Host, Speaker, educator, consultant, advocate
By Joseph M Brandolo Wine & Spirit Events
Host, Speaker, educator, consultant, advocate
About Me
About Me
My life has been a culinary journey that not even I could have imagined. Back in the days of waiting tables at some of Philly’s finest restaurants, like all waitstaff, you imagine a life after this stopover. Through luck and circumstance, I launched a thirty plus year career in the wine and spirit world that provided me the opportunity to meet incredible people. Everyone from winemakers, master distillers, chefs, farmers, food producers, and a chance to travel to culinary destinations that screamed out both charm and graciousness. Along the way I discovered Slow Food, this global, grassroots movement that Carlo Petrini and friends created to prevent the disappearance of local food cultures and traditions, counteract the rise of fast life and combat people's dwindling interest in the food they eat, where it comes from and how our food choices affect the world around us. My career became my passion and Slow Wine would shine a light on properties that exemplified great winemaking practices, even if in the beginning it was Italian centric. In my quest to learn more about wine and spirits, I would accept positions that gave me the opportunity to learn and grow. Distributor sales took me from Fedway Associates, a large wine and spirit company, to Lauber Imports, who represented more boutique wineries. Trade tours are special experiences where the producers go overboard. I toured Jack Daniels, my first of many more to come distillery tours, traveled to California for an extended winery tour of some of the most famous properties, hosted by their owners and winemakers. My dream job was with Pernod Ricard, the second largest company in the industry as a Brand Ambassador in the Mid-Atlantic region, a new pilot program for them. My main focus was Bourbon, but eventually broadened to include our Scotch and Irish whisky portfolio and then our Australian wineries. This meant more travel to the source which meant more wining and dining and introductions to more famous people. All along I was soaking up knowledge through tours and reading. My job was to host consumer events in stores and restaurants and to also provide training to sales staff representing our brands, and hospitality staff who served our brands. A merger would eliminate my position creating an opportunity to return to fine wines, first with Hess Winery in Napa and then to Winebow, a prominent wine company whose heart was Italian wines. Another merger pushed me towards trying my hand at starting my own Import and Distribution Company. Now retired from that lengthy rewarding career, I can spend time sharing that information with folks like you. I would be doing a disservice if during this time of hosting events and sharing information to not provide a platform for sustainability causes. Climate change is affecting everything, including vineyards around the world. Everything from water to food production is affected by the change in weather patterns.
Advocacy Work
Organizing events in a leadership role started in High School when I volunteered with our CYO (Catholic Youth Organization) and CSC (Community Service Corps) chapters. When I discovered the Slow Food Movement a couple of decades ago, I realized it encapsulated many of the causes I felt needed to be addressed. As a child growing up in an ethnic neighborhood in Manayunk, populated with Churches that represented various European nationalities, I witnessed how culture and food were intertwined. Slow Food addressed the eroding and homogenizing of culture and how fast food was the symbol for that process.
Demonstrations in Rome, Italy when the first McDonalds arrived was the catalyst that would eventually spill over into Slow Wine, Slow Cheese, Slow Money, Slow Fish, etc. Like-minded people from around the world united to preserve their cultures and their foods and expanded that consciousness into other related causes. I chose the name Gaia because it is the personification of the Earth and one of the Greek deities, the ancestral mother of all life, representing an all-loving, nurturing, and intelligent cosmic force which oversees life on earth. The synergy that exists between the living and nonliving components of earth functioning as a single system in such a way that the living component regulates and maintains conditions (such as the temperature of the ocean or composition of the atmosphere) to be suitable for life.
As the chapter leader for over a decade of the Philly chapter of Slow Food, we provided events that were educational, informative, entertaining, and celebratory. From our seminars at The Restaurant School at Walnut Hill College to our dinners at World Café Live, we preached the message. I feel that his new venture Gaia Events presents a new chapter, a regeneration of my past experiences and a profound rebirth because now more than ever, the message needs to spread. As climate change and global warming continue to contribute to changes in our agricultural landscape, we must take stock on making changes in our lifestyle. I have tried to present some resources and articles to help educate you in this process.
Event Highlights
My travels have taken me to vineyards, wineries, distilleries and also farms and food productions facilities. My tastings come with an added perspective having viewed the behind the scenes of wine-making and distilling. Understanding the whole process from the vineyard to the winery to the marketing and labeling is key to making the right decisions when choosing. We all have go-to choices and my goal is to try to broaden your horizons by showing you lesser known regions and varietals that offer you value and authenticity, defining "wines of a place". Fundraising through tastings can be a great venue to raise money. Corporate team building can also be a great choice.
Contact Us
Do you have questions or comments about the event? Do you need special accommodations? Send me a message, and I will get back to you as soon as I can.
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