137: Paris for Wine Lovers with Tanisha Townsend Part 1

What's it like to uproot your life in North America and move to Paris? What’s the connection between forensic science and wine? What influence has hip-hop music had on wine culture? In this episode of the Unreserved Wine Talk podcast, I'm chatting with Tanisha Townsend, Chief Wine Officer of lifestyle agency Girl Meets Glass. You can find the wines we discussed at https://www.nataliemaclean.com/winepicks.   Highlights Is milk a good alternative to wine? How did a trip to Burgundy change Tanisha’s life? What’s one thing Tanisha would do differently in her early career if she could go back? How did Tanisha gain her confidence as a wine professional? What about Tanisha’s background in computer forensics connected her to wine? What role are NFTs playing in the wine world? Why did Tanisha decide to uproot her life and move to Paris? What’s it like teaching French people about wine as an American woman? How has hip-hop music influenced the world of wine? What culture shifts did Tanisha have to adjust to with life in Paris?   Key Takeaways I loved listening to Tanisha’s story about uprooting her life in the US and moving to Paris. I think it’s a dream many of us have. She had such confidence and boldness though to make the move. I’m fascinated with the connection between forensic science and wine, and particularly how the new non-fungible tokens will soon play a role in detecting wine fraud. We’ll have to dive into that in more depth in a future episode. I thought Tanisha had great insights on the influence that hip-hop music has had on wine culture, particularly when it comes to celebrity wines.   Watch Party Join me for the debut Watch Party of the video of this conversation that I’ll be live-streaming for the very first time on Zoom on Wednesday, July 21st at 7 pm eastern. You can save your spot for free right here. I’ll be jumping into the comments as we watch it together so that I can answer your questions in real-time. I want to hear from you! What’s your opinion of what we’re discussing? What takeaways or tips do you love most from this chat? What questions do you have that we didn’t answer?   About Tanisha Townsend Tanisha Townsend is Chief Wine Officer of lifestyle agency Girl Meets Glass. She leads wine classes and tours in Paris as well as online. She also hosts the podcast, Wine School Dropout. Her goal is to empower people with an advanced knowledge of wine and spirits to build confidence in their tastes and make choices when buying wine.   To learn more about the resources mentioned in this episode, visit https://www.nataliemaclean.com/137.

Om Podcasten

The Unreserved Wine Talk podcast features candid conversations with the most fascinating people in the wine world. Your host, award-winning journalist Natalie MacLean, dives into how it feels to compete in the nerve-wracking World's Best Sommelier Competition, the shadowy underground of wine forgery, the zany tactics of a winemaker who hosted a funeral for cork, and more. Nestled in these colourful stories are practical tips on how to choose wine from a restaurant list, pair it with food and spot great values in the liquor store. Every second episode, Natalie goes solo with an unfiltered, personal reflection on wine. She'll share with you how it feels to be a woman in what is still a largely male-dominated field, her gut reaction to the latest health study that says no amount of alcohol consumption is safe and her journey in writing her next book. She'll reveal these vulnerable, sometimes embarrassing, stories with tipsy wit and wisdom that she's soaked up from 20 years of writing about wine. This podcast is for wine lovers from novices to well-cellared aficionados.