert Mondavi Winery, The Prisoner Wine Company, Mount Veeder Winery and Ruffino Estates.

He judges international wine competitions such as Decanter World Wine Awards, TEXSOM International Wine Competition and the Sydney International Top 100 Wine Awards. He is an Instructor on the faculty of the Napa Valley Wine Academy, an expert panelist at several international wine events and writes for various wine publications.

He entered the wine industry in 1996 as Territory Manager - Fine Wine for Pernod Ricard.  He then helped establish Bennett & Deller Wine Ltd, specialist importers of Spanish, Italian and South American wines, where he was Sales and Marketing Director for over a decade. 
 
Following that, he joined The Fine Wine Delivery Company as Wine Program Director, leading a dynamic buying and trade sales team and developing integrated sales and marketing programs. 

Matt has judged numerous international wine competitions, written articles for various wine publications and conducted hundreds of educational seminars.  He lives in the San Francisco bay area with his wife and two sons.
Aug 30, 2017

Danni Lin (B.S., M.S.), CEO of GREAT WINE, Inc., would like to share her entrepreneurial journey. Under her leadership, GREAT WINE now has an online store, and understands that technology does not only make a product; it also creates an environment in which symbiotic parts of the wine world will thrive together to create higher product demand and supply.

Besides adopting groundbreaking technology in winemaking, GREAT WINE also collaborates with myVinotype – a smart wine recommendation platform for wine-related businesses and connoisseurs to learn more about clients’ wine preferences.

Launched in 2011, myVinotype first started as a website widget and a consumer survey. By 2016, the platform has launched an iOS app, and has become available in eight languages worldwide. All these features are supported by data analytics in order to be more client-oriented.

GREAT WINE is a huge success in the USA. In 2016, GREAT WINE opened its first tasting room in the Seattle Metro Area to offer wine tasting and vinotyping experiences to clients. It is ready to accept future challenges it may encounter during the expansion phase.

Our CEO Danni Lin is devoted to inspire more clients to engage in the global cultural exchanges of wine, with the opening of the first international satellite tasting room in China in September 2017.

Before becoming the CEO of GREAT WINE, Lin was a Data Scientist at Microsoft. Like many, Lin had experiences of going into a supermarket, and got lost in massive product lists and ads. She thought her likes and dislikes were related to how knowledgeable she was in wine – until she had a conversation with Tim Hanni.

Hanni is one of the first Americans to become Master of Wine, and introduced Lin to the scientific concept of “vinotype,” i.e. wine preferences and sensory abilities of people. Lin then transformed from a wine novice to a wine educator who encouraged consumers to speak their mind – what they really enjoy drinking and experiencing.

In 2016, GREAT WINE opened its first tasting room in the Seattle Metro Area to offer wine tasting and vinotyping experiences to clients. Lin did not let tasting and learning end in a brick-and-mortar store; she started a wine club for her clients so they can enjoy “vinotyped” selection of wines at home.

Aug 20, 2017

Craig McAllister, New Zealander spent his first 20 years in Christchurch, New Zealand and then lived in London for 6 years. He has travelled extensively throughout the world. He found himself drawn not just to the wine industry, but to the wine lifestyle due to his love of cooking, traveling and being outdoors. This led him to Lincoln University in New Zealand, where he received his Bachelor of Science degree in viticulture and enology.

While traveling around the world, he found himself drawn to wine industry. Cooking, traveling and being outdoors led him to received his Bachelor of Science degree in viticulture and Enology (which means study wines) at Lincoln University in New Zealand.

Craig’s passion for winemaking has taken him all over the world, from New Zealand to Australia, Chile and Cyprus. He first joined the La Crema team in 2007 as the Harvest Enologist. After gaining additional experience abroad, he joined the La Crema team full-time in 2009. He has been a steward of La Crema’s Monterey program and worked extensively on the Sonoma Coast Chardonnay. He also helped to further develop La Crema’s esteemed collection of single vineyard Chardonnay and Pinot Noir wines. He was promoted to head winemaker in 2017.

For Craig, there is never a dull moment in winemaking. From the rush and intensity of harvest, to bottling the wines and taking them to market, he continually strives to improve quality.

Aug 20, 2017

Todd Mitchem is a leader, entrepreneur, son, father, and devoted husband who cares deeply about America and like you has grown tired of the destruction going on in Washington. It's Time for this to change and Todd Mitchem is the person to make it happen!

A LEGACY OF SERVICE AND STRENGTH

Born in the small, rural, mining town of Bluefield, West Virginia, Todd came from humble beginnings. He grew up observing the power of hard work from his WWII veteran and blue collar, coal mining grandfather, Roby, who taught him that you never give up on this country or yourself.  Todd, also learn valuable lessons from his father, also a military veteran, who worked for nearly four decades at the same company starting as a meter-reader and retiring as a senior executive leader. 

THE WILL TO SURVIVE AND THRIVE

Todd Mitchem learned his survival instincts from the powerful women in his life, like his mother, a two-time cancer survivor, who never quit in the face of certain death. After receiving a diagnosis of only six months to live, Todd's mother not only decided to fight cancer, she decided to win. She taught him the power of perseverance and taking risks to beat any obstacle. The health care system failed her during her second cancer by telling her to "give up," and then sending her massive bills that were not covered by insurance. But being a fighter, Todd's mom turned to cannabis and is still alive today. It is her drive "to never give up" which Todd has adopted into his own life and business ventures.

A LEADER IS MADE NOT BORN!

Todd Mitchem knows how to get things done in the face of incredible odds and knows how to turn talk into action that gets results. 

For ten years, Todd worked as a leadership developer and business development expert.  During that time, he built learning as well as management change initiatives for companies all over the world. As a senior leader for one of the world's top change management companies, Eagle's Flight, Mitchem helped to create powerful and efficient solutions for some of the toughest leadership and organizational challenges in many of the world's fortune 500 companies.

TAKING ON HUGE CHALLENGES

After his mother's incredible survival miracle from cancer, Todd became more interested in the fast-growing marijuana industry.  So, in 2013 he joined the emerging cannabis industry to help build companies, educate leaders, and raise standards. Never one to back down from a challenge, Todd quickly developed huge success in spite of incredible odds.  He helped develop the largest brand in the space, O.penVAPE with over 1,600% growth in 12 months. Todd built the world’s first global social network unique to the cannabis consumer called High There! which grew from zero users to over 300K in less than a year. After marijuana legalization, he also developed the world’s first marijuana job fair called, CannaSearch which saw over 3400 job hopefuls, who ended up filling over 1000 new jobs in Colorado alone.  Todd Mitchem also leads the industry as the first person to speak to Attorneys General on the need for standards in marijuana tracking, youth prevention, production, and business leadership.  

Currently, Mitchem and his wife, Diana run a successful government affairs and community outreach company, TMC Partners, which develops initiatives in the cannabis space for businesses, including the state's number one company, The Green Solution. For his expertize and ability to get things done, Todd was asked to speak to countless conventions, youth prevention summits, and government town hall debates. Todd Mitchem is seen as "The smart level-headed problem solver" by municipalities in which he drives fundamental changes. He has spent the last four years working to protect consumers and workers while building a robust job creating industry, which now employees over 25,000 people in Colorado alone.

PASSIONATE AND POWERFUL PARTNERSHIPS

Todd is a loving husband to his wife Diana, who herself is an immigrant to this country. Diana Mitchem immigrated to the United States from war torn Lithuania at the age of twelve after not seeing her mother for seven years. She taught herself English by the age of fourteen, graduated high school early and went on to get two degrees from CU Boulder. Diana and Todd live in district two just up the hill from Golden, and work each day to make this world better than they found it. Diana and Todd work together, parent three amazing kids, and they never give up on each other or this country they love!

You can learn more about Todd Mitchem, his strategies for work and life, as well as his powerful philosophy for how to build collaborative environments in Washington from his book, YOU, DISRUPTED.

IT'S TIME FOR A NEW KIND OF LEADER, in his own words.

"I decided it was time to serve my country as my father and grandfather did before me, by entering the race for Congress.  Like millions of Americans, I have felt the sting of rising taxes making it hard to thrive.  Also like many people, I have felt first hand the blunt force hit of a broken health care system, which nearly destroyed my family financially. Like you, I am tired of the talk in Washington, the fighting, and the massive levels of government waste that pushes each citizen into deeper despair. From college students to our seniors and retirees, countless people have been left behind culturally and economically. It's time to stop the pointless talk and finally take action toward tangible solutions. We are all in this together, and it is together that we will show the world It's Time for action."

- Todd Mitchem

Aug 20, 2017

Jessica the founder of Kind Traveler, a new digital travel platform (arriving 2015) that rewards travelers for making donations to local and global charities with exclusive offers from today's greatest hotels and unique properties.

Our mission is to transform the incredible collective of everyday travelers into a financial force that betters the health and wellbeing of individuals, the environment, and animals.

Passionate about sustainability, wellness, travel, and social innovation, I'm also a contributing writer for Fast Company, Hospitality Design, One Green Planet, Green Lodging News, Spa Finder, Examiner, CBS Los Angeles, and the BLLA (Boutique Lodging & Lifestyle Association).

As a proud vegan and animal welfare advocate, I practice yoga and ballet when I'm not working on Kind Traveler initiatives!

Her career began as an earth science and math teacher with UCSD's Pruess School, a unique charter school for low income students who strive to become the first in their families to graduate from college, educating 130 students each day. She then spent 10 years as an Associate Publisher and Advertising Director with popular print & digital fashion and lifestyle magazine start-ups including 944 Magazine and Foam Magazine in San Diego and Los Angeles. Her entrepreneurial journey began as the five-year Principal of LA-based brand consultancy, Publicly Loved, where her clients included luxury real estate moguls like CIM Group and Marriott Hotels.

With a heart for travel, sustainability, social impact, and animal welfare, she has contributed as a journalist to Fast Company, CBS Los Angeles, Hospitality Design, One Green Planet, Green Lodging News, CEO.com, Spa Finder, Examiner, Destination Luxury, Darling Magazine, and the BLLA (Boutique Lodging & Lifestyle Association).

As a speaker, she’s presented on the stages of TEDx and regular contributes as a panelist with various professional hospitality associations and events including the Travel & Adventure Show, Lodging Magazine’s Green Lodging Conference, the Enlightened Entrepreneur Summit, and the Boutique Lodging Association’s annual leadership summit. 


As a child, Jessica always had a longing to help animals. Over the last six years you could find her searching for homes for LA’s homeless pet population on death row and educating the public on the importance of spaying and neutering as a volunteer with Best Friends Animal Society, Carson Cats, and Much Love Animal Rescue. As a passionate voice for animals, she's served as a reporter interviewing celebrities such as Bob Barker, Willie Nelson, Ian Somerhalder, and Russell Simmons to create awareness around the importance of avoiding circuses that involve animals, ending the illegal wildlife trade, and the need to end factory farming with Animal Defenders International, Humane Society of the U.S., WildAid, and Animal Hero Kids. 

Aug 12, 2017
The Vancouver Wine & Jazz Festival was founded in 1998 - and we have survived and thrived for 21 years. The Festival is a celebration of the cultural arts and of the Pacific Northwest.
The Festival features internationally acclaimed GRAMMY-winning and BLUES AWARD-winning jazz, blues, gospel, and pop musicians. But it’s more than music: we also present fine artists and crafters from Oregon, Washington, California and Idaho; wines from both large and small boutique vineyards; food by local vendors, and really cool businesses who promote, display and sell their products and services.
Our audience has attended from 23 US states, Canada, Europe, China and Japan. Over the years, our audiences for the 3-day festival have ranged in size from 5,000-10,000 people, depending on the state of the economy, weather, and a whole host of other reasons.
We have presented more than 300 bands, ranging from students, local and regional bands to major artists such as Arturo Sandoval, Al Jarreau, Blind Boys of Alabama, David Sanborn, Manhattan Transfer, Bo Diddley, Jose Feliciano, Tierney Sutton, Judy Collins, Preservation Hall Jazz Band, Poncho Sanchez...and many more.
The Festival is a family-friendly event, and we invite you to bring your children. Kids age 12 and younger are FREE with a paid parent or guardian!
Our goal has been to create an event featuring world-class musicians here in the Pacific Northwest.
Aug 12, 2017

Peter is a New York-based wine journalist and best-selling author. His writing has appeared in Wine Spectator, The Wall Street Journal, New York Post, New York Times, New York Sunand others. Books include bestselling Chief!: Classic Cases from the Files of the Chief of Detectives and When Courage Was Stronger than Fear. Magazine journalism highlights include the first major profile in the American press (New York Times) of Serge and Beate Klarsfeld and their search for justice for Nazi victims in France; and the real estate cloak-and-dagger story of the Manhattan assemblage of the Citicorp Center (New York Magazine). Peter started writing about Rudy Kurniawan in 2008 and has covered the story ever since. He has two adult children and lives with his wife, Susan, in New York City.

Aug 12, 2017

She also is the author of the best selling title, The Harried Housewife’s Cookbook: 125 Most Requested Recipes!, and is the creator of The Harried Housewife’s RECIPE BOX television segments, magazine articles, and online posts.

A veteran newspaper columnist and TV cook; she enjoys developing seasonal recipes and providing imaginative home-inspired DIY ideas for time-crunched, budget-conscious folks to ensure memorable occasions throughout the year.

The Harried Housewife's Cookbook is filled with the top 125 most-popular recipes from veteran newspaper columnist, food writer, and media personality, Cynthia O'Connor O'Hara, also known as The Harried Housewife. This is the one cookbook you can grab at the last minute to whip up something delicious with on-hand ingredients. Every recipe has been streamlined to cut preparation time without compromising flavor.

Filled with old-fashioned recipes modified to fit the busy person's lifestyle, it also includes easy and elegant dishes that are perfect for entertaining. Each recipe has the benefit of having been prepared many times over by countless readers and viewers. It's these readers and viewers who have given their ultimate seal of approval. Her work can be found in supermarkets, Web sites, and publications around the world.

The Harried Housewife lives with her family in upstate New York. Culinary instructor Board of Cooperative Educational Services, New Hartford, since 1996. Newspaper columnist Observer-Dispatch (Gannett News Service), Utica, New York, since 1997. Television personality numerous television stations, since 1997.

Aug 12, 2017

Howard Hian is an award winning journalist, affiliated with the North American Travel Journalists Association and the International Travel Writers Alliance. He was a long-time member of the San Diego Hotel Motel Association and served as an allied representative on their Board of Directors. In 2012 he was the San Diego hotel industry’s Allied Person of the Year. He served as a panel member of the City of San Diego’s Economic Development Division. Hian writes a monthly travel feature for The Military Press, a California semi-monthly journal with print circulation of 100,000 and 500,000 – 650,000 views/month at their website. His column also appears online at Travel Savvy West, Real Travel Adventures and Roadtrips for Couples. He believes his secret to writing a good story is having an in-house proofreader and editor (his wife). 

Hian has been playing poker for six decades. Over the past few years he has played 13,000+ hands of Omaha High/Low and 14,000+ of Hold ‘Em in home games, computer simulations, online and in casinos. In February 2014, he launched an app, Poker Tutorial: Omaha 101 – Improve Your Game and/or Learn the Basics. The app was downloaded in over 40 countries around the world. Its updated version Poker Tutorial: Omaha 101 Plus An Insiders Guide To Reno is now available in the iTunes store. It was recently won Gold in the app category in the North American Travel Journalist Association’s 2015 competition.

Do and check his site on: http://www.travels-with-hian.com

Jul 30, 2017

Moraga Vineyards is a wine growing estate in the Santa Monica Mountains at an elevation of 600 to 900 feet, five miles from the Pacific Ocean in the Los Angeles community of Bel Air. From the care of each individual vine, to the selection and blending processes, to the hand labeling of each bottle, every effort is taken to produce wine of distinctive style and quality.

This is where Rich works his magic. Hired by former owner Tom Jones, who created the vineyard two decades ago out of what was once the horse ranch of director Victor Fleming (of Gone with the Wind fame), Rich now makes wine that has earned the praise of such renowned critics as Robert Parker and the Financial Times’ Jancis Robinson (who cited it as one of her favorite California wineries).

“Most winemakers don’t have this opportunity in a lifetime,” says Rich, eyes twinkling above a small goatee that makes him resemble a young Frank Zappa. A native of Chatsworth, Rich studied enology at UC Davis. Since then, he has had a knack for nurturing vines in unusual places, starting with R.H. Phillips Wine Company, which hired him to create a vineyard north of Sacramento. He eventually launched his own wine label, Talisman, in Glen Ellen, and now splits his time between there and LA. “Look at how [rich in calcium] this soil is,” says Rich, scooping up the earth beneath a row of Merlot grapes ripening in the sun, reflecting off the Pacific glistening between the Santa Monica mountains. “This was all once under water, and the drainage makes it very similar to other great winemaking areas, like Burgundy.”

The constant sea breeze keeps things chillier here than in other local wine regions, lowering the high sugar levels typical to California grapes. “This temperate climate means that the wine is not a Napa fruit bomb type of thing,” notes Rich. “It has a subtle, herbal quality more associated with European wines.”

But it takes micro planning to grow grapes in this sort of environment. As we round toward the lee of the hill, grape clusters grow darker.

But it takes micro planning to grow grapes in this sort of environment. As we round toward the lee of the hill, grape clusters grow darker.“This is a little pocket that gets protected from the breezes, so we planted Cabernet here,” says Rich. “They thrive more in warmer spots.”

At this time of year, the juice of these grapes will be brought down to the large steel fermentation vats in the hypermodern stone and glass winemaking building at the bottom of the hill. Afterward, the red wine will be stored in French-oak barrels lining a 200-foot cave dug into the side of the hill. The vineyard even has its own bottling machine. “Most small vineyards hire mobile units to come and do their bottling for them, but we want to be able to time everything perfectly,” says Rich. “It might seem extravagant for such small batches, but that way we can best control the quality.”

Jul 30, 2017

Having visited more than 50 countries on six continents, 50 U.S. states, and numerous cities around the globe, author and seasoned traveler Taryn White sees travel as transformative. This author and blogger has explored many of the world's hotspots and hidden gems, from Switzerland to Swaziland. Always looking for her next adventure, she created www.tripwishlist.com to encourage herself and others to make their travel dreams come true.

Her book: Get Your Travel On!

Warning: working too many consecutive weeks is hazardous to your health.

In fact, studies show that taking vacation actually increases one's life expectancy and results in overall well-being. But you might be asking, how I could I possibly afford a vacation and to where?

With this book, you'll learn:

  •  how to establish a simple plan to jumpstart your travel pursuits;
  •  proven strategies to travel for less;
  •  essential packing tips;
  •  when and where to buy travel insurance;
  •  the top sites for booking travel and finding deals; and
  •  the best ways to prepare for your trip.

Get Your Travel On! is a complete guidebook offering five easy steps and a multitude of practical advice, tools,and tips that will make travel easier for anyone ready to take a break from day-to-day stress. Prevent passport decay. Get away…

Jul 30, 2017

About the time I was graduating from California Polytechnic University with a degree in Biology, I remember hearing for the first time President John Kennedy speaking “Ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country.” I decided and was accepted to join the Peace Corps to teach high school Biology in Africa. Unfortunately, at the same time, the army was calling me to Vietnam. I decided to make my own choice and joined the Marine Corps as an infantry officer. During those life changing 13 months I spent in Vietnam I remember saying to myself, whatever I do the rest of my life had better make sense. When I returned home to the United States my search began to fulfill the promise I made to myself. Not knowing exactly what that was, I decided to spend a year exploring 17 countries in Europe on a 10-speed bicycle. This fueled my love of travel, culture, and history…the joy of just moving.

I believe travel is the greatest university in the world. It is a fulfilling yet humbling experience to explore the cultures and history of our planet.

For the next 7 years I would travel the globe as a Tour Director. When I returned to Europe leading tour groups, I met a whole new breed of professionally trained tour directors and guides. They could talk about art, food, wine, music, history, culture…they were like modern day Renaissance people. I found that most countries in Europe had national guide schools that trained people to be the “face of their country.” In America tour escorting was done mostly by college students as a temporary summer job or by a retired person to obtain a free trip. Starting a school for tour directors in America seemed pre-destined to be a goal that I would pursue. I wanted to ensure that tour directing was a recognized, respected profession and more importantly give others an avenue to pursue their passion for travel. So, in 1976, my friend and colleague Bill Newton and I started the first school in America to train tour directors and guides.

I am proud of each one of the graduates that made the choice to follow their dream to teach, learn, and grow into the role of a Professional Tour Director and ultimately be called Ambassadors of Goodwill throughout the world. Even after all this time I still lead a few tours a year, when I am not instructing at ITMI. Tour Directing is still my passion… besides, I’m not going to let my students have all the fun!

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