Ep. 2535 Inside Hong Kong’s Wine Scene with Reeze Choi, Best Sommelier of Asia & Pacific 2025 | Asia Wine Market

In this episode Monty Waldin interviews Gerd Stepp, a flying winemaker of German origins, who worked in several countries and spent a considerable amount of time working in Italy in the Chianti region. Gerd discusses with Monty how the style of Tuscan wines changed over the last twenty years. He also talks about his favorite wine and food pairings with Chianti wines and offers some insight into the international market for Italian wine.

11 Sep 201710min

In this episode Monty Waldin interviews Enrico Rivetto of the Rivetto Winery in the Langhe region of Piemonte. Enrico talks about Piedmontese varieties such as Nascetta, Barbera, Nebbiolo, but also a white grape called Nascetta. Enrico presents his wines and tells Monty all about his wine-making philosophy based on biodynamic principles. He also discusses his experiments with winemaking in claypot and terracotta containers. Tune in to discover another energetic Italian wine personality!

5 Sep 201710min

In this episode Monty Waldin interviews Tim Manning owner of Vinochisti Winery in Tuscany. Tim tells Monty all about his experiments with Italian native grape varieties such as Sagrantino, Erbaluce, Vernaccia di San Giminiano, and Lacrima di Morro d’Alba. Tune in to discover another exciting wine-making and ‘wine-anarchist’ story from the heart of Tuscany!

4 Sep 201720min

In the second part of Monty Waldin’s interview with Paolo De Marchi, Monty and Paolo continue their conversation about the Chianti Classico landscape and terroir. Paolo discusses his signature wines and his viticulture and wine-making philosophy. Join us for a cin cin with another outstanding Italian wine personality!

29 Aug 201713min

In the first of this two-part interview with Paolo De Marchi, Monty Waldin digs deeper into the history of the Chianti Classico area. In this first part, Monty and Paolo discuss the end of the old sharecropping era in the Chianti region and the developments in viticulture in the sixties and seventies. Paolo also talks about the beauty of the Chianti region, the importance of biodiversity in viticulture, and research findings on wild yeasts.

28 Aug 201716min

In this episode Monty Waldin talks to Sean O'Callaghan who recently started a new wine project called Il Guercio in Chianti Classico. Tune in to discover another compelling story about wine making and the history of the one of the most famous wine areas in Italy and in the world.

1 Aug 201719min

In this episode Monty Waldin interviews Michael Schmelzer, owner of the Monte Bernardi Winery in Chianti Classico. A German-American producer who arrived in Tuscany in 2003, Michael tells Monty about his viticulture studies in Australia and his "Retromarcia" wine-making philosophy --literally meaning reverse but also the name of one of their wines-- implying the commitment to go "back to simple and straight-forward Chianti Classico." Tune in for an exciting conversation about Sangiovese, Chianti Classico, and biodynamic wine-making.

31 Jul 201719min

In this episode Monty Waldin meets John Baum, Director of the Winemakers Club in London. John tells Monty about his career in the world of Italian wine and his fondness for the Italian regional wines of Calabria and Basilicata. Monty and John also discuss winemaking trends in popular wine regions such as Chianti.

25 Jul 201710min