Wine Access Unfiltered

Champagne is more than something poured at a toast — it's a place you can actually visit, and this episode finally delivers on months of hints about a long-awaited spring trip there. Sommelier Lara Koffer joins Amanda to unpack the region's biggest split: house Champagne versus grower Champagne, and how roughly 16,000 growers keep the famous marques stocked with fruit. Grab your wine club wine, the Grumier Réserve Perpétuelle, a rare solera-style non-vintage blend dating back to 2005 and join us for stories from Reims and Épernay — Bollinger's hand-disgorged prestige cuvées, a Michelin-starred "Mysteries of Champagne" tasting menu, and hard-won advice on hiring a driver instead of renting a car. Pour a glass and settle in for a trip report worth the wait.

Featured Wine: NV Maurice Grumier Réserve Perpétuelle Extra-Brut Champagne

Find all of our mentions for restaurants, wineries, and hotels in Amanda's Guide to Visiting Paris and Champagne

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One solo episode wasn't enough to settle the debate over the world's best wine cities — so this time, two frequent flyers weigh in. Jenna Fields and Zack Musick of the German Wine Collection, who log more travel miles promoting German wine than almost anyone in the industry, join to build their own list using the same four-part framework from the last episode: selection, people, variety, and identity. London tops it (officially "Germany-adjacent"), followed by a New York walking tour through Michelin-starred dining rooms, a surprise nod to Phoenix's under-the-radar sommelier scene, and a park-bench cheesesteak in Philly washed down with Frappato from a plastic cup. Pour a glass of the Meyer-Näkel Illusion Blanc de Noir — this month's wine club pick — and settle in for round two.

Featured Wine: 2023 Meyer-Nakel "Illusion" Blanc de Noirs

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Mentions & Links

Wines & Producers

Domaine Tempier Rosé, Bandol — grabbed at Cru in Nantucket

Frédéric Savart Champagne, Écueil — paired with ahi tuna and caviar at 53

G.D. Vàjra, Barolo — on the by-the-glass list at 53

Weingut Salwey Eichberg Grauburgunder (Pinot Gris), Kaiserstuhl — paired with truffled hazelnut soup at Oiji Mi

Muskattrollinger Rosé — the German rarity poured at the Nantucket seminar

Restaurants & Bars

Cru, Nantucket

Mezcaleria Alma, Denver — Michelin-starred, all-Mexican-wine list

COQODAQ, NYC — the champagne-and-caviar-chicken-nugget spot

Oiji Mi, NYC

53, NYC — dim sum spot

Aldo Sohm Wine Bar, NYC

Zarella Pizzeria & Taverna, Chicago

Restaurant Progress, Phoenix

Angelo's, Philadelphia — cheesesteak

Di Bruno Bros., Philadelphia — wine shop

Noble Rot, Mayfair (London)

Devonshire, London

Satan's Whiskers, London — cocktail bar

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We're going solo this episode, and we're going global. After months of logging serious miles across cities and continents, we wanted to revisit a format we love — not the wine regions, not the châteaux, but the cities themselves. The places that aren't necessarily making wine, but are doing it better than almost anywhere else in the world. We're breaking down our top four wine cities right now — London, Copenhagen, Tokyo, and New York — what makes each one stand out, how we navigate them for wine when we get there, and the specific spots that completely won us over. Along the way, we're also tasting the Zuccardi Polígonos Cabernet Franc from Mendoza — our wine club pick and a perfect tie-in to our earlier episode on the most exciting wine regions to visit. Pour a glass and come along.

Featured Wine: Zuccardi Polígonos Cabernet Franc, Uco Valley

📦 ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Join the Unfiltered Podcast Wine Club⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

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Mentions & Links

Restaurants, Wine Bars, and Recs — London

Hedonism Wines, London — hedonismwines.com

Noble Rot, Soho — noblerot.co.uk

The Eagle Bar at Chancery Rosewood — rosewoodhotels.com

Mountain, Beak Street, Soho — mountainsoho.com

Mayfair Townhouse (hotel) — themayFairtownhouse.com

Restaurants & Wine Bars — Copenhagen

Rossforth & Rossworth (bridge wine) — wine importer + outdoor wine bar; rossforthandrossworth.com

Bar Vitrine

Fiskebar — former Noma head sommelier; seafood focused

Esse — Michelin starred; tasting menu + à la carte lounge; natural wine and French-leaning list

La Banchina — natural wine; waterside cove café; labanchina.dk

Poulette and Pompette — order on the app; skip the line

Kinyobi — sushi from former Geranium chefs; great sake selection

Bird — exceptional cocktail program; great non-alcoholic options

Sanchez — tacos from a former Noma chef

Hotel Sanders (hotel) — hotelsanders.com

Restaurants & Wine Bars — Tokyo

New York Bar, Park Hyatt Tokyo (Lost in Translation bar) — park.hyatt.com; Dom Pérignon by the glass at $45

Studio Mule — hidden second-floor wine bar; hi-fi music system; rotating rare bottles by the glass including Gravner and Paolo Bea; no signage, look for the green door

Badu, Kyoto — natural wines; sister restaurant to Monk (featured on Chef's Table)

Isetan Department Store — basement food hall; great sake selection to take home

Restaurants & Wine Bars — New York

Coqodaq — fried chicken and champagne

Clemente Bar, above Eleven Madison Park

La Tete d'Or by Daniel

Aldo Sohm Wine Bar — aldosohmwinebar.com

La Compagnie des Vins Surnaturels — downtown + new Flatiron location

Le Chene — great Burgundy and Champagne; splurge-worthy

Union Square Cafe

Gramercy Tavern

Claude, East Village — reportedly excellent wine list

Roscioli — wine list by Ariel Arcé, formerly of Ariel's Champagne Parlor

Wines Referenced

Gravner — famous orange wine producer; served by the glass at Studio Mule Tokyo

Paolo Bea, Arboreus — Italian white; served by the glass at Studio Mule Tokyo

Also Mentioned

Toyama — day trip from Tokyo for Sake (IWA)

Kalaya, Philadelphia — James Beard Award Outstanding Restaurant

Levi Dalton — I'll Drink To That podcast; Noble Rot recommendation

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Bordeaux has a reputation problem — and we're here to fix it. In this episode, we sit down with Jonathan Cristaldi, North America Regional Editor at Decanter Magazine and fellow theater kid, to make the case for a region that the wine world has been too quick to dismiss. We just got back from our first trip there together and we're talking about all of it: the left bank vs. right bank divide, why the best Bordeaux you'll ever drink might cost you 25 euros, what it's actually like to navigate the city of Bordeaux as a visitor, and a surprisingly fascinating detour into the science of corks. Pour yourself something from the Haut-Médoc and open your mind — Bordeaux is better than you remember.

Featured Wine: Château de l'Église Vieille, Haut-Médoc

📦 ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Join the Unfiltered Podcast Wine Club⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

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Mentions & Links

Guest

Jonathan Cristaldi — Decanter Magazine, North America Regional Editor; @jcristaldi

Wineries

Château de Pressac — chateaudepressac.com

Château La Gafellière — gaffeliere.com

Château Carbonnieux — carbonnieux.com

Château Larose Trintaudon — chateau-larose-trintaudon.fr

Château Kirwan — chateau-kirwan.com

Château de Malleret — chateau-malleret.fr

Château Pontet-Canet — pontetcanet.com (prior visit, referenced in episode)

Restaurants & Dining

Chez Dupont, Bordeaux

Gina Rooftop, Bordeaux

Brasserie Vinatier, Bordeaux

La Côte à l'Os, Saint-Émilion

Le Jardin de Collioure

Casa Léon, Collioure

Also Mentioned

Cité du Vin, Bordeaux — laciteduvin.com

Diam Bouchage (our trip host and technical cork producer! Thank you Diam! — diam-cork.com

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Italy is one of those places that feels instantly familiar the moment you arrive — and yet the more you learn about it, the more you realize how much you've been missing. In this episode, we sit down with Jessica Dupuy, James Beard Award-winning author and self-described outsider-turned-insider, to talk about her new book Italianity — a collection of essays and stories that captures what it actually means to drink Italian wine the Italian way. We get into the concept of Italianità, why the best way to plan your Italy trip is to start with the grape you love, and what Antica Bottega del Vino in Verona looks like at 9:30 in the morning when the locals still have the place to themselves. Pour yourself a glass of Franciacorta and let this one transport you.

Featured Wine:

NV Le Marchesine Franciacorta Nitens Brut

📦 ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Join the Unfiltered Podcast Wine Club⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

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Featured Guest

Jessica Dupuy, co-author — Italianity

Regions Discussed

Tuscany / Montalcino — Brunello, Sangiovese; the entry point for many Italy-first-timers

Valpolicella / Verona — Amarone, Valpolicella Superiore; Andrea's home region

Piedmont (Piemonte) — Barolo, Barbaresco, Nebbiolo, Dolcetto, Alta Langa sparkling; French-border swagger

Alto Adige / Trentino (Tre Venezie) — Alpine Nebbiolo, German-speaking, former Austro-Hungarian influence; Jessica's current favorite region

Sicily — Nerello Mascalese, Etna; deeply historical, layered cultural influences

Franciacorta — Champagne-method sparkling wine; 85% Chardonnay + Pinot Nero + Pinot Bianco

Alta Langa — Piedmont-based traditional-method sparkling; historical rival to Champagne

Roero — Sandy-soil Nebbiolo; lighter expression outside of Barolo/Barbaresco

Valtellina — Alpine Nebbiolo north of Lake Como

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