Uncork The Vibe | Barron Beltz | Barrels & Roots

In this episode of Barrels & Roots, I sat down with Barron Beltz, commercial strategy lead at Sonoma Bespoke winery in Napa Valley. 

Barron has this rare ability to strip away all the intimidation and complexity that keeps so many people from ever really falling in love with wine, and what he shares in this episode is genuinely game-changing for anyone just starting their journey. 

We talk about how to figure out what you actually like before you ever walk into a wine shop, why price means absolutely nothing when it comes to what tastes good to you, and how your personal sense of smell and memory shapes every single sip you take.

What's the first wine that ever made you stop and think - “wait, I actually love this?”

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:00

Mm well first I would say this price is no guarantor of uh of something that you're going to like and and price doesn't necessarily equate to something that is good, better, or best. Again, this is all in the in the eye of the beholder, right? Or in this case, it's the the mouth of the beholder. So, you know, I would say when it comes to wine first, the the wine that you like is a good wine to you. And uh there's no reason you should have to think outside of those, you know, boundaries, especially as you're going on this journey. Um, you know, I I would say my favorite wine at any given moment is the one that I'm sharing at the table right this second. You know, that's that's the beauty of wine, is uh is sharing it, discovering it together more than anything. It's the conversation uh that happens around that bottle and around uh, you know, that uh uh, you know, wherever you are in your journey, that that's the beauty, is the shared experience, the shared conversation. And uh wine just helps that conversation to evolve and blossom. That's one of the beauties of wine.

SPEAKER_01 1:17

All right, welcome everybody back to the Barrels and Roots Podcast. I'm your host, Sean Trace, and I have an awesome guest with me today. Would you like to tell people who you are and what you do?

SPEAKER_00 1:26

Sure. My name is Baron Belts, and uh, I'm a wine guy. That's what I do for a living. So I work for a company called Sonoma Bespoke. We're a winery located in Napa Valley, and uh I do all of our commercial strategy for the company. So anything that has to do with connecting wine to the end user, I do everything in between.

SPEAKER_01 1:47

That's awesome, man. I I love that. And one of the things that's cool about it is like you're helping people find wine, which to me is a super awesome thing to do because wine to me is just an absolutely wonderful thing that, you know, it allows people to connect, to relax, to bridge these gulfs of communication that we are have everywhere in our society. And that's a good thing in my mind, you know?

SPEAKER_00 2:17

Absolutely. I mean, you know, wine, uh, wine has been a conversational lubricant for 8,000 years. And so I'm glad that we get to reap the benefits of uh all those centuries before us. So uh no doubt about it.

SPEAKER_01 2:33

Right. Well, I wanted to ask you this question because as you're helping people understand wine and helping um bridge that gap, you know, like why does wine feel so complicated to regular people?

SPEAKER_00 2:47

I think, you know, one of the big things about this is, you know, it's it's with anything else that you love, uh, you want to learn more about it. And so for those that have been in, you know, in wine or tasting wine or drinking wine or in the wine industry especially, uh, we we love this. And the problem with that is it becomes more complicated because there is so much complexity when it comes to wine, how it's made, where it's grown, just all of these different things. And I think for those of us that have been doing this for a minute, even on the consumer side, right? Those that aren't in the wine industry per se, the more you learn, the more you love and the more that you want to talk about it, but it becomes more and more complex the more that you learn about it. So I think, you know, that's um uh probably the best analogy I have is cooking, for instance. So uh, you know, cooking shows uh on TV, they they've been exploding for the last several decades, right? People love watching these cooking shows. And right, but look, for me, I'm not a cook. I'm not a chef, I don't proclaim to be. I can barely grill burgers, uh, you know, but at the end of the day, I love the finished product. And so I don't necessarily want to know the the science uh and the chemical processes behind why these six ingredients created a loaf of bread. For me, I I just want to eat it and smell it and taste it and enjoy it. And I think for so many people, you know, what we call consumers in the wine industry, that's where most of the folks uh fall, is right there. They they love the product, they love to taste it, they love to enjoy it. They don't necessarily want to know uh, you know, all of the information of how it got inside that bottle in front of them on the table, right? But if they ask a question, the key is make it simple. And if they want it more complex, they'll tell you, you know. So I always try to dumb things down, make it simple, make it make it easy. And then it becomes quite obvious, you know, just within a few minutes of conversation, how much you know, people want to know and how complex or granular they want to be. And I'm happy to go that direction. But uh, for me, I I like to keep it simple. So uh, you know, wine is a beautiful thing, and uh you can uh you can enjoy all of its beauty just by popping a cork and taking a sip and enjoying it with friends. It doesn't have to be more complex than that.

SPEAKER_01 5:29

I um I completely agree. I love it. And I think that you, you know, great people can understand finding people where they're at, not judging them for where they're coming from or who they are and how they approach wine. I think one of the funniest experiences I had is I went to a restaurant with a friend. And I just talked about this earlier today in um a conversation with a friend, that uh I had a friend and I that went to a restaurant, and the psalm came up, and this guy was a funny dude, and he just was like always cracking up with stupid jokes and just saying really wild things. But psalm comes up and he looked at my friend tonight. It's like, well, what wine do you guys want to pair with your food tonight? And I was like, I don't know. And my friend gave me this look and I was like, oh no, here we go. And he looked at the psalm and he's like, I want a wine as dirty as my ex. And the psalm just like got this look. He just was like, he got quiet. He looked at them, and I was just like, Oh, dude, we're gonna get kicked out of this restaurant. And the psalm's like, I got a Barolo that will be right, you know, up your alley. And just like just this, just this, this boom. And I was just like, and one of the things that I thought was funny was like, my friend was an idiot, but you know, he was coming there and he wanted to experience something fun. And this guy asked him a question and he answered the way he answered, and yeah, he was met where he was at. And the guy was like, You got a sense of humor, but I've got a wine for you. And when my friend had that parole, he was like, All right, I see why you said this wine is downright mean, and you know, and like it was wild like that because he was a regular guy. He was not a pretentious guy. He was not a guy that, you know, he was a dude that was normally out drinking, you know, some type of beer and some type of micro brew. And he rolled up to a nice restaurant with me, and he was just who he was.

SPEAKER_00 7:20

I love it. The snob could have just as easily gone the direction of like uh, you know, dirty martini or something along those lines, right? But instead, it was like, no, we're talking about wine. So uh I I love that he was listening and like you said, just just met your friend exactly where he was at and uh a dirty, you know, Barolo, you know, that Nebbiolo grape, man, that uh that's a rough one, especially if you're just starting out in wine. But uh I I love it. That's awesome.

SPEAKER_01 7:52

Well, I want to ask you, like, for people that are just getting into wine, you know, where do they start? How does a person just sit there and go, you know, like what how do you get into this wonderful world of wine, man?

SPEAKER_00 8:02

Yeah, um I I think I think the first part is, you know, curiosity, right? Uh some people don't, like I mentioned about food, some people don't have a lot of curiosity in food. They don't like to discover, they really don't want to try new things. They like their steak and potatoes and maybe throw in a carrot from time to time, right? Um, but then, and you know those kinds of people, right? Then you know people who love to have culinary experiences. And so when it comes to wine, for me, it's, you know, it's much the same. Um, you know, how to get started or where to get started, you know, hopefully you have friends that that like wine and enjoy wine, and maybe you can start with them because the best time to have a glass of wine and enjoy it is to share it, you know, with friends and and folks that you love. So uh for me that that's the entry point, you know, into wine. But for the wine discovery, I mean, the key there is that, you know, uh to me, there's no such thing as a mistake when you're uh when you're discovering. When you're walking down a, you know, a path in the jungle or whatever the case may be, right? You may have different options to turn left and right or to just turn right back around, but it's all about discovery and looking up and you know, taking in all the sights and smells and sounds. And with wine, it's exactly the same, right? So I I usually say the easiest way to kind of taste and try different wines is to try before you buy. In other words, you know, find places where you can sample. So for instance, there, you know, there's a restaurant group, there's many that do this, but it's just one in particular that comes to mind. A place called 60 Vines. They have lots of different locations throughout Texas and Arizona, Florida, et cetera. But this is a place where you can literally just get little samplings of wine and you can taste lots of different samples. And so places like this where you can explore and discover and ask all those questions, right? Of your server, uh, they're going to lead you down that path. So it's even more fun to be in the jungle on that path when there's someone with you that may know something about, you know, where you're going or what you're seeing. And for one, it's exactly the same because you'll quickly start to figure out what you like, what your preferences are, and then always say, just go deeper once you hit that point. Right. You don't need to keep going broad and wide, just go deeper there, and then it will begin to expand. The path will expand at some point. Um, but man, curiosity, discovery, that's that's what it's all about.

SPEAKER_01 10:45

I was uh when I was younger, there was one summer that my mom let us try every sport. And I mean, when I say every sport, like it was every sport. She signed us up for all these classes. And it was a great summer, man. It was a really great summer, but there were some things I learned. I learned what sports I did not like, and I learned what sports I loved. I learned what I was good at and what I was bad at. And not all of those were the same thing, you know. And I I learned I'm not a big fan of outdoor sports. I definitely don't like playing on outdoor courts. Like playing outdoor tennis, it was hot. Not a big fan, but man, I love indoor. I love playing basketball, I love playing volleyball, I love martial arts, and I really am really horrible at golf.

SPEAKER_00 11:30

Maybe I could have gotten better, but like I just something about horrible.

SPEAKER_01 11:38

Dude, it's like I get up there and I'm like, I know the ball is gonna go that way, and the ball goes that way. And the ball goes that way. I have no patience for it. But like with martial arts, I was good. I picked it up quick and I got good fast, you know, and so I stuck with it. But like, it's all about trying things. And if you're not trying things, you're not gonna have any idea what you like. And but one of the things I think is a challenge is that um if you walk into a store and don't know anything, it's hard to know how to pick a bottle. And like, yeah, I want to ask you like if someone walks into a store or restaurant, how do you pick a good bottle?

SPEAKER_00 12:14

Yeah, so um, I mean, there's lots of tricks in the trade, right? And that's once you start to get to know wine a little bit. But I would say from the very outset, you know, there, you know, there's kind of this unwritten role rule when you go grocery shopping, um, that you don't go when you're hungry, right? The the second part of that is that, you know, you actually have a list. In other words, you actually have like the things that you're looking for. And then so it, you know, helps you stay on track. When it comes to wine, the same thing, especially on you if you're at the beginning of your discovery, what I usually like to, you know, ask people to do is to find out what their preferences are, especially when it comes to just beverages in general, right? So I'm talking about very simple things like do you like still water or sparkling? Do you like Sprite, you know, more of the kind of citrusy, you know, sweet, or do you like cola? Um if you drink beer, do you like super bitter IPAs or do you like a creamy Hefeweizen? You know, it's understanding these sorts of just what may seem like simple, right? Or, you know, unsweet tea and sweet tea, or black coffee versus a latte. If you start to understand what your preferences are from that standpoint, it helps you to build out from there what kinds of things you may be looking for. Because what I can guarantee you is if you walk into the cereal aisle, for instance, and you don't know what cereal you want, you can spend two hours looking at cereal boxes, none the wiser, you know, after the two hours. Same thing if you have allergies and you walk into the allergy medication section at Walgreens. You're staring at 200 different items, right? So when it comes to wine, just multiply that times 10. You're looking at thousands of different options. So, you know, for me, it starts about understanding what some of those preferences are and beverages to begin with, and then to find the guide. And so that guide, especially, you know, in a retail situation, go to one of your local what we call bottle shops or wine shops. In other words, a place that that actually takes a focus on wine. And then they will have people there who can help you start your journey. And a lot of those folks don't start, you know, more from kind of an educational standpoint. But if you tell them the kinds of preferences you have when it comes to beverages in general, the things that I just mentioned, that will help them to dial in a little bit, you know, of where they might start you, right? Because if you like unsweet tea and they start you off with a sweet Moscato, I promise you, you're not going to love your wine experience, right? So it's just understanding those things. And then I would say, look, there's also this cheater thing. It's called, you know, uh AI, Chat GPT, and these sorts of things. You can actually start there too, dial in your preferences, the things that I just mentioned, very simple. And then what kinds of wines would I like? Now I know there's a lot of wine professionals that would hate that I just said that, but the the point is keep it simple. Like don't make it complex from the very beginning. And then as you start on that journey, like I said, you'll start to ask more questions, you'll start to discover more, you'll figure out what you like. And by the way, the best wine to you is the wine that you like. Uh, it doesn't matter what anybody else's opinion is. So, you know, start start there. Keep it simple.

SPEAKER_01 15:52

I love that. If someone were to kind of a a person who's never had a glass of wine before, and you wanted to get them started in the world of wine, what three glasses would you pour them?

SPEAKER_00 16:02

Oh my goodness. So for me, because you know, because of what I just said, uh like that's where I start is talking about preferences, because I would much rather learn about what their preferences are before I go choosing, you know, three things that they should start with. But if I were to ask some of those simple questions, and then maybe I have three dozen options behind me to help, you know, fit what those things may be, you know, I would definitely, I definitely want to start with some sort of of sparkling wine. So it just depends, again, on their preferences. Do they like sweeter beverages? And if so, I would probably start with something like a proseco, because they're very friendly, very easy to drink, you know, lightly sweet, right? Anybody can enjoy a glass of proseco. But if they like bitter, dry, more complex sorts of things, surely you could go straight to, you know, French champagne and such. And then it's the same thing with red wine. What are their preferences? Like that tactile feel. Do they like thicker, richer sorts of beverages and things? Again, you can start there and start to figure out what, you know, sort of red wine they might enjoy best. It might be a, you know, slightly chilled uh gamay from the Beaujolais region in France, you know, which is a very simple, easy to drink, uh beautifully um delicious wines, but also dark and rich in color too, uh, all the way to Barolo, like you just said, if they really prefer the bitter, lots of flavors, really super complex. There's plenty of, you know, options there too. And then when it comes to white wine, you know, same thing there. It it just all comes down to understanding, you know, what those preferences are for the person standing in front of you and helping to guide them down, you know, that path. Uh I think the the simpler, the easier that we can make it for them, the more that they're going to love the journey, especially at the beginning. All the complexity and details can that can come later.

SPEAKER_01 18:12

Right. I love that because I think that like one of the things too is, you know, I remember when I was um younger, I started getting into like kung fu movies. And me too, you know, and so yeah, I and there was some great early kung fu movies, and then I was like, I want to get into samurai movies. And there was this guy that ran this video shop near my house that he was like, if you remember the comic store guy in The Simpsons, like it was like that I'm gonna tell you about this great movie, great movie you should try. And like he would tell me, and in the beginning, the movies were way like some of the movies that he got me to were way beyond what I could understand in the beginning. But like he started me off, he's like, All right, first of all, we're gonna try Seven Samurai. It's easy to get to. And I was like, okay, okay. But like he he kind of guided me down this path. And like over time, I started watching better and better kung fu movies and samurai movies. And suddenly I got to like, you know, the movie. Um there were so many good ones, actually, that I got to. I love yo, Jimbo, Ron, but like, what was the one that there's this one movie that's like an absolute head trip where they use like one same story to told from three perspectives? Not an easy movie to understand. And like yet, it was something that I was able to understand with time, you know. And I think that certain wines are like that too. But you have to have someone who can guide you to that place of understanding the complexities of something that is that complex. You can't dive into that right away, you know?

SPEAKER_00 19:42

No, you're totally right. And the other thing, too, is uh I think you know what I said at the beginning is it if you have a friend or you know, a group of friends or whatever the case may be, and if any of them love wine, that is the easiest way many times, because they they had to start their journey somewhere too. And and doing it with someone that you like to be around and someone that you hang out with, you know, weekly or monthly, whatever the case may be, that that's a great way to get started too. But just know there's a lot of professionals out there, you know, in restaurants and wine bars and you know, at retail, you know, wine shops who do this for a living and love to take people on on those journeys. So uh, you know, and look, I I would say this is the other thing too. Don't be embarrassed about where you are, you know, on your journey. You're you're not going to be rock climbing a uh you know a flat you know cliff uh 100 meters up, you know, on your first go. It's the same thing with wine. Thank God it's not that physical in nature. But um, yeah, I mean, be fine with where you are. Don't be embarrassed about it. And uh look, your curiosity uh and discovery, that that's the most thrilling part uh of the journey for sure.

SPEAKER_01 21:01

I love that, man. Um, you know, and one of the things that I wanted to ask you is this like what actually makes a wine good versus just expensive, you know?

SPEAKER_00 21:09

Yeah. Um well, first I would say this price is no guarantor of uh of something that you're going to like. And and price doesn't necessarily equate to something that is good, better, or best. Again, this is all in the in the eye of the beholder, right? Or in this case, it's the the mouth of the beholder. So, you know, I would say when it comes to wine first, the the wine that you like is a good wine to you. And uh there's no reason you should have to think outside of those, you know, boundaries, especially as you're going on this journey. Um, you know, I I would say my favorite wine at any given moment is the one that I'm sharing at the table right this second. You know, that's that's the beauty of wine, is uh is sharing it, discovering it together more than anything.

SPEAKER_01 22:00

anything, it's the conversation uh that happens around that bottle and around uh you know that uh uh you know wherever you are in your journey that that's the beauty is the shared experience the shared conversation and uh wine just helps that conversation to evolve and blossom that's one of the beauties of wine right right like I think that you know there are times where my wife and I I we run a business together we have a busy life together we have a family together we have all these people that depend upon us we talk about work all the time but we have this routine that we try to like once or twice a month go to this one bar together I have a glass of wine she likes her cocktails but in that experience we sit there and we are able to just sit we put our phones aside and we like let's just be here and be present with each other. And I think that sometimes it's like I'm starting a new segment on this podcast. And so I I do talking head stuff on my different podcasts. But like I was trying to think about what can I do on this podcast because you know my Sean Trey show I sit there and how to be resilient. I'm gonna talk to you about how to make your life better. Growing money I'm gonna talk to you about how to you know stop spending so much. In Full Better Media I talk to people about content but I was like what do I do on this one? Because I'm not a wine expert. I can't be like this is the reason you should all love cab. I don't know that but I do love the way wine lets me philosophize about life. You know and so what I'm gonna start doing is calling this segment Slowing Down with Sean where I literally just open up a glass I'm gonna be drinking it and I'm gonna talk about what went on in my life that week and what like what dawned on me that week where it's just a little bit of my own I'm joining a glass this is the wine I'm joining. I'm gonna tell you what I think about the taste and here's what I'm experiencing right now. And that's it. 15 minutes of just sitting and you know I love that that's the shared experience like you're saying right I you know my wife was asking me this morning she was like you know what you know what's unique about this podcast or you know this conversation or or whatever the case may be and I said you know um first of all I I love because I've listened to to you know several of the interviews that you've done Sean and what I love about your approach is that you um you have that element of curiosity and discovery too and that the questions you're asking are are easy they're comprehensible they're you know anybody that loves wine or is on the beginning of their journey with wine could tune into this podcast and and find a place where they're gonna feel like they fit in uh because the conversation isn't instantly too complex there are plenty of other podcasts you know for that but I love what you're talking about you know for for this next this next uh you know piece which is just sharing a glass of wine and then the conversations that that evolve from that so I uh kudos to you man I I love that well I want to ask you this man like because you you've got this interesting perspective and I want to ask you like because I sometimes I I don't know but why do some wines and first of all dude I I I I I don't handle compliments well but I appreciate that man so thank you for seeing that I was like I just like I just totally brushed that off but thank you for that um that's what I'm trying to do man I'm trying to like sit here and make this accessible I grew up in the Napa Valley from high school onward I got to see all these awesome winemakers I got to see all these amazing people and they were just the coolest most down to earth people you could meet and that's why I fell in love with wine you know it's not about the bottles I I get it when everyone's like talking about like you know all the pretense behind wine and I was like I never saw that I saw people that were like really chill really easy but Napa's changed the wine world's changed a little bit and it's gotten a little bit more uptight you know but I always still think though behind all that is a bunch of amazing wines and amazing people making it. And I think that it might not be it's changed but maybe it's changed up here, you know, the way people are looking at it the way the media presents it you know because I know it's gotten more expensive but that's a whole other story.

SPEAKER_00 26:16

But like why do some wines taste amazing to one person and terrible to another well I would tell you I mean I first off thank God that we all have different you know uh right you know yeah di different you know different tastes you know and and that comes to you know music and and clothes and art and cars and you know all of these kinds of things and the the other thing too is I mean it it's worth saying right uh your your face is not uh exactly the same on any other of the seven billion plus humans on earth you know thank God right and so i uh and you know for me too obviously the whole idea though is it's the same with your sense of smell with your sense of taste with your sense of sight there are seven billion plus uh different versions and and unique combinations of those things too so that's why I like to say when it comes to those perceptions and you know what you like what you enjoy uh thank God there are you know uh several billion iterations of that and so when it comes to wine right it's the same thing it it's the same thing as you know Sean you may love dark chocolate but I love white chocolate you may like uh you know Ferraris and and I like uh an SUV you know whatever the whatever the case is but the the point is that when it comes to these flavor sensations and what you smell quite often just you know with my wife and I you know because we've been drinking wine together you know since we've been married and it it's it's amazing to hear some of the things she'll say and she'll kind of look at me like okay I'm about to say something and you're you're probably gonna go no you're wrong and I'm like okay I try not to do that right but you know she may say something like I smell asparagus in this wine I'm like oh my God if the winemaker were sitting here and you said asparagus that is like one of the worst you know descriptors you could ever give for wine but the point is that's what she smells that's the thing that comes up in her mind it's that reminder right it's you smell something you taste something it's going to remind you of something so it's not following this you know prescribed uh narrative of this is what a cabernet tastes like so you should taste you know what whatever combination of cherries berries mocha you know herbs etc no what does this wine remind you of when you smell it where does it take you does it remind you of your your dad doing carpentry and and right okay well see that's that wood that's that oak aging that's that sensation that you're getting you know from the aromatics does it remind you does this wine remind you of of those fresh spring strawberries you know that you had growing up those are the all those sorts of sensations and the beauty of wine is that it helps to just bring bring these things forward from your own experience at some point and those experiences have a lot to do with preferences like we've talked about so I always like to ask people first what do you smell? What do you taste? You know what do you see? And at first it's hard to do that it because the words just aren't there you know at the tip of your tongue but over time you'll find that especially with a glass of wine it loosens your tongue it helps you to think it helps you to to uh to philosophize about you know these sorts of things so I you know I I like to say again I everybody's preferences and taste profile everything's different what they perceive as different that's the beauty of wine that's part of the conversation that happens around sharing that bottle of wine right and it's like there's so much depth that you can get into and you just don't know where it's gonna go like you might go down uh a path that you were like I didn't know we were gonna open that doorway but okay here we go you know yep very frequently right like well hello I don't mind if we do you know and I want to ask you this like if I only drank three types of wine for the rest of my life what should I try? Oh my God Sean whatever you love right I mean I or whatever your wife wants to drink that's what do you love? What do you love? Yeah right I so you know for me this this is uh it's a conversation that that my wife and I have you know nearly every evening I travel quite a bit but it's it's you know what are we thinking for dinner tonight? And then based on that that's you know what I'm gonna go searching for uh you know on the wine stock that I have so um it all depends because for me you know wine most often wine is food in other words wine has a place on that table it has a role to play just like salt and pepper just like olive oil just like cheese just like the meat right on and on it has a role to play in those sorts of things. And of course I have cocktail wine too and just drink it by itself of course but most often most frequently um it it has a position on the table and so that's what I'm you know constantly thinking about but you asked me about my specific preferences and those things. So I love champagne uh you know unfortunately over the years it it's uh a lot of the pricing has come out of reach and so I'm always looking for value and uh so when it comes to value you know there's a lot of great options uh especially out of France you know you'll find uh a Cremant style that's much less expensive made in the same style of champagne um you know so so I love that. When it comes to red wines you mentioned Barolo earlier Nebbiolo is one of my favorite grapes. So whether it's barbaresco or barolo or just a declassified nebbiolo I love nebbiolo but that's not a wine to start with right that that's a wine that that I arrived at. And then when it comes to to white wines I love things like um you know Alberino is is one of my favorites. It the wines like that take you to places right many grapes they're growing along you know the coasts and so with some of these grapes you get this sensation of of that that briny that kind of sea salt air that that uh that surrounds the vineyards and those are the kinds of just awesome experiences uh that that for me it's those flavors it's those things that it reminds me of that's what wine does it transports me uh instantly and uh that that's part of the fun I love roses too man but like I'm equal opportunity wine dude when it comes right down to it if you're pulling a cork I I'm gonna love it and I'm gonna enjoy it with you so again I like to keep it simple I love that man I you and me both one last question today yeah um if you um were to go and and meet someone that says I'm not sure about wine why what would you answer?

SPEAKER_01 33:48

Why wine? Why is it still important?

SPEAKER_00 33:50

Oh man I so for me you know I'm not a huge history buff but there is something really amazing and and historically rich and important about the fact that wine has been with us you know for for 8,000 years, give or take a century, right? That's that's pretty amazing. And you know when I think about you know wine and why wine it's like being a part of that historical narrative and my own little singular individual way it's pretty awesome when you think about like globally how big and beautiful uh you know the the world of wine is and yet how do so many people around the world they barely know anything maybe have never even tasted a wine before you know in their life so there's something that that's just really cool very individualized but at the same time the reason that wine is in a 750 milliliter bottle is because it's meant to be shared. It's that experience so for me it's like if you can find you know the the right company the right person the right family the right group of friends uh to share a bottle of wine with and then pay attention to where the conversation goes after you've had that first sip whether the conversation is centered on that wine or if the conversation starts there and then typically begins to just evolve you never know where it's going to take you so uh I I would say that that's why wine be a part of of 8,000 years of history and uh and start your own discovery uh into the world of wine and and share it with others that's that's the beauty of this thing. I love that man where can people go to learn more about you and what you do uh LinkedIn's the easiest you know place to find me I'm not on there that frequently but you can easily find me you know Baron belts um I I I used to do a uh I used to have a YouTube channel I I I started up a a website and the whole idea was to teach people about wine to make it very simple and easy. I think some of those videos are still up but uh anyway uh LinkedIn's the easiest way to to track me down