Episode 15: Australian Wine on the Fury Road

At last! An episode focused on a wine region in the Southern Hemisphere! As Australia is one of the great wine regions in the world, we thought we'd talk about one of the greatest films of the 21st Century, George Miller's Mad Max: Fury Road. Winston and Emma talk about how much they love this movie, while they butcher Australian geography and accents (sorry Aussies!). Listen to hear about our favorite action hero, Charlize Theron, the difference between Australian wine regions, some amazing fun facts about Mad Max, and what our top five Action Movies are. Plus: feminism, throwbacks to Lord of the Rings, helicopters, religion & the patriarchy, masterful storytelling, musical interludes, Shiraz v. Riesling, Moby Dick, naughty wine names, and Tom Hardy impressions.

In case our "terrific" explanation of Australian wine regions isn't clear, check out this article on Australian Wine, including a map.

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Episode 14: Gas Station Wines (With Michelle Agresti)

This Episode we take a departure and just have some fun, because that is ultimately what wine and art is supposed to be! Emma is joined by Michelle Agresti to talk about Guilty Pleasures, aka "Gas Station Wines for Gas Station Media." Listen to the episode to hear us talk about Britney Spears, the repertoire of Will Ferrell, Manischewitz, Excalibur, musicals, and Dolly Parton. Also: petting zoos, Moscato revelations, Enya renditions, Amaretto Sours, "Adult Sunny-D", high-brow goldfish, and Cougar Juice. This Episode also features Scotty Shoemaker. Special thanks to Scotty Shoemaker for his help with audio recording during this episode!

Episode 13: Dune

Emma and Winston discuss the novel Dune by Frank Herbert, a seminal novel in the Science-fiction genre, and how it represents a Holy War on a cosmic scale. We talk about religion, mythology, the function of Sci-fi and fantasy in society, the hajj and the influence of Islam, Cistercian Monks & Chablis, and Winston recites beautiful poetry. Plus: desert (not dessert) wines, the American Southwest, the prayer of the Human Computer, diurnal shifts, the Crusades, cockamamie, and Sting.

Content warning: discussion of sexual assault and predatory behavior in the novel Dune by Frank Herbert. If you are looking for help or support please visit rainn.org or call 1-800-656-HOPE (1-800-656-3673). If these subjects bother you, we recommend skipping minutes 33-38.

Episode 12: The Return of the King

Welcome to the last installment of our Middle-earth and Old World Wine Series! Almost as epic as The Return of the King (J.R.R. Tolkien) itself, this episode is a raucous good time (and Emma gets audibly tipsy). Listen to find out which wines to pair with a king, with the dead, and with the pure of heart. Plus: Greek mythology, the veil between life and death, Scotch, the literal Deus Ex Machina, Cougar Juice, seafaring grapes, and DOOM!!!!

Episode 11: Dracula

Emma and Winston discuss one of their favorite novels, Dracula by Bram Stoker. We talk about what is sexy, what is subversive, and what is problematic in the book, and how its influence has subsisted through time, almost like Dracula himself! Also, we're drinking a wine from a winery that basically heralds the mission statement of this podcast, Villa Spinosa, a producer of Valpolicella in Italy. Listen to the episode to find out why Emma is a Vampire person, what "appassimento" means, and why corvina is a great grape for Dracula. Also: most books have page numbers, the Land of the Black Earth, androgyny, and love letters to Gary Oldman & Keanu Reeves.

Content warning: discussion of sexual assault and inclusion of potentially triggering language. If you are looking for help or support please visit rainn.org or call 1-800-656-HOPE (1-800-656-3673).

Episode 10: Battlestar Galactica (with Sarah Shachat)

Emma is joined by the highly astute and talented writer Sarah Shachat (Wolf 359) to discuss one of their favorite shows, Battlestar Galactica. Sarah shares her insight on what it's like to write for a serialized Sci-fi show, and we talk about artistic integrity v. commercial accessibility, as it relates to both writing and wine. Listen to hear about religious tensions, diurnal shifts, and genetically modified grapes (and cylons). Plus: The Princess Bride Rules, music as main character, astrology, and laugh track/commentary by Zach Libresco. Follow Sarah on Twitter @sarahshachat

Episode 9: The Two Towers, Part Two

This episode is one of our favorites so far, in which Emma and Winston primarily discuss the wine regions of Spain and Germany! This is the second part of our discussion of The Two Towers, which is the fifth installment of our Middle-earth and Old World Wine Series, wherein we pair every place in The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien with different wine regions in Europe. Listen to the episode to learn about Ribera del Duero, the Spanish Civil War, and Julius Caesar. Plus: Christopher Lee's Chocolatey Voice, "dramatic-ness", Federico García Lorca, Angela Merkel: leader of the free world, pancakes, and the Daddy Issues grape.

Episode 8: The Two Towers, Part 1

We made it to The Two Towers! This is the fourth episode in our Middle-earth and Old World Wines Series, in which Emma pairs every place in J.R.R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings with a different wine region in Europe. In this episode, Emma and Winston talk mostly about Austrian and German wine, including the weird, animal-themed classification of Austrian wine. Learn how to say "falconry" and "emerald lizard" in German, what a fiasco means in the wine world, where Ents came from, and what one of the oldest wines in the world is. Plus: Vikings, Éowyn's badassery, Karl Urban's amazing career, the most fun grape to say, and Tolkien's environmentalism.