A Career in Wine?

From Radio to Wine

If you jumped back in time to 1996, you would find me pounding back espressos in a glass-enclosed office at a National Public Radio station. If it were six in the morning, I’d already torn through the day’s newspapers while the AP wire streamed across a monitor. A wall of televisions played every major news broadcast in the background, and a circle of desks slowly filled with young, bleary-eyed producers. In less than seven minutes, we were on the air.

Reliving my salad years as a journalist, here in a interview for NPR.

If you had wandered in unannounced and said hello, I would have responded with a look that made it clear you had made a mistake. And if you somehow managed to tell me that within a few years I would be starting something called the Wine School of Philadelphia, I would have laughed—then had security walk you out. Philly? Wine? A message from the future? Clearly, I would have assumed you were unwell.

None of us knows how our lives will change. At the time, I was a disillusioned journalist, burned out on adrenaline and deadlines. Today, my work revolves around teaching, conversation, and sharing wine with people I genuinely like and respect. I get to drink great wine every day, but more importantly, I get to help others understand it. That shift didn’t happen overnight, and it didn’t follow a straight line.

Unexpected Wine Career Changes

Before wine education entered the picture, my life already orbited food and drink. In my twenties, I worked in professional kitchens, learning discipline, repetition, and how pressure sharpens both skills and tempers. Along the way, I was introduced to wine by sommeliers who treated it not as a luxury, but as a craft worth studying. I spent years learning how wine works—how it’s grown, made, evaluated, and misunderstood. Had formal wine education programs existed at the time, I would have followed that path immediately.

Instead, I returned to school and immersed myself in the science behind wine: agriculture, chemistry, statistics, and sensory evaluation. It was humbling work, demanding a completely different mindset from journalism or kitchens. I wasn’t exceptional at it, but I was persistent, and I finished with a far deeper respect for what goes into every bottle.

Eventually, I realized something important. While I loved wine, what truly held my attention was explaining it—breaking it down, stripping away mythology, and helping others taste more clearly. Teaching energized me in a way nothing else had.

My Wine Career

Just another day working in Tuscany, circa 2000.

In 2001, I taught a single wine class at Chaddsford Winery in Pennsylvania. The plan was temporary. One class turned into many. The response was immediate and overwhelming. People weren’t just interested in wine—they were hungry for education that was serious, honest, and free of posturing.

I began expanding the curriculum, moving classes to larger spaces, handing out photocopied schedules, and building something without quite realizing it. Slowly, almost accidentally, the Wine School of Philadelphia took shape.

Here I am in 2007, a young little wine instructor.

Since then, wine education has proven again and again that it can be transformative. Whether someone wants to drink more thoughtfully or build a career around wine, disciplined learning opens doors. The Wine School of Philadelphia exists to provide that foundation—clear, rigorous, and grounded in real understanding rather than status or spectacle.

If wine is your passion, I’m always interested in the story behind it. If you find yourself in one of my classes, come talk to me afterward. We’ll share a glass, compare notes, and see where curiosity might lead next.