Beer and wine and The Drunken Grape®!

Today’s guest, Rob Statham, is as funny as he is articulate about wine, beer, and why he’s doing what he’s doing. Rob loves to share his knowledge and make whatever event he’s hosting – be it live or virtual – fun, educational, and interesting.

Our conversation ranged from how you put on virtual wine tastings (which Rob believes must be an engaging and entertaining experience) to the latest offerings of Retsina from Greece. Then there was beer, Trappist ale, the power of California wineries… the list of topics goes on and on.

And you really do have to hear Rob compare moving a case of wine around the world to moving a hip of beef. It made me laugh!

Rob also explains what he does on his YouTube channel, which is really cool – but you’ll have to listen to find out what’s going on… here at Wine Behind the Scenes.

What you will learn from this episode:

• Learn how to deal with territorial shipment barriers of wine and beer products.
• Find out how to put up virtual wine and beer tasting parties with people from different places or countries.
• Know how to structure your wine and beer tasting parties [that goes with fixing the food courses to match with wine and beer] and create a successful tasting event.
• Hear of ways to keep wine and beer tasting events fun and exciting and the presentation freewheeling and flowing.
• Discover how to make wine and beer tasting parties truly an experience worth celebrating, filled with fun, laughter, joyful and fascinating conversations on varied subjects of business, arts, culture, people, places, and history, among other things.
• Find about certifications and education you can obtain to become more in-depth and knowledgeable about the wine and beer world.

Rob Statham got his start in the world of wine and beer from his late father’s advice some 11 years ago while having dinner at his house. He grew up with him making wine and beer, and he was quite well-versed on the subject as a home winemaker and brewer who read a lot about the subject.

He was at a crossroads after he left an IT business due to a shady partner and was seeking to study project management. It was his father who convinced him to pursue the world of wine, spirits, and beer instead.

From there, he took courses, got certified in wine and beer, which is rare to have both, and branched out to build his own events and marketing business, The Drunken Grape® (www.thedrunkengrape.com).

Get in touch with Rob Statham:

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/iamrobstatham/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thedrunkengrape/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thedrunkengrape
• YouTube Channel (The Happy Hour with The Drunken Grape®): https://www.youtube.com/c/TheDrunkenGrape or https://www.youtube.com/c/TheDrunkenGrape

Topics Covered:

02:03 – Transitioning from the world of wine to the world of beer

05:37 – Whom he caters to when it comes to his wine and beer virtual tasting business

08:01 – How he manages logistics for a virtual wine, or beer tasting for the same product with people coming from different places

10:31 – Dealing with provincial and interterritorial barriers to shipping wine and beer products

13:14 – Fixing the right food to match the wine or beer

16:00 – Thinking of your business in one word

16:23 – How people associate with wine, beer, and spirits even in ancient times

18:48 – Talking a bit of History about Greek winemaking

21:38 – Rob on him getting passionate every day about what he’s doing

22:14 – What Rob means with ‘the wine world being an endless field’

24:38 – Credentials under Rob’s belt and the certifications and education you can get to hone your skills in the wine and beer space

29:16 – Beer education in relation to winemaking

31:29 – How he came out with a ‘The Drunken Grape’ YouTube channel

33:54 – Interesting topics tackled inside ‘The Drunken Grape’ YouTube channel

35:46 – A backstory of how he got the name ‘The Drunken Grape’

Quotes from Rob Statham:

“So you’ve got cut, compliment and contrast, and then you have balance.”

“You start with an intro drink, get them in the mood of drinking, you talk about the spirit and the joy of wine and beer, the fun facts of history. Then you really get the fun stories about the wineries, the breweries, or the distilleries.”

“Food is a much easier product to shift around than alcohol. Alcohol is right up there with firearms.”

“The presentation has to be freewheeling and flowing. That has to be fun. You do not want rigidity in that, but you want rigidity in the structure.”

“Describe your business in one word. Most people fumble that, but in ours, it’s really quite simple. It’s joy.”

“You’re tasting a part of history. You’re tasting antiquity moved into the modern age.”