It's a total treat to be able to feature another fabulous food and wine lady @ this Friday's Cleanse Party: DETOX/RETOX - Ms. Katrina Fetzer of Ceago Vinegarden. Katrina will share her family's Biodynamic pours with guests and dish a bit about how nourishing the body doesn't have to mean excluding wine - it's about balance and making healthy lifestyle choices. Her family prides itself on running a "balanced and beautiful Biodynamic ranch" along the shores of (I must say stunning) Clear Lake, and if you take a peek at these pics I'm sure you'll agree it's teeming with all of that, and more.

About Katrina Fetzer, pictured
Katrina is the Director of Sales & Marketing at Ceago Vinegarden. She joined Ceago in the summer of 2002 after pursuing business and marketing courses in Europe and in San Francisco. She works with her father, Jim Fetzer, in developing marketing campaigns, sales strategies, design ideas and labels to help take Ceago and the Biodynamic wine movement to the next level. Katrina also puts her international palate and design background to work producing events and sharing her family's wines with distributors, at restaurants and at winemaker dinners. Katrina is an active Board Member for the Demeter Biodynamic Trade Association.

Katrina was kind enough to answer a few questions about her philosophy. Read those responses here, and come out to Friday's event to meet her, taste some delicious wine and learn how a whole farm perspective and healthy outlook can make all the difference in framing wine in a positive light in your life!

What does wellness mean to you?

Katrina: Wellness for me is about balance. Building a balance in my life where my body, mind and spirit are happy, healthy and I can continue to incorporate everything I love...wine, yoga, food, friends to name just a few.

What are a few of your favorite spots in sf to unwind and be healthy?

Katrina: My favorite spots in SF to unwind, be healthy and inspire me...there are so many amazing placing in our beautiful city it is hard to choose. But if I was to pick just a few: Lands End, Ocean Beach, De Young, The Pad, International Orange, The Juice Shop, Out the Door, Hog Island Oyster Company or just the entire Ferry Building with the Farmer's Market!

What makes your Lake County estate a restful, nourishing and inspiring place to be?

It is truly a combination of things that all work together. The property in general, the lake, the diversity of plant crops, the animal integration and especially the people! My father, Jim Fetzer, has created a place where you cannot help but feel the weight lifted and your eyes open to all the beauty surrounding you. And there is nothing better than getting to enjoy it all with a glass of wine!

Learn more at Ceago.com

**Updated 4/17: Read the press on Cleanse Party and the collaboration with these lovely ladies here!

One of the best things about HIP TASTES has always been the opportunities it affords to get out into the local scene and work with some amazing people. And by "working" with people I usually mean drinking (the line gets very fine around these parts). In a bit of a departure from the normal way of doing things, here are a couple of ladies with whom I've actually been doing more thinking than drinking in recent months. A good thing given that we're doing The Cleanse Party together!

I can't think of two better collaborators to work with in helping Hip Tasters find the savvy they've been seeking in the realms of wellness (think juice cleanses, raw foods meal prep, yoga & mindful eating & drinking) AND wine. In this three-part class we'll talk about the essential need for balance and how to view wine in the context of your overall healthy lifestyle. Cue: applause (because we want both, right?).

Next Cleanse Party is May 10 - details @ cleanseparty.eventbrite.com

Adina Niemerow (pictured, top)
Holistic chef, health coach and author Adina Niemerow studied healing with whole foods, Asian traditions and Modern Nutrition, meditation, shiatsu, yoga, and tai chi at the Heartwood Institute with Paul Pitchford, renowned leader in plant based nutrition. She completed her culinary education at the Natural Gourmet Institute in NYC. A good part of her life has been in the kitchens at the top wellness spas and restaurants including The Tree of Life Rejuvenation Center and the French Laundry. She has been personal holistic chef to Fortune 500 CEOs, top designer, musicians, models and Hollywood actors.

About Adina's book, Super Cleanse, in her own words
"Super Cleanse has 12 programs that awaken the spirit as much as the body and mind. They're mini retreats that pull you out of your daily routine so that you can examine what you're consuming - and what’s consuming you - whether it's the food you eat, the lifestyle you choose or the environment you're living in. They give you a quick tune up as well as an opportunity to recalibrate and re-align with your internal guidance system.

My cleanse programs are hybrids of all that I've seen, experienced and learned. Food is definitely the anchor in each one, because what you eat affects our whole being. We have the answer to staying clear, light and awake in what can seem like dark times. So, my question to you is: How could we not take time out to do a cleanse?"
Adina's Super Cleanse, rejuvenation programs and other offerings can be found @ adinamiemerow.com

Nicole Cronin (pictured above in photo by Philey Sanneh)
Nicole Cronin has had a lifelong love affair with all things food and beverage. And then she found yoga. After graduating from UCLA, she secured her first restaurant management position at age 23. From a small restaurant/lounge, she went on to run the show at Mas Sake Sushi in San Francisco's Marina district for seven years until she broke her back in a car accident in 2012. Once she was back on her feet, Nicole knew she must get certified in yoga, her other deep love.

The daughter of a holistic healer and equally passionate about food and yoga, Nicole has found a way to keep one foot in the restaurant and nightlife world while balancing her dedication to everything wellness-related. Nicole believes that true magic can come from an experience during which dining and mindfulness are consciously brought together. When everything put on the table and in your body is thoughtfully chosen and appreciated, Nicole knows the experience slows down and we can release into the present moment.

Yoga was Nicole's gateway to meditation- seated, moving, both on and off the mat. She now strives to bring mindfulness and presence to all aspects of life, whether it's sitting down to the perfect bottle of wine with friends or hosting a yoga-and-meditation evening in her living room. She believes that anyone who devotes focus to it can achieve clarity of mind, balance and a deep sense of inner power.
Learn more about Nicole @ Facebook.com/NicoleCronin

cleanseparty.eventbrite.com

I love television. It's escapism at its best, and with all of the options out there for seeing our favorite shows any time we want - Netflix, Hulu, Prime - it's become de rigeur to actually TRY to watch them all. I freely admit I am guilty of a few back-episode binges myself (anyone who has seen the first seasons of Homeland & Girls totally has my back), so I laughed pretty long and hard over this NY Mag piece by the erudite Elissa Bassist: "Addicted to Netflix: Teen-Soap-Opera Binge As Psychosis."

Yes, it's as good as you think it's going to be.

In spite of all this pent-up viewing enthusiasm, however, some shows we still have to wait for. With our lives more on-demand than ever, this waiting seems to elevate the must-wait-for shows to almost mythic status. Cue: the new season of Mad Men, which debuted this week on AMC. Breathless posts on the now-available-for-anytime-viewing of the first episode are sprinkled across Facebook, so uber fans who may have missed Sunday's show can now breathe freely.

And now that we're on track with the new season (whew!), why not host a Mad Men-themed tasting to add a little more excitement to the next show? My suggestions for wine pairings for characters - yes, Don Draper is a mercurial Burgundy and Betty a bracingly acidic white - abound in this piece on wine tasting parties that ran today (TU to drinks scribe Jessica Yadegaran for featuring Hip Tastes!). Just remember: if you choose to binge-view the entire season at a later date, don't do the same with your wine. With that, moderation is always the best choice. ;)

I am so pleased to announce the new Wellness Series! This Mucha-inspired illustration - courtesy of Mitch Shernoff - is the ideal visual for the Cleanse Party, which kicks off the series. There are so many reasons the time is right to address wine in the context of balance. So many of us are juicing right now or cleansing or even just integrating more yoga and fitness, but we still want wine to be a part of our healthy lifestyle. Dial into these classes for realistic approaches to both - and get ready to really glow...I mean grow! (okay, I really meant both ;))

Here is the link to check out more about the Cleanse Party, my lovely co hostesses Adina Niemerow and Nicole Cronin, and buy some tix:

cleanseparty.eventbrite.com

I have a new crush, and no it's not Georgian wine or grower Champs or micro blogging about Georgian wine or grower Champs (although all of that does sound splendid). My crush is quite simply music - but not just any music - Spotified music. I feel kind of like a nerd raving about it, but I can't help it: Spotify *rocks*!

I love the ease of making playlists and discovering new music. I have literally found so much new music over the past few months it's ushered in a whole new vibe - it's like my aural senses are finally indulging in the level of insanely delicious treats as my palate. Okay, no more gushing. Here are some of my favorite recent compilations. I'll be dropping more playlists with new events and wine releases - so it should be an exciting way to convey the HIP TASTES message to curious ears at large. - CC

Unified 2013 - I created this playlist when I was preparing for my Consumer Trends presentation at this year's Unified Wine & Grape Symposium. A lot of positive music you want to work to, but you wouldn't know it by the artists' names: Cults, Hurts, Modest Mouse, Grizzly Bear...

Listen to the Unified playlist

HT VDay - This is quite possibly my favorite playlist of all time. And yes, I am considering the ones you make when you're 13 and totally obsessive about music (some of it good, much of it mortifying). Rubblebucket, which I just discovered at a show in February, Frank Ocean, Julian Casablancas, James Blake, Lana...

Listen to the HT VDay playlist

Tahoe TGIF - Ah yes, the Tahoe take on the quintessential weekend playlist. Um, Chromeo. New obsession. Don Henley. Journey (oh yes I did). Vampire Weekend. Black Keys. Go on, get your w/e on...

Listen to the Tahoe TGIF playlist

It seems so obvious, yet many have overlooked it: During the recession, and since, one of the best-growing industries has been...drinks. Makes sense, right? People may have spent less on many things, but the personal austerity measures we enacted don't seem to have eradicated this all-important category (you know you're doing your part to help this trend along). Happily, it's also meant drinks careers have been a bright spot in an otherwise pretty desolate landscape for consumer goods. And - they're hiring.

And so in light of all this, I'm proud to be a member of the Mutineer Magazine Drink Careers Project 101 Advisory Board. Together with some 100 other drinks career imcumbents (think sommeliers, entrepreneurs, winemakers, soda slingers, writers, brand mavens, etc.) I'll be sharing tips and insights on how to navigate the tricky but rewarding work inside the beverage industry. I'm psyched to get to know what's going on with new college grads and others looking to transition to the industry, too, so this is shaping up to be an exciting and enriching journey.

Mutineer is raising money via Kickstarter to spread the word far and wide where industry work goes. The result of their hard work will be a printed how-to guide to pursuing a career in the beverage industry. You can do your part in supporting this important cause either by making a donation here or retweeting and posting items shared on Twitter or Facebook (or this post!). This looks to be a great conversation - and we couldn't do that without a big audience, support and broad participation.

I'll be tweeting from @HIpTastesMaven

and posting via Facebook @HipTastesEvents

Please follow me in those spots if you aren't already and let's get this (job) party started!

At Unified? Let's sync up via Twitter: @HipTastesMaven #UGWS @TheUnified

More than 12,000 guests! 650 product mavens! Awesome talks! Massive industry merriment!

This Thursday (9am-11:30am) I'll be joining a fresh faced group of wine industry insiders for the Consumer Trends general session chat at Unified Wine & Grape Symposium. I'm thrilled to have been invited. The session will share insights for wine growers, producers and others in the wine collective on how to keep up with emerging trends. It aims to answer a lot of pressing questions, including (this one specified in the session descriptor): "Why have Moscato and new red wine blends flourished, and what does it mean for the future of both the industry and the food and wine experience?" Indeed.

As a *new!* negociant producer of a red blend I'll bring some case study savvy, and draw upon my sommelier/educator/writer background in pondering just these sorts of questions. Watch for lifestyle cues and various brand success stories around influences as varied as love, wellness, sustainability, music and more. Come on down if you'll be there - and Q&A is always a great time to ask for more.

Consolidation Consolation 2-4pm
In addition to the general session Thursday morning, I'll be moderating a marketing panel breakout later in the day on surviving consolidation. AKA staying relevant and in the game, even as the players who distribute wine shrink in # and competition continues to rise. Talk about a squeeze. Thanks to super savvy panelists Jason Haas (Tablas Creek), Ed LeMay (Constellation), Daren Cliff (The Estates Group) and Hank Beal (Nugget Market, UC Davis guest lecturer) we should have a solid chat and great takeaways. I'll be intro'g everyone with an inspirational quote of their personal selection, so get ready for some philosophy and motivational pointers served up alongside the practical advice.

For those who may not know, Unified is the Western Hemisphere's biggest wine trade show, a mega-event that takes over the convention center in downtown Sacramento for a multi-day blowout every January. Looking for a new mechanical harvester? You'll find it at the trade show. Looking for cork or glass, alt packaging or - per chance - ideas for keeping abreast of trends and making the most of your brand in the wine biz? You've come to the right place.

Unified Conference Dets
Sessions Schedule/Location 411