Winery Confidential
And why you should stop buying from the big guys It started quietly, like most power plays do. A few headlines here and there, a federal complaint buried between sports scores and stock tickers. One of the biggest distributors in...
An Open Letter From the Cellar
On prices, progress, and why we’re still doing this by hand When we started Bruno, it wasn’t a business plan. It was a belief. That a small team could bring better wine to more people without compromising on quality or...
The Grape That Almost Didn’t Make It
And the stubborn few who refused to give up on it Before Pinot Noir became the wine of candlelit dinners and whispered tasting notes, it was a nightmare. Thin-skinned, moody, allergic to compromise. A grape that bruised easily, rotted fast,...
And why the wine world has never been the same In 1976, Paris was ready to laugh. A British wine merchant thought it would be funny to host a blind tasting: French judges, French wines, French confidence. On the other...
How One Man’s Report Card Changed Wine Forever
And why we don’t play by it Robert Parker didn’t look like the kind of guy who would change the wine world. He was a lawyer from Baltimore who loved to drink and hated how confusing wine felt. Back in...
The Grape That Was Never Supposed to Rule
How Cabernet Sauvignon went from a vineyard accident to the loudest voice in the room Cabernet Sauvignon wasn’t some grand design. It wasn’t born under a royal decree or written into ancient scrolls. It was a vineyard accident. Cabernet Franc...
The Call That Changed Our Cellar
How 500 bottles of Oregon Chardonnay landed at Bruno It was a Saturday night. I was half-distracted, glass in hand, when my phone lit up. LJ was calling. Now, LJ isn’t just any winemaker. He’s part craftsman, part connector —...
The Wine Club Scam Hiding in Plain Sight
What “12 Bottles for $79.99” really gets you. Trust us, it’s not much. You’ve seen the ads. “70% OFF your first case.” “12 wines for $79.99 — delivered to your door.” It sounds too good to be true. That’s because...
For The People Who Actually Make the Damn Wine
Labor Day isn’t about press releases. It’s not about shelf talkers. And it sure as hell isn’t about the people who just sell wine for a profit and a Linkedin profile. About six months ago, I was scrolling through Instagram...