Episode #46 - Emily Saladino, Wine Enthusiast
Hanna (02:31)
Hi, Emily. Welcome to the show.
Michael (02:33)
So great to see you.
Emily (02:34)
Likewise, thank you so much for having me.
Michael (02:36)
You've had a very fascinating career. You graduated from the International Culinary Center. Then you worked as a recipe tester and an editor at Google, a bartender and a line cook.
Hanna (02:47)
For our listeners, can you tell us how you first began in journalism and how your diverse work experience helped you to be a better writer.
Emily (02:59)
Absolutely. Um, I did, I came at food and beverage kind of from all sides. I didn't know anyone in journalism. And so I thought I should get some on the ground experience. Um, I always knew I wanted to be a writer and editor, but quite honestly, didn't know how to get there. So I've always been really enthusiastic about cooking and food.
And so I went to culinary school, um, with the mission, not necessarily a being a restaurant chef, but, um, although I did do that during my during my working days, um, I knew that I wanted to be able to do writing and testing and developing recipes, which it isn't a prereq to have a culinary degree, but it's a little difficult without one. It gives you just a very technical basis upon which to approach recipes.
Um, so I did that. I worked in restaurants, as you said. I bartended for years, um, which I think is a great life experience regardless of what your next path is. Um, you know, whether you're a lifelong hospitality professional, or you're someone who, you know, one day wants to be a lawyer, um, I think bartending gives you just a really great sort of real life education.I would recommend it to anyone in any career, at any point, um, because as I said, I just, I think it connects you to people. The different types of people you interact with so many people along the way. And I want to just be really, really upfront. I was no mixologist. I was a really base level, I don't know, an entry level bartender.
Um, but it was, for me, it was really useful in kind of seeing how much Um, hospitality. I liked working with evil, um, and getting to know people in that way. Um, and just finding ways to make everyone's night, the best night, it’s always something that I love. Um, so yes, through doing all of these different things, I got some sort of boots on the ground experience, um, and it helped me pitch stories that I think found homes better than I might've been able to pitch stories without that real world, real life, food and beverage experience.
So through that, I pitched around a lot. From a story that I had freelanced, that Zagat
published, I wound up working for Google for about little less than two years, working with their food and beverage products.
Um, they kind of had this travel concept with Google Maps that I worked on for the time I was there. And then from there I went to tasting tables for a bit then to Vine Pair. And now here. So I always tell people that there's no one way to get into journalism. You know, I know there's folks who, they go to college and then they go to grad school and then they, you know, work at newspapers. That wasn't my path. Um, I don't know that there’s one way that's best. I think whatever you do, um, there's never, it's never too late to start writing. One of the things that I really value about working as an editor is the chance to work with first-time authors. So people who have not contributed to any publications before, maybe they've always thought about it.
Um, as I said, there's not, there's not a right or wrong way, whatever way.
Hanna (06:03)
Yeah. So you are there for mentoring new writers. That's wonderful.
Emily (06:05) Absolutely!
Michael (06:08)
So we've been fans of all things Wine Enthusiast for many, many years, including the magazine, the website, the podcast. So what would you say sets Wine Enthusiast apart from other media outlets, from its audience to the kinds of topics that it covers etc?
Uh, the expertise is wild. As someone who doesn't come from a strictly wine background, I am humbled by it daily. Just the sort of encyclopedic knowledge of beverage is unlike anything I didn't know it was even possible. Um, you know, just some of the folks I work with have experienced wine in particular from so many sides, as well as beer and spirits.
And that to me is a real differentiator, um, that like devotion to craft and to the space that you've covered.
Hanna (07:01)
100%. Now, let's talk about you. As associate managing editor, what does your daily routine look like?
Emily (07:03)
I'm sure, like most of us in media, I don't have a typical day to day. I wish I were like, between the hours of nine and 11 I answer emails, but no, it's so bananas, you know. All day I work with the team in digital editorial because I work more on the digital side. We collab with the print editorial team. I also work extremely closely with the social media, the art and the tasting teams. Um, so already that's all of these different departments.
Um, Wine Enthusiast has a commercial arm as well. We also sell refrigerators, coolers, storage units, things like that. So then there are times when I am talking to the commerce team about like, oh, where, you know, we're doing a photo shoot at this time, when can we schedule, so there's all sorts of inter departmental, um, stuff that goes on in Wine Enthusiast.
And then on top of that, I’m reading pitches from writers that come in mostly via email. I'm on social media, looking for new stories, I'm on social media, promoting existing stories, um, and you know, kind of connecting and trying to hear what people are talking about there. So it's a little bit of everything.
We also physically produce a website, all day, every day. So there’s that digital production element of it as well. All of those things go into it. I feel extremely grateful to have a very dynamic day-to-day. There are times when I'm like, oh, wouldn't it be amazing to carve out two hours to not be on Slack or something, but I don't know that that would ever be possible in this sort of collaborative work that I do.
Um, I don't know. I wish I could tell you also like between 4 and 5 is when I edit there isn't really a set time. But I try to find time to.
Michael (08:57)
Yeah, you're a skilled juggler.
Emily (08:59)
Thank you.
Hanna (09:01)
I feel like we all are these days. I think it's just digital media. And I think, you know, these days you can't be a specialist. You have to be that generalist. You have to do everything to make yourself a rounded person.
Michael (09:14)
So circling back to your past experience, you walked us through some of your freelance gigs and staff positions. So what are the different skill sets that you learned along the way?
Emily (09:20)
Um, I think story development is something that took me a while. It kind of, I had to learn by doing. Um, and so that might mean that I might see a trend or have a concept in mind, or I might have sort of like this big picture question that I'm mulling over. Um, but how. Turn an idea into a pitch into a story is the development of that for me. And that took me a little bit, I would say that took me a while to kind of sort out that process, um, in a more, you know, I just sort of less cerebral way.
Just the nuts and bolts of basic social media I think I had to learn along the way. I have no marketing background that, I feel like just by doing it and by spending a lot of time on it. Um, so yeah, those are, those are sort of, it's like, nuts and bolts and skill as well as one that I think is a little bit more, feveral um, but both of those things, I'm a big fan of. You just gotta try. You just gotta put yourself out there.
Hanna (10:29)
Speaking of social media, what platforms do you find most effective in terms of sharing your articles or seeking inspiration?
Emily (10:29)
For inspiration, I wish I were less addicted to Twitter. I just can't quit it because I do find it very useful. Not only do I hear conversations that I might not have otherwise, you know, it does enable you to broaden your circle in a lot of ways, that I find very valuable. But it also connects me to writers or perspective writers. Some of the folks who I know and work with quite regularly I just came across them in Twitter conversations or they just tweeted something that I thought was really compelling. And going back to that story development thing saying like, okay, that's a, that's a short sentence of total stranger just threw out onto the internet. But like, I think there's a story there, you know, and that's something that I, as I said, I just, I can't quit it. I can't find a better, a better resource for that.
In terms of promoting articles, like sharing stories that have been published on. I work in digital. So just from an analytics side, LinkedIn and Facebook are the ones that drive the most traffic. But I also, I really like LinkedIn, in that way I can look, LinkedIn has kind of like moved into Facebook territory for me, where it is.
Michael (11:39)
Right?!
Hanna (11:43)
Yeah. We love LinkedIn. I think that's my favorite social media channel. And it used to be a very serious, business related stories, sharing, but now I see a lot more people sharing their personal side of their life and business life because. I think LinkedIn is becoming more, more human, but again, you know, work life is personal life for many entrepreneurs like yourself.
Emily (12:10)
I like what you said about the blurring of personal and professional. That's kind of what for me social is I am, I feel like there's a lot of that in our field as well, where it's, um, probably in every field, I should say where that is kind of how you, um, you connect with people, you meet people. So that's also how I package myself. That sounds so dirty, but I position myself in the world. Um, you know, it’s an advertisement in a way for like my work for what, you know, any of us want to be hired.
Michael (12:42):
Speaking of LinkedIn, for our listeners, we'd like to recommend their podcast called This Is Working by Daniel Roth. He’s LinkedIn's editor and has interviewed some amazing folks.
Hanna (12:42):
It's a great episode every time and very inspiring. So this is a working podcast, tune in everyone.
Emily (12:42):
Oh, that's such a hot tip. I'm always looking for new podcasts.
Michael (13:02):
There you go.
Hanna (13:03):
You’ll love that, so enjoy.
Michael (13:05):
So, you recently wrote an article about bartenders who feel strongly about peelers for citrus and vegetables. As a bartender yourself, years behind the stick, do you have a personal preference?
Michael (13:19):
I am team Y shaped peeler all the way. I find straight peelers, the ones that look like pens, I just, I find it very unwieldy. Um, but I really liked one of the folks that I interviewed in that story, Camille Wilson, who has the Instagram handle, @thecocktailsnob. She was like, as a home bartender, I prefer a straight peeler. It's just what I'm used to. And I thought that was a really smart point. It's so personal, you know, I think tools in general, it's just what you, you are comfortable with. And it has to feel right in your hand.
Hanna (13:52):
How do you find topics to write about, in general.
Emily (13:54):
Everywhere? Um, I'm looking for stories. Sometimes it comes out of talented professionals like yourself. Sometimes it comes from conversations with colleagues. Sometimes it comes from, you know, I remember during the early days of the pandemic, there were considerably worse hardships, but one thing that I remember thinking was, was a direct impact on the sort of workflow. Many times just going out you'll wind up talking to someone, you know, you're standing next to someone in line for a bathroom or you’re both waiting to go to the post office, not necessarily glamorous times. You'll have conversations with people and it often for me, um, it awakens ideas. Really cool stories have come out of those one-off conversations. So it's everywhere. Like sometimes it's Twitter and I'll see people having a heated debate about peeler, which is where that particular one came from. And then sometimes, you know, it's a real life chat with like the mail carrier who I've talked to quite a bit of about bags, like what a shoulder bag is versus backpack.
Hanna (15:06):
Gotcha. So in your article, you often quote a lot of great bartenders. So what’s the best way for our bartender friends to get on your radar?
Emily (15:16):
Oh my gosh. I'm always excited to meet people virtually or IRL new sources, new people in the field. It is such a pleasure. Email is great, you know, if you're listening and you're like, oh, I have thoughts about bartending tools and I've got thoughts about cocktails, or if you maybe would like to contribute to Wine Enthusiast one day, I'm always eager to meet folks in the field. So don't hesitate to drop a line. Forgive me if I don't get back right away. Sometimes my inbox gets the the better of me, but also to never hesitate to follow up. That's something, when I was freelancing, I always felt very, I don't know. I'd keep it to people just lose track. We all have so many emails coming.
Hanna (16:03):
Really appreciate you being flexible with the follow-ups because, you know, sometimes we don't feel like maybe we should bother, but then I know you get thousands of emails every day. So, you know, I feel like we should get in touch with her to just follow up. And I, so I'm, I'm happy that you don't mind getting follow up emails.
Michael (16:22):
For our listeners who might, who might not know you or have, you know, a working relationship, what are some good icebreakers or just, you know, a way to initiate. Should they come at you with a full pitch or should they just say hi, I just want to introduce myself?
Emily (16:40):
Either is great. If you would like to be considered as a source for a story, just get in touch and link to your social media channels. If you are looking to pitch a story, I always stress that you don't need to have written the whole thing. If you're pitching a story, um, I don't know where that myth comes out, but it's out there in the world because often people will send me a short intro and then they'll be like the pieces below, let me know if you want to run it. Um, I'm a big fan of not doing unpaid labor. So please don't do that. If you've got a story written, I'm happy to consider it, but I never want folks to feel like they have to, in order to pitch can be three to five lines about what the concept is. And then one to two sentences about who you are and why you think you're the right person to write it. Um, so you can keep it short. Um, and you can say. I heard you on this podcast and you were encouraging pitches, or you can just say, like, I have a story idea for Wine Enthusiast, um, pitching is such a hard thing cause you're, you're putting this part of yourself out there. It feels very personal to me.
Hanna (18:00):
But can you imagine for PR professional like ourselves, we find it hard. Can you imagine the rest of the world who don't have a PR agency and this show is for them? So the tips that you are sharing and making it short and sweet and doesn't have to be perfect long pitches, it's really giving our listeners a confidence because they know that they don't have to be a trained professional to be able to pitch you. So thank you so much for your tips.
Since we are talking about pitching, can you share top three secrets on how our listeners can potentially be a part of your story? Some do's and don'ts maybe?
Emily (18:01):
Sure. A do is to definitely go via email. A related don't is, I’m not great at checking, like DMS on any social platform. And honestly, I get them all. I get it all jumbled. Like, I'll be like, where did I see that? So definitely email and related, don't social DM please. Um, but I think another do, and this is a, this is a real, like, 21st century media thing is, um, photography is, is huge for individuals. If you can either, like, even if you aren't going to invest in professional headshots, which like who is anymore, you get a friend and some nice lighting and, you know, take some quality photos of yourself. If you're a bartender and you can get people to take photos of you making drinks in a way that feels very natural to you and to your personality. Um, I think it's, it's invaluable. I wish it weren't true. I wish we weren't all visual products, but I kind of think we're all visual at this point.
Michael (19:50): So you also frequently write about wine and, uh, we really enjoyed your article about investing in a fancy corkscrew, you had great tips for wine pros. So how do you choose the wine pros for your pieces?
Emily (20:03):
Any time I'm writing a service piece in particular, I want to try to get a diversity of voices. And so that, that can mean in a racial and ethnic diversity, but I also mean in terms of geographic diversity. If it's, if I'm interviewing somms, I want them to be somms from across the U.S. And I want them to work in a variety of types of businesses. So not all fine dining and not all like super-trendy wine bars, but some chain restaurants. I want there to be some sort of diversity in there as well. Um, so for example, like in that story, I knew I wanted someone who was a service professional, someone who worked in restaurants, but I also knew I needed someone who was just a wine enthusiast. That was important to me for that particular story. That's a hard thing, I think, as a listener, because you have really no way of knowing who else I've already talked to, but that's all the more reason to just cold introduce yourself. Um, even if something's not a fit for something at first, if someone's rather not a fit for something I'm working on at that moment. Like most of us, I have an extremely complex system of five emails that I would have. I'll always go back in a later.
Hanna (21:02):
We wanted to thank you for including our clients in your business and wine book recommendations, article, um, Aaron Thompson from Knoxville. You know, you talk about, geographical diversity. Thank you so much for spotlighting our own from, you know, Brother Wolf and Osteria Stella. We really appreciate you taking the time to get to know them. And then also Jenny Crunk from Mirabeau Wine from Provence. I mean they are from far, far away, but then they had this very devastating fire several months ago. So this type of spotlight, it was so uplifting for them. So we thank you on behalf of them.
Emily (21:46):
Thank you two for connecting me with them and to Jenny and Aaron for their time, you know? We're all busy. There are times that I'm like, Hey, can I bug you to tell me about something I happened to be writing about? You know, I always joke that the problem with the digital age is whatever we're working on in that moment is so important, but that's not what everyone else is working on at that moment. So there are times when I feel like I'm really opposing. So, um, I am always, always grateful to, to sources you take the time to, to share their.
Hanna (22:18)
In the coming months, what type of stories will you be working on? And can we get some scoop for our listeners around the globe? Hint, hint, hint.
Emily (22:28)
Sure. Um something that I'm super excited about for 2022 that’s coming down the pipeline is, in the past, Wine Enthusiast has had an issue, um, that is a print issue that’s devoted to culture in some capacity. So last year it was the issue that had LeBron James on the cover.
And we looked at the ways that wine is, um, translated into sports, into, museum art, into street art, um, that kind of thing. This year, we decided to take it in a different direction and look at the intersection of the wellness space with drinks culture. I have a real knee jerk reaction when I get a lot of pitches about, you know, better for youth drinks. And this is actually a healthy choice. And I'm like, well, alcohol is always a toxin let's be real honest with ourselves. Um, and so what we're doing with this issue is, is just kind of looking at that internal intersection. There's always been this really fascinating desire, I think on behalf of humans to find a way to sort of like make our guilty pleasures, a guilty, as opposed to just saying like, I want to eat a piece of chocolate cake. I want to have a glass of wine. Like, why don't you have to be like, it's heart healthy, it's dark chocolate, so it's also hard healthy. It's a really fascinating element of the human condition. Um, and so in this, in issue where we're actually looking at all of the ways that sort of health culture, wine culture, Intersect and co-exist and do when don’t compliment each other. Um, that's the first time we'll be doing this and we'll be may stories on this topic on these topics.
And it's something that I see a lot happening, you know, with, um, quote unquote clean wine was a big talking point. Um, over the last two years, um, health halo exists in food as well as beverage. Um, so sort of unpacking that a little bit is exciting to me.
Michael (24:24)
And we call our podcast Hospitality Forward because we're very optimistic about our industry. So what organization or person have you seen recently innovating and moving hospitality and travel forward?
Emily (24:40)
There is this, um, there's so many great organizations, but there is this one in Yonkers which is where I live that I do want to shout out and it's called Greyston Bakery. Um, what they do is they hire, um, they have, uh, no background check rules and so a lot of formerly incarcerated folks. Um, a lot of people who maybe didn't have a direct path to work in food and beverage much in the way that I consider myself to have not had a direct path to work in journalism, are hired by Greyston. They make these brownies and blondies that are individually packaged. A lot of folks gave them away for Halloween, but they're really high quality baked goods. And it's just, it's a mission that I really believe in. And, um, you know, I just do want to give Greyston a shout out.
Hanna (25:28)
Oh my God, I can't wait to visit them, but also that's an interesting hiring process. No background check, giving some certain types of people an opportunity and a second chance. That's fascinating benefit from, you know, not being judged by mistakes of our paths.
And now it's time for a fun and tasty question. What is your favorite drink? And if you could choose a one person, who would share this drink with and why?
Emily (25:28)
My favorite cocktail is a martini. It is in the style of my former VinePair coworker, Tim McKirdy, who used to make a drink that he calls the makertini. It is a very sort of fairly balanced, um, vermouth to gin martini, but it has a couple of bitters and a twist with it. And to me, it's the perfect dry martini. Um, who would I share it with? I mean, there’s two ways to go with this for me: historical like fantasy world where I'm drinking with whomever. Um, I would love to have a drink with James Baldwin that just would be such a blast. He's smarter than anyone who's ever lived. You know, that's like my, um, my historical dream drinking buddy. And IRL, I mean, this is a, this is a corny answer, but my partner, you know, he's who I often share cocktails with and to see the best drinking buddy I have.
Michael (26:51)
As international travel resumes, what's your next dream destination?
Emily (27:00)
I have never been to India and it's such a huge, huge destination. And so I've always been like, maybe I have to carve out multiple weeks to go, or I need to do just parts of the country at a time, but, uh, that's my number one. It's always kind of been a bucket list, like when we're all ready to travel again.
Hanna (27:25)
India is one of my favorite destinations and I recommend you go to Mumbai, New Dheli. Everywhere. Just food. The people, everything about India is absolutely beautiful.