Thru The Grapewine

Ready to Uncork Your Passion for Wine? Adriana Krstic Reveals the Journey from Wall Street to Wine Wisdom

• Ute Mitchell • Episode 42

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Please note: we are aware that there is a mistake when Adriana said Merlot instead of Malbec! 

Embark on a captivating voyage with certified sommelier Adriana Krstic as she shares her inspiring journey from the bustling streets of Wall Street to the enchanting world of wine. In this episode, we unravel the threads of Adriana's narrative, exploring the transformative power of pursuing one's passions and embracing new challenges along the way.

Join us as we navigate the intricate landscape of wine education and certification, demystifying the Court of Master Sommeliers and sharing insider tips for mastering the vast world of wine knowledge. Discover the story behind Adriana's creation of Table 13, a vibrant community where wine lovers come together to learn, sip, and forge lasting connections.

Of course, our conversation isn't confined to the classroom – we venture into the flourishing vineyards of Poland, where climate change is reshaping the wine industry, and tantalize listeners with a glimpse into the burgeoning Serbian wine scene. Through it all, Adriana and I celebrate the boundless diversity of experiences awaiting discovery in the world of wine, each bottle a vessel for stories yet untold.

So, grab your favorite glass, and join us as we toast to the unexpected twists and delightful surprises that enrich our lives, one sip at a time. Cheers to passion, perseverance, and the endless possibilities that await in the captivating landscape of wine!

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Speaker 1:

Hello again to another great episode of the Through the Grapevine podcast. This is episode 42 and I am your host, uta Mitchell. So things have been a little bit crazy lately, as you can undoubtedly tell, because it's been another three weeks since my last episode. But I'm getting back into the swing of things, which is great Lots of work here, lots of family stuff, and then we had a little bit of a snow slash, ice storm here in Portland.

Speaker 1:

And now the thing is I grew up driving in the snow just fine back in Germany. It was not an issue, that's just what you did. So I never really thought that snow would be an issue for me until I came to Portland. So Portland is notoriously unprepared for snow. Neighbor streets usually do get cleared pretty fast, but all of the neighborhood streets remain untouched by any kind of city vehicles. And so then your snow.

Speaker 1:

The snow that we have here turns to ice because we get freezing rain, and right now we practically have this gigantic ice rink out here. It is very adventurous. Looking out my window has been exciting these last few days trying to you know people trying getting up the road. It's every time it's a disaster. And then you add to that falling trees, they fall on roads and houses, they fall on cars and power lines and over a hundred thousand people lost electricity. So it's kind of crazy stuff. But I'm here and I'm recording and I have a great guest today, so I am going to be introducing her right away. She's a certified sommelier and entrepreneur and I'm so excited to chat with her. Welcome to the podcast, adriana.

Speaker 2:

Well, thank you very much for having me. This is most exciting.

Speaker 1:

I am so glad that we were able to make it happen Again. I know that things have been a little bit different here for me, so I'm very glad to finally get back into the swing of things, and I'm going to ask you my first question right away. Just tell us a little bit about who you are and where you from.

Speaker 2:

So my name is Adriana Kristic. I live in New York, I'm a court of masters certified sommelier and an entrepreneur, as you mentioned, and yeah, I've called United States my home for over 30 years now, so I've actually, at this point, have lived longer here than I have in my home country of Poland. So, yeah, that's a little bit about me.

Speaker 1:

That is so fun, because next year, actually, I'm going to be here for 25 years, which will be exactly half my life at that point. So I can totally appreciate where you're coming from when I'm going to say I have lived here for as long as I've lived in my home country.

Speaker 2:

Yeah, that's wild to think about it that way, but yes, that's also very interesting and I love it.

Speaker 1:

So of course, I did a little bit of a research on you, and I know that wine is not your first career. You did and are still doing something else. Do you want to tell me a little bit about carrot juice?

Speaker 2:

Sure, so I have. I'm a jewelry designer as well and I have had my company, Carrot Juice design, for over 10 years. I have been designing jewelry and then selling it internationally for a majority of those 10 years. Unfortunately, after COVID made travel impossible, I have kind of shifted gears and decided that this will remain my passion and a hobby, but it's not going to be my profession, and I made a full 360 circle back into the wine world. I have worked. I have also worked on Wall Street in my past life. Oh yeah, so I'm actually a New York Stock Exchange. I have certifications for trading and sales institutional sales and trading and I have also worked in real estate. So, yes, this is not my first career, but yeah, I like to change things up a little bit and challenge myself with new endeavors.

Speaker 1:

I'm very much like that I dabble here and I dabble there and I kind of want to do a little bit of everything. The days are too short for all the things that I do want to do.

Speaker 2:

I agree, and it's so fun to learn new things. So when you feel that you've learned a bunch and you're kind of feeling a little bit of stagnation, it is just great to kind of follow your next passion or next hobby and try to see where it can take you.

Speaker 1:

Yeah, absolutely Well. So let's talk about. I feel like I could talk to you for five hours at this point. You know Wall Street and real estate and jewelry, but we're here to talk about wine and so that's what we're going to do. So you decided to go into the wine industry. What brought that idea?

Speaker 2:

on. So I actually worked in the hospitality industry in the 90s and, most interestingly, actually worked for two French restaurants La Marais and Laial and Laial has become a famous French brasserie in New York City because this is where Anthony Bourdin was the main chef for probably close to 12 years. So my introduction to the world of hospitality, food and wine happened back then. And then I switched gears and I, you know, moved to Wall Street and then to real estate and then to jewelry design, and throughout all these years I have been known in as the mini Martha Stewart young friends, and so all these years I have been entertaining and creating crazy dinners and wine tastings for my friends and family, and that became kind of apparent to me that this is my true passion and I really need to follow this, and so I have decided to go back to school and I have decided to get my certification and make it my next career.

Speaker 1:

That is awesome. So you did go through the Court of Master's sommeliers. Yes, what made you choose the court over, say, other certification programs like WSET or some other organization?

Speaker 2:

Okay, I actually did extensive research before I chose which route I was going to take towards my certification and because of my hospitality industry background and because Court of Master's kind of presented, so for me, food and wine and hospitality is one. I believe that wine should be drunk with and eaten with, food should be eaten with wine, and vice versa. And I believe that the service part of every experience, whether you come to someone's house or you go to a restaurant, should be also part of the experience, just like you can think about wine, just as the product and the final product in a bottle, it's so much more it's the history, it's the people behind it, it's the geography, it's the climate right. For me, it's also a holistic experience and I felt that with Court of Master's I will be able and the program that I attended at International Culinary Education Center in New York City, I would be able to kind of touch on all of the above and this is exactly what happened.

Speaker 1:

Yeah, yeah for sure. So are you looking to continue your education with the court towards the master's song or what? What are the plans there?

Speaker 2:

So I'm not quite sure I'm going. So I would like to, but the obstacle with Court of Masters is that to try to get your advanced certification, you need to be allowed to take the exam and the industry requires you. So Court of Masters requires you to actually actively work I believe it's two years at the moment in the restaurant and I'm not taking that route. I've already worked in restaurants for many years and I, unless they change that rule, I will probably have to look at alternative options. I have actually been researching schools in France, in Burgundy and in France in the Champagne region, and I'm not sure which one I will choose, but I will definitely.

Speaker 2:

I definitely would like to take more courses and, as you know, in wine the learning never ends. So yes, absolutely, the answer is yes. How I'm going to go about it? Whether it's going to be abroad or whether I'm going to continue taking courses with WSET or any other whole wine school. There are actually more and more different programs showing up right now, so the choices are. The choices available are more than just WSET or Court of Masters. But yes, I'm not quite sure yet which route I will choose.

Speaker 1:

That does sound amazing, just to even have that opportunity to do that, you know, to really kind of take your time and think about it too, and and to be able to say, hey, well, you know what I'm going to do, this lovely French course. I think that. What an adventure. Twist my arm right, yes, yes. Oh my gosh yeah.

Speaker 2:

I went to.

Speaker 1:

Burgundy in 2022 with my husband and it was just such an experience and I feel like I mean we've only had a couple of days there because there was only so much time we could spend, and I feel like I could spend a month there and not get bored.

Speaker 2:

you know, absolutely. And I also think learning at the region is such a different type of learning and I love learning from books as well and from other people and teachers and in the classroom setting but I think the experiences just are unsurpassed. So when I travel, it's always centered around wine and I always feel like I remember everything better and geography just makes sense and you remember the positioning of the vineyard and the slope, how the sun hits it. It's so different to learn actually in the, in the, in the environment, and you know, then learn in a classroom. So, yes, it's absolutely magical. I don't know that it's going to happen for me, but yes, it's definitely a dream and it's on the agenda, so hopefully.

Speaker 1:

Yeah, right, so I do have to throw in a question here, because I do know that most of the listeners here are in some way involved in the wine industry when it comes to learning. What's your strategy? You know what. What helps you to retain the information Is it? Is it the cards, like you know, like I am doing, or what do you do?

Speaker 2:

I'm really old school and I, you know, I've done so many different things they've taken. I've taken so many different exams in my life that I already know what works for me. So it's very important to figure out what works for you. I had fabulous classmates and our ages ranged from 20 to 60, I think two or four, so we had different types of learners from different generations. It was a fantastic experience, but we all learn differently.

Speaker 2:

I was the flash card girl. Every single flash card was filled top to bottom, front and back, and it was all handwritten. So I spent hours, hours, filling out the information that I thought was the most important. And I have hundreds of these flashcards and I just to keep up and not to forget things, because you know how fast you can forget everything. Yeah, with the amount of information, I do go through them pretty frequently. So for me it's actually reading from the book, figuring out what is the most important and then putting it in writing on a flash card. That kind of solidifies it for me. But it is labor intensive and very old school, so I'm envious of everybody who can read something once or twice and then it's there. For me I have to write it down, so that's my trick.

Speaker 1:

I don't think I've met the person yet who can read something once or twice and retain that information. And if you are out there and listening right now, I want you to talk to me, because I'm fascinated by people who can just retain information like that.

Speaker 2:

So I have a classmate. I'm sorry, I have a classmate who was infuriating the rest of us because that's what seemed to work for him. He had an incredible, I think, photographic memory, ah, ah-ha. Yet in our defense, he did work actively in a very high-end restaurant and he was surrounded by wine and wine lists for the last 30 years of his life. So he definitely knew that, over everybody else who was kind of doing their own thing and figuring out their own way in the industry and what they were going to do with it, this person was fantastic and, yes, he was getting annoyingly fantastic grades at every single test every week, but we do love him. We do love him.

Speaker 1:

Well, there is plenty of research that suggests that the old-school way of writing things down actually does help you better remember than just to read things. And you know, I know there's flashcard apps and everything that are really helpful and I have used them, but I still do need to write things down. Yes, I think so.

Speaker 2:

Yeah to retain the information, to lay it down, Then to keep it fresh. I've used some apps as well and they helped me, you know. But I also think being efficient with your time is something that everybody needs to figure out on their own. And you know, I was reviewing even standing on a subway in New York City, you know. So if you can do that and use the minutes of the day for reviewing, those apps come very handy and, yes, are really, really good.

Speaker 1:

Absolutely Exactly. Yeah, yeah, I've used Brainscape for studying that way. I mean, literally when I was out waiting for something or someone, just kind of bring it up for 10, 15 minutes and study a little bit. Yeah yeah, yes, so you are the co-founder of Table 13 and I'm really, really wanting to talk about that because it sounds like such a great thing and, like we were saying before the recording, it would be so cool if I lived nearby so that I could join you. So talk a little bit about that.

Speaker 2:

So you know, when you can't find a door or a window, you create one, right, yeah? So when I got my certification and I actually moved from the city to Westchester, I was trying to find a local tasting group because I was really looking forward to not just meeting new wine lovers and other psalms and wine specialists. I was also keen on keeping my tasting skills fresh and just learning from others and I've approached a bunch of different groups and it seemed that there was some kind of difficulty entering. And then I said to myself you know what, wouldn't it be great if there was a group of women, professional wine women in New York City or you know the tri-state area that was welcoming and open and supportive and helpful and no judgment and appreciative of different routes that people take in this industry. We don't all have to work in restaurants to be active professionals. I fully support, you know, figuring out different ways of entering this industry and I felt that there was a need and I felt that there was in a place like this.

Speaker 2:

So I was invited to one, to an event in the city, and I walked into the room and it was a huge ballroom filled with these ginormous tables and I knew some people in the room, but I made a conscious decision of sitting at the table, picking a table, sitting at the table where I didn't know anybody, because I wanted to meet more people and new people, and I did.

Speaker 2:

I picked table 13 because I'm superstitious and it should be a bad luck, but in a convoluted way I decided it was going to be a good luck table. That night. I said at the table and I waited for people to arrive and I introduced myself and it happened to be 90% women at the table, all involved in wine, either through writing or sommeliers or distributors, sake, some even and I had said to them exactly what I said to you. I said I'm having a really hard time finding a group that would love to taste with me and that would help me develop this group into something really positive and fantastic and supportive and open and open minded and diverse and all of the above. And the response was amazing. They all were interested, they all wanted to come and one of the women, paula, was more than happy to help me organize everything. And so we found it table 13 and we named it table 13 because I told them this was going to be the lucky table, and that's how it started.

Speaker 1:

Wow, and how long has it been going on now.

Speaker 2:

This is going so close to a year now, uh huh.

Speaker 1:

Yeah, so do you meet monthly, or how do I envision that?

Speaker 2:

We try to meet monthly Now a lot of the women who. So there is no membership and it doesn't cost anybody anything to participate, right? So we invite the women. It's usually just networking through networking, through meeting new people. We invite the women involved in the wine and spirits industry and we typically get sponsorships, and it's either in a restaurant or in a distributor's office and we usually provide a small lunch and a learning opportunity. So on Monday we're actually hosting another one of our meetings with Katena Zapata wines and we are going to learn how to blend our own merlows from five different merlows from five different sites, from the altitude of Malbecs, from Katena Zapata vineyards. So this is going to be our Monday play date for January. I love that you call it play date yeah.

Speaker 2:

It's um, yeah, it's always super fine. We had a bunch of different interesting workshops and with different producers. It's not always wine, it's not only wine. We are talking about having a sake tasting as well. And, yes, we have again a diversity of age, backgrounds, cultural, cultural differences, and everybody's welcome. It's always supportive, it's positive, no barrier to entry and it's completely free. So, yeah, we work very hard at it and we we think there is definitely a need for it. In the industry, there's enough space for all of us and we all can figure out our own way in the wine world or in the sprays world.

Speaker 1:

I love it. That's beautiful.

Speaker 2:

And you're invited next time you're in New York.

Speaker 1:

I am coming to New York. Oh my gosh, that sounds amazing. So, per your LinkedIn profile, you actually do a number of things. So it says you're a wine educator, consultant. You teach wine tasting classes and a lot more. Can you talk a little bit about how you go about this? What, what do you do? How do you find the customers, and yeah all of that.

Speaker 2:

So, as you have noticed, I like to talk, so I talked to people, but how it really started was that I which I mentioned already to you I have hosted many, many, many wine tasting dinners before I was certified, and this is actually what brought me to to deciding to get my certification, because I started to feel like a fraud. I was asked by a lot of people in word of mouth, friends of friends, wine lovers, you know, hobbyists, people who collect wine. I found myself organizing crazy dinners where I was looking for chefs, private chefs, deciding on the topic Sometimes it was just Italy, sometimes it was sparkling and I realized that I was doing this incredible research before each dinner for weeks on end. And then I was presenting to people and I was really worried that at some point some of them will definitely know more than I have, and I felt like I really needed to solidify my knowledge and get the certification to feel like I'm actually doing something on a professional level versus just being, you know, something that I do on weekends. But this is kind of what started my presence in the wine world and, so that you know, I still have a pretty strong following from those days, but I also do a lot of networking. So I participate in a lot of different mostly women and wine events, but I also connect with local influencers. I connect with people who are very active in the restaurant, local restaurant and food industry and I talk to them and I tell them what I do. I'm also an art lover, so I frequent art galleries, which are a phenomenal setting for tastings, and I've partnered with a bunch of different local galleries, both in New York City and in Westchester, and they're more than happy to have my clients come and sometimes we talk about art while we talk about wine. But yeah, it's mostly through networking and just figuring out great events for people to do.

Speaker 2:

I think, especially after COVID, people were really interested in going out, but people didn't just want to go out to a restaurant and have dinner and I feel, with you know, service was sometimes not the best.

Speaker 2:

After COVID, I think restaurants had difficulties retaining quality staff and I think people were kind of starting to entertain a little bit more at home as well, because they kind of got used to it during COVID and I think it kind of opened up a different avenue for sommeliers and wine specialists to kind of explore, and this is what I did. So actually in the middle of planning Gallentine's event, where we will be doing a sparkling wine tasting with caviar and we will compare Prosecco to Cava to Champagne, and it's going to be also a networking event for local women entrepreneurs, so they get to meet other women, learn a little bit about wine, have a bump or a blini with caviar, learn a bit about why they like one versus the other and then, as well, present their businesses to other women and other entrepreneurs. So I would say in a nutshell, networking and just getting the word out there.

Speaker 1:

Yeah, I always do admire my guests that are such powerhouses, because it is like they put their mind to something and then they go out and do it. And you know, not everybody has that mindset. And where do you think you got that mindset? Were you always this person who was like you know what? This is what I'm going to do and I'm going to figure out how to do it until I get it done. Or is that something you learned over time?

Speaker 2:

So I think and that's why I love our Table 13 group because we have young women who are just entering the industry and just learning and we have women who have been in the industry for 30 years, right. So I think that we all learn from one another. But I think that the people who are seasoned professionals or are coming with a positive way baggage of life experiences so the well traveled ones, the ones who maybe speak a few languages, the ones who are open to trying different cuisines, the ones who have maybe lived in another country or had prior careers I think we come with this lovely baggage of experiences that shape who we are and how we approach things and also provide us with something that maybe the younger generations are just starting to work towards. I think, if you're passionate about something and again for me, food, wine, entertaining and also my cultural background right, poland. I don't know if you've ever been to Poland, but in Eastern Europe our hospitality is world famous right? You come into a Polish household, whether you're hungry or not, you're going to eat and you're going to drink. On Christmas Eve, my kids are always making fun of me, but I have a separate extra setting place setting at the table. This is our tradition. Just in case there is a hungry guest knocking on the door, you are ready for them. So this is the mentality.

Speaker 2:

But I think that if you're passionate about something, it transpires, and I think sometimes you know my events sometimes a wife drugs a husband, or a girlfriend brings a boyfriend or a bestie or something. Maybe they're not into wine, but when you're surrounded by people who have this infectious energy and they want to share what they love so much, you cannot escape it, right? So I think, if you do what you love, like, as they say, you never work a day in your life, right? Because you just wake up in the morning and you're so excited about doing and sharing and you know it's really amazing because you always think people know more than they really do, people who just enter the wine industry or who are just trying to learn what they really like and what their taste buds really like and what's the type of food to eat with this and that, and they're so receptive and so appreciative.

Speaker 2:

And I always ask clients and people who come to my events for feedback at the end, because I want to know what was the most valuable thing that they learned and what they loved the most and what I can improve on, and I think this is what makes me a professional who not just presents the knowledge but also truly wants the people to have a fantastic experience. When they come right, it's always a bite to eat that is perfectly curated, or a type of wine, maybe, that they haven't had before, but I want to make sure that they at least found one or two or three things that they didn't know before, that they're coming home with a little note, or that they took pictures of the wines that I presented and they had an opportunity to learn about, and they're going to the local shop to purchase it. So I just feel like it's this whole experience that makes them coming back and also makes them feel like I truly do what I love.

Speaker 1:

Sure.

Speaker 2:

And I don't know where this energy is coming from, but let's call it passion.

Speaker 1:

Yes, I love that and you know I mean not everybody has a to that extent that you do. I really do think you know that you have something special going on for you in that you have that drive to. You know, passion is one thing, but having the drive to actually follow through on it all, not everybody possesses that.

Speaker 2:

And thank you.

Speaker 2:

Look, not every day is easy and Sundays is are not that easy and you know very well this industry is not the easiest and you know I'm 40 plus plus, so I also feel that there are certain barriers to entry.

Speaker 2:

The best advice I got from one of the masters some of us teaching my course was no matter how much you know and no matter what's the pin, what the color of pen you have in your coat or lapel and you know jacket, always remain humble. There's always more to learn and you now have the obligation to teach others and include others and I always remembered it and I thought it was just amazing and I think actually at the end of the song movies, this was also the message and I think that's the most important that we always try to remain humble and you know further our education and deliver the best product we can to our clients. But that, I think, makes it for me worth it. When I meet people who are humble, who know way more than I do, who retained that professionalism and kindness and they accept others into this industry with kindness and openness, with no judgment, that, to me, is really truly worth doing it doing what I do.

Speaker 1:

Yeah, I love that. So I am going to switch directions just a little bit. Because you are native to Poland and I saw on LinkedIn that you speak multiple languages, do you get to visit often? And then really I want to talk about some Polish wine, but do you get to visit relatively often?

Speaker 2:

So I try to visit at least once a year, at least once a year. Hopefully it will be twice a year going forward. I am getting connected with the Society of Polish Somaliers and I'm also getting connected with the Women in Wine in Poland group, which is fantastic. I didn't even know it existed until about four or five months ago. And yes, you are right, we do produce wine in Poland. It's not just potato vodka, we do make excellent vodka. But, yes, the wine industry in Poland is booming, growing, I should say.

Speaker 2:

The climate is changing, which is really good news for Poland. Maybe not so good for other areas producing wine, such as southern Italy or Burgundy, but for Poland it is good news because we are primarily continental climate, which winters are long and very cold and summers tend to be shorter and not very, very hot. But of course it's changing. It's changing everywhere. So we it may be a surprise to you, it was to me we have close to 600 vineyards in Poland. At this point, 520 of them are registered. Not all of them, I know not all of them produce wine for sale as yet, but I think more and more vineyards are employing enologists. More and more vineyards are producing wines from more known varieties like Chardonnay and Cabernet, et cetera. Majority of Polish wines that are produced right now are still. I think 60% of them are white, the rest are red, but the Polish consumer prefers the red wine. So I think this is all changing. It's a very dynamic situation.

Speaker 2:

Very interestingly, last year the international Young Sommelier competition, the first place was actually won by Włogasz Górski, who's a Polish young man. That's awesome and, and you know, in Europe, in order to be a server or work in a restaurant or be a song, you actually do go to school for three or four years to learn the art and the and be true professionals. So this is kind of what differs the states from Europe. When you meet a server or a song, they they have gone through extensive training, so that's fantastic and it's actually a great profession in Poland. So I'm super excited to see that, because when I was growing up in Poland, this was basically non-existent.

Speaker 1:

Yeah, that's, that's amazing and I love it and I really so. I actually like to get some ideas for you for wines that you feel you, as customers, could get their hands on Well, because I really feel, like you know, I want to support that you know, I want to vote with my dollars and say, yeah, bring me the Polish wine, I want to try it.

Speaker 2:

So bad news. I tried. I tried last year because I actually wanted to do a Polish wine tasting and for my group and and I couldn't get any. And then I said, well, I'm going to be a clever monkey and I'm going to go to Greenpoint to the Polish wine store and Polish liquor store and you can buy every vodka produced in Poland and every alcoholic product produced in Poland and every beer but a Polish wine. So I think it will happen. It's not going to happen as yet.

Speaker 2:

I think the wine production in Poland isn't so. We don't have huge producers, right. So everything that's produced comes from smaller productions. So obviously, you know supply, demand issues and export issues and pricing issues, right, and because I think the climate is a little bit, you know, difficult to figure out, I also think that it's a little bit more difficult to figure out how much wine you're actually going to produce at the end of the year.

Speaker 2:

So I think they're doing a little bit of work on this right now and I would love nothing more than bring some Polish wine to Poland, but I may have to from Poland to the States, but I may have to do it in my suitcase next time, but I promise you I'm talking to people in Poland about bringing some wines into the United States. So that's definitely been at the back of my mind and hopefully I'll be the first one bringing them here. But yeah, I would love to see them on the shelves. I mean, we have wines from everywhere else. Why not Poland? We have 600 vineyards and growing. Yeah, hopefully sooner than later, but when I bring them in my suitcase, you are invited.

Speaker 1:

Okay, you know you're quickly becoming my favorite person.

Speaker 2:

Yeah, thank you, I have tasted them. You know, when you go to Poland, almost every quality restaurant will have a few for you to taste. Some have many, and I have to say I've tasted some really excellent whites, excellent Rieslings, some really really interesting rosées. So and that's typically what I gravitate towards, I'm a big white wine girl, so I, you know, I appreciate a really beautiful glass of white, but they are definitely producing reds as well. So, and we have some interesting indigenous grapes in Poland as well that are not as well known here, which would be fun to bring and introduce them to as well.

Speaker 1:

Oh my gosh, it's happening?

Speaker 2:

It's definitely happening, but you may have to go to Poland to taste these wines. For now, I'm sorry.

Speaker 1:

So I'm gonna have to add that to my travel list too. I really I need to just become independently wealthy so I can just travel for living.

Speaker 2:

I think we can work on some sponsorship opportunities.

Speaker 1:

So I see, there you go. Wow, that will be so amazing.

Speaker 2:

Right.

Speaker 1:

I and I have, I mean, poland has been on my list of places that I excuse me that I really want to go Because I haven't had the opportunity yet and I actually have family who went to Poland before and just loved their experience, and so I was like, okay, well, there is another place, is that I need to visit in this world?

Speaker 2:

So feel free to reach out. I highly recommend summer months yeah winter is cold.

Speaker 1:

Yeah.

Speaker 2:

Yeah, summer months are fantastic. There is a lot of cultural and food festivals and wine festivals in Poland from August to October, so these are the months I would recommend visiting. The food scene is phenomenal, the restaurants are phenomenal, the service is great, our nature is stunning. So definitely reach out. I'm more than happy to help you craft a itinerary, and I will definitely be able to make sure somebody with wine knowledge will take good care of you in Poland as well.

Speaker 1:

So my gosh well, thank you so much. I really do appreciate that that's wonderful.

Speaker 2:

I feel like I'm working for a Polish travel agency to provide, but it is really and it's one of the most dynamically developing countries in Eastern Europe. You know from the Soviet bloc and the communist bloc. I think it's really phenomenal what Poland has done in the last 35 years and definitely worth visiting and seeing and tasting. And Polish cuisine is more than pierogi since stuffed cabbage, I promise.

Speaker 1:

I just love the little stereotypes of what all the countries you know the French they have baguette, the Germans have sauerkraut.

Speaker 2:

Yes. Oh gosh, I love that there is a pierogi festival in Krakow in the middle of August, so highly recommend. I took my husband once and he could not believe. I mean pierogi with wagrach, pierogi with kasha, you name it. They put it in the pierogi, so you'll find something you didn't know you needed to enjoy in your eyes Right.

Speaker 1:

Well, we have a Polish store in this area. I think they're still around now. I feel like this weekend I just have to take a trip there and just look through some of the stuff that they offer there.

Speaker 2:

Yes, yes, maybe walk out with some pierogi. Yes, and our cuisines overlap a little bit, because I know the Germans, you know, have the dibs on the sauerkraut, but we make good sauerkraut too.

Speaker 1:

So for sure yeah, yeah, we'll share this we can share this.

Speaker 2:

You can have the bratwurst.

Speaker 1:

Yeah, exactly, and we have a lot of those. So I am actually already coming to my final question here, and I feel like you've sort of answered this already earlier. What one piece of advice would you give to women who are trying to climb the wine industry ladder?

Speaker 2:

I have two. Okay. When one door closes, find a new one. Align yourself with powerful, positive, supportive women who will mentor you and who will want to see you shine.

Speaker 1:

Yeah, bam Bam.

Speaker 2:

Did you?

Speaker 1:

hear the mic drop.

Speaker 2:

But I feel like we're missing the clinking of the glasses right now.

Speaker 1:

Yes, and you know what, if it wasn't 8.45 in the morning for me and I'm about to go to a kickboxing class?

Speaker 2:

Oh, my goodness. Well, we can pretend, we're on German time.

Speaker 1:

Oh man, yeah, we should have recorded in the evening. Next one yes, exactly. Well, we'll meet again in a year and have another interview.

Speaker 2:

Let's talk about Serbian wines next time.

Speaker 1:

Oh my gosh, see, there you go. We'll talk about Serbian wines. I tell you, I mean like I said earlier we could do a five hour episode and never run out of stuff to talk about.

Speaker 2:

Well, I had a lot of fun, so I'm more than happy to meet with you again and talk about Serbian wines anytime.

Speaker 1:

That sounds wonderful. Now I do have the very last question question. Actually, in Polish, how do you say cheers Na?

Speaker 2:

zdrowie to your health, oh it is na zdrowie. Yeah, very similar to Russian Na zdrowie, and I feel Bulgarian sounds similar as well. But yeah, na zdrowie.

Speaker 1:

Na zdrowie. Well, thank you so much for this really, really amazing conversation. I truly, truly appreciate you taking the time and to teach me a few new things, and I do really hope that I can meet you in person someday and make a trip to New York. That's something that's on my bucket list, anyway, to go back to New York. So, thank you. I am going to have all of your information in the show notes, of course, and we will definitely keep in touch.

Speaker 2:

Thank you very much. This was so much fun. I appreciate you having me on your show and I'm waiting for you in New York and I'm not taking no for an answer. You must come.

Speaker 1:

All right. Well, you know, it's a done deal, perfect, all right. Well, thank you, you too. My friends out there, I hope you're all staying warm and dry and with electricity and with all that, all I have left to say is, of course, post.